are very different. the car manufacturing industry is so large and so concentrated, but competitive within the concentration. they really have gone out of their way to subsidize the purchase of the cars with low cost financing. that is what the caller is referencing. whereas in the manufactured housing industry, it is a very different industry. they did offer very easy financing in the 1990's. they were the leading edge of a lot of the kinds of problems that we faced. they were making loans to anyone who could get themselves in the door of their showrooms and they took a lot of losses. host: willie in chicago, welcome. caller: i worked for years in

the system and now are retired. -- now i'm retired. [unintelligible] i have no more copayment. host: talking about copayments with insurance. guest: fortunately, i have the luxury of not following the health care bill. and we were busy working on the financial reform bill. i am hopeful, along with everyone else in the country, that the health insurance reform will be beneficial. i do not know how it is going to plan and, to pay out, but we can

keep our fingers crossed. . . guest: here is where you spread the jobs around some more people have more jobs and benefits and get the economy going. the larger employers can have more of an impact on that. i think it is the kind of thing

that you look to a larger employer to set the pattern at a government agency or something like that. and you should suggest that to state and local government, and maybe your congressmen and navy blue will do that in washington. host: robert in boston, massachusetts. caller: thank you for taking my call. i just want to thank the small banks, but also i wanted to ask the question -- there are lots of times when you want to cash a check and you go in and a charge to $5. -- and they charge you $5. guest: each bank can set up

policy. i know there are lots of things that do not do that -- banks that do not do that. sometimes the bank is reluctant for whatever reason and they do charge a fee. i hope our bankers would be more flexible, but they're not called the independent bankers for nothing. each one set its own policy. host: the thing there might be more incentive for policies to change as banks look towards the future as the regulations take effect and maybe even go further? guest: that may be the case. certainly people are very engaged in the process and they will be going to the banks, as they should, and say i do not like the policy you have on this or that or the other than. i will find another bank that

will give me a better deal. if enough customers do that, the banks will respond because it is a competitive business. caller: i have a question. my understanding of the system is that the federal government puts up treasury and bonds to the federal reserve and they are issued of. those are issued at a certain interest. and any moneys that are in circulation right now are owed back to someone right now, and on that note, if i wanted to repay back in the interest that is created is a never-and the cycle of debt. how are we supposed to get out of that? guest: and then the caller is

more concerned about the federal debt than the system we have, the monetary policy system we have. the federal reserve literally can create money, and that may seem counterintuitive to the average person, but it is the flow of that keeps things going. as long as people are borrowing the money and paying it back, and the system is working, it actually result in more jobs for everyone. what happens in the fall of 2008 was the big banks and big wall street people lost faith. they said we do not trust anyone, and they stopped making loans to each other, and that is why the economy collapsed. it is a system that is very sophisticated, but it depends on a lot of things, kind of like the debit card swipe.

when it is working right, that is the way it should be. it should be like a water company, you should not have to worry about it. host: steve verdier, thank you for joining us this morning. that is all for "washington journal" today. next, the ada looking ahead. it is a 20 year anniversary today. see you tomorrow. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2010]

>> a live picture from capitol hill. the 20 anniversary of the americans with disability act is

the topic of a gathering this morning. senator tom harkin is responsible for introducing the legislation 20 years ago. the senate passed a resolution recognizing the anniversary. the house is expected to bring up a similar bill sometime today. senator harkin not in the room just yet, but he is expected to moderate. the first panel looking at the history of the disability movement, and the second movement will look at new initiatives. senator harkin now entering the room. we expect this to get underway shortly. we do expect given to go until noon eastern. the house will double in at 12:30. we will have live coverage of the house. the senate is in today at 3:00. senator harkin, who is monitoring -- moderating this event, is just entering. live coverage here on c-span.

>> we're waiting at the start on the events of the 20 anniversary of the americans with disability act. senator tom harkin is the moderator of the event. the first discussion underway in just a moment. we expect to appear from the house majority leader, steny colliehoyer. the first panel will look back at the history of the disability bill amends. the second panel looking

bulwarks, and we do expect to get this underway in just a moment. live coverage here on c-span.

>> it looks as if it will be a moment before things get under way for the americans with disabilities act discussion. the house will dabble in at 12:30. we do expect this even to run until noon. the house of scheduled to start at 12:30. there will be a number of legal affairs in consumer protection affairs as well as three spending bills. the senate will turn to a

campaign finance disclosure. they may take up a small pack of small business provisions. the senate coming in at 3:00. no roll-call votes expected. the house and at 12:30 this afternoon.

>> we appear to be a moment away from the start of the events of the 20 anniversary of the americans with disabilities act. and on the hearings 20 years ago individuals with disabilities related stories of having to crawl on their hands and knees to get up a flight of stairs had not been able to cross a street in a wheelchair because there were no curb cuts. this legislation increased accessibility. it gave millions of americans

opportunity to work and participate in their communities. when this gets under way, there will be two panels. in the first panel will look at the legislation in the history. the second panel will talk about looking forward with some of the legislation and new initiatives to help the disabled.

>> i think you all very much for being here. i know we are a little late getting started.

>> at least you got started. [laughter] [applause] >> guess what? we're going to finish, too. [laughter] >> welcome everyone and all of those that are watching on c- span. for so many people here and for me as the chief sponsor of the americans with disability act in the senate, this is a day at real joy and celebration. 20 years ago today president george h. bush signed into law. he said that the shameful wall of discrimination come tumbling down. 20 years ago it did. [applause] just iin dart called the

emancipation proclamation for the people with disabilities. it has four main goals. equal opposition, independent living, and economic depe independency. it is really about the right to living in the world. it is about ensuring people that can go places and do things that other americans take for granted. i always been the bulk of earl and des moines and i was talking to her about this proposed bill that we were going to get through -- i always think about the girl and des moines and talking to her about this proposed bill and going on and on and she said it is all well and good, but all i really want to do is be able to go out and buy a pair of shoes like anybody else.

justice simple things of life. to be involved with your family and friends. two decades later people with disabilities can do that and much more. as everyone here understands, we still have an unfinished agenda. and particular, the work is far from done in terms of providing choices for homes and supports with people for disabilities and in terms of increasing employment opportunities. we will be discussing these issues this morning. today is a day of gratitude. 20 years later after president bush signed the shameful wall is tumbling down. the broken barriers create opportunities to transform lives. today we recognize that people with disabilities, like all people, had unique abilities, talents, and aptitudes, and our nation is a better country when we make full use of all the talents. the ada is really america at

its best. this morning we have brought together two panels. the first panel cris created from people that were key in getting this act signed into law 20 years ago. this was a completely bipartisan enterprise. we could not have succeeded without the strong support from president bush and key members of his thadministration. i typically get the lion's share of thahe credit, but this bill has many great fathers and mothers. many of them are here on this panel. i would like to mention ansome f the advocates that are no longer with us, just senin dart.

we're fortunate is why it continues to carry on his legacy. -- his wife continues to carry on his legacy. [applause] she is on her way. ed roberts, the father of the independent living movement. senator ted kennedy, who was a great champion with people with disabilities across nearly five decades in the senate. also, weighed blank, evan kamp, danny pfeiffer and annette, without them and so many others, this would not have them possible. let me introduce the first panelist. congressman steny hoyer, majority leader of the u.s. house of representatives

representing maryland's fifth district. [applause] congressman steny hoyer played a leading role in passing this in the house and getting the amendment and macenacted in 200. and on may 9, 1989, i dropped the bill to the senate and on the same day tony dropped it into the house. [applause] from 1994 to 2001 he was vice chairman of the task force on adults with disabilities. currently he is board of directors for the board for

americans with disabilities. next is steve bartlett, a former four-term republican from texas who played a major and key role in moving the 8a.d.a. through the house of representatives and just brought informed me brought home two national championships. [applause] she is currently president and ceo of the financial services roundtable. -- he is currently president and ceo of the financial services round table. also, to my left is dick tho rnberg, the united states

attorney general from 1988 to 1991. he was instrumental in helping us craft the legislation, drafted, played a critical role during the negotiations between the congress and the white house, and he and his wife are long-time advocates and fighters for disability rights in this country. he is currently at office of the national k and l gates. [applause] >> to my right is an ambassador reportegordon gray. he played a critical role in helping craft the a.d.a. and ensure passage. and he was our direct link to the president. i can remember meeting in the

white house one evening when president bush turned to him, who had not met before comments that we have to get this done. he got it done. i can tell you that. [applause] later, served as u.s. ambassador to the european union. he helped to draft and negotiate more than 20 disability related bills, which were enacted into law, including the americans with disabilities act. he is currently a principal at a law firm here in washington. [applause]

last, i bring up the person that we always referred to as the general. patricia wright served as the governmet the gohmert megovernms office. she is widely recognized as the general. she brought together all the different elements. she was one of our chief strategist during the campaign to pull us all together and pass it. patricia wright is back here with us again. thank you for all of your general. [applause] this is our first panel. the second panel we will have a number of activists and people in the community that have been so instrumental in the beginning and the evolving structure of

the a.d.a. since the 1990's. i will start with a starter. he put his name person on the bill. tony, what was it like? just reminisce for us about what it was like at that time. you are person with a disability yourself, epilepsy. what was it like getting this going? >> it was interesting. i did not know what reaction i would get from my colleagues when i put in in the bill ended the first "dear colleague letter." i put it out and people would come up to me on the house floor and say, you know that disability bill that you have, i want to go on it because my mother, father, aunt, uncle, a neighbor, what ever it was, has a disability and i do not like the way they have been treated.

this is liberals, conservatives, democrats, republicans. it did not make any difference. i doubt that any of them read it -- [laughter] they've just sensed and felt the unfairness of the way people were treated. people stop me all the time and wanted to go on the bill. i was fascinated with the number of people who came on the bill immediately. it was bipartisan. it was exciting to get the crosscurrents that i felt. i knew we were going to have a tough time, because there were people in the house that were opposed. i do not mines saying that we had people and the republican leadership and democratic leadership who were opposed to us moving the bill. they felt it would boomerang on the leadership and the congress

and were opposed, but what was exciting is that the grass- roots in the congress felt strongly about it, and i think that was the most shocking thing and i felt great about it. and i really felt good about it. i had a great lieutenant who kept encouraging me to move forward, and that was steny hoyer. that was a fascinating thing to see. >> thanks. let's go to dick thrornberg. maybe you can talk about what it was like at the attorney general at that time. first and foremost, you have had in front of you. can you help explain that? [applause]

>> it does not sound like it needs any explanation. for those of you that do not know, this is the justin dart sombrero that he rawore in his travel all 50 states. his wife came in just after you introduced her. stand up. [applause] the fact that perhaps it is hthe hat is here gives ability. it was a pleasure to serve as attorney general. notwithstanding the observation made by eisenhower's attorney

general years ago that any attorney general who is popular is not doing his job, and i can attest to that, i guess i did my job, it really was a great privilege in a particular to be the administration's point man on this particular piece of legislation. for me, it represented are rare opportunity to merge with my personal agenda was with my official agenda. we have a son and that is now 50 who is very seriouswas very serd at age four months and had intellectual and physical challenges throughout his life. to have the opportunity to translate our concern about our own flesh and blood into a concern for 50 million plus americans with all kinds of disabilities was a rare

privilege indeed. and a little bit extra incentive to put forth a maximum effort on this. i want to say one word of uabout our boss. george bush was a true champion of civil rights, and do not forget it. [applause] this was not a cause that he undertook for political advantage. it was one that came from the heart, and one that he was steadfast in his support. i do not think any of us that were present among three now predict 3000 people under a hot, july sun, people with disabilities and without disabilities, caregivers in families and a cross-section of america on the south lawn of the white house had heard the

president close his remarks as tony pointed out, "let the shameful walls of exclusion come tumbling down." it is a privilege to be here today. congratulate you being in the legislative leadership for so many good causes on behalf of people with disabilities. thank you. [applause] >> thank you very much. i have one little anecdote. there are republicans and democrats on this panel. one of the things that i encountered in doing a little off the record lobbying, you do not lobby when you are cabinet member, but i ran into a few pockets of opposition from some of my republican colleagues that

had a suspicion of civil rights bills. at that time we were dealing with the aftermath of the the decisions the supreme court handed down in 1989. one of the issues in the case was the issue of whether we were promoting a quota system, something the president was very upset about. that pervaded all of this discussion. i said this is not a quota bill, this is a bill that calls for peoples with disabilities. this is a republican bill. it seeks to empower people. [applause] >> that is tehe dick thornberg i know and love.

my favorite image is when president bush said those words and then he went down and sign the bill, and he got up and shook hands with sandy purino, evan camp, and then leaned over and kissed justin dart on the head. steny hoyer, you have been fighting to make sure that the a.d.a. lived up. we had setbacks in the supreme court. give us a recap. looking back over 20 years, what kincomes to your mind on a day like today? >> reminiscent of the general

hoyer. [laughter] i have the honor of being a co- sponsor when tony introduced the americans with disabilities act. not having any idea that tony would be deciding to leave the congress to do other things and call me into his office and a draft me as the leader as that effort in the house on behalf of the americans with disabilities act. so many of you have heard me say that when i look back on my career in congress this will be one of the tumor significant things that i think i have been able to do -- one of the two most significant things that i have been able to do. from a selfish standpoint, i look at this as one of the reasons are ran for office back

in 1966. i know most of you in the audience do not remember 1966, but moving court, toney said this is very important to me, i know it is important to you, and we need to get this passed. the bill had been assigned to five different and numerous subcommittees so that it was an effort communication, bringing people together, bringing them into the room and explaining the bill. contrary to the vicious attack by a member of the tea party, we did read the bill. [laughter] >> yeah, right. [laughter] >> typical member of congress, you did not hear what i said. [laughter] >> luckily tony was not in the

congress so i did not have to put up with that all the time. [laughter] the fact is not only did we read the bill, but we went through the bill meticulously, because all the votes in the house of representatives was well over 400 when it passed and overwhelmingly passed in the senate, it was extraordinarily difficult bill to pass and get people to the comfort level that produced those numbers. sitting with me at the table is patricia wright, the general, who was in the room all of the time, invited or not. [applause] sitting with me is steve bartlett. i cannot express enough my appreciation, not just for the skill and knowledge that steve bartlett brought to the room, but the commitment and the emotional and intellectual

commitment that he brought to the success of the effort of making sure that america's promise of inclusion and opportunity was extended to all americans, in respect of their abilities and what their abilities work and to not focused on the "dis" and disability. i want to thank you for your extraordinary effort as a partner. [applause] in that room on the seventh floor of the longworth building steve and i sat, wright was there, many others and you were in their room from time to time, and we work with all of the committee chairmen and so many of the members. bob michael asti to handle the

list. i regret that there was not c- span covering or cnn covering the proceedings, because this was a bipartisan effort. not republicans and democrats, but american representatives and senators coming together to figure out how can we make america a better place for those millions of americans who were not fully included in the promise of america. that would have been such a positive experience for the american people to see steve bartlett and steny hoyer, to see ted kennedy to working a common

objective of making america better. today is not only historic day that we recognize the americans with disabilities act passage and a subsequent aan immense that said it is not about the wheelchair or the credit or the hearing aid for the kaior the cane, it is about discrimination and prejudice. and it is about insuring that america you cannot exclude because of some prejudice, some perception that somebody cannot do something, because the reality is we can all do something. that is what the americans with disabilities act was about. today it will be a historic day for another reason. jim wittmlanchman injured at the

of 16. an officer's weapon went off accidentally and hit him in this fine and disabled him. we think. today you will see it did not disable him. it did change his life. it made him necessary for things to do it things in a different way, but did not disable. i am quoting a song, "you lift me up." "you lift me up to walk on stormy seas." "i stand on your shoulders." i asked josh grobin to change

the world. "you with me at all that i can bea." a mechanical device will lift him up on the first level. the next clip will lift him up to the second level. the highest level on the roster. he will sit in a mechanical device that is a wonderful device that lets them up even further, and he will preside over the house of representatives on july 21. -- on july [inaudible] . [applause] >> we thank speaker policy for

the purchase made for that to be the case. -- we think the speaker nancy pelosi for the effort she made so that that can be the case. it will be july 26 and you can watch that on television to see that historic event occur, symbolizing a part of what the national disability act did. i also want to thank another person in this room who will be here later. bobby silverstein did such an extraordinary job. you were extraordinary in your work. and i want to thank you for your efforts and melissa schulman. [applause] is melissa here? she was the one that coordinated

the five committees in numerous subcommittees and all of the members along with steve and his staff. i have experiences from time to time at picking up the phone and say we have this and need to get it done. in he dihe did it because he kns boss wanted it done. i think all of the people on the panel, but i think all of you in this room as well, because as i say so often, this bill would not have passed if it was simply the members of the senate and house. it was the thousands, tens of thousands, millions of people across this country who have the courage and division and the tenacity to say "knock down these barriers." ronald reagan said "bring down

this wall." what a wonderful effort we have made, but as justin dart would say, we have to keep on keeping on. thank you. [applause] >> remember, at 2:00 this afternoon a historic day in the house of representatives. >> when will happen in the senate? >> pardon? [applause] [laughter] i do not care how long she spends a languishing on the beaches in mexico, the fire is still there and patricia wright. >> let me mention because i

mention my lawyer, but also in their ro room was ralph neice. [applause] >> thinank you for mentioning bob dole. he sends a letter. dear americans with disabilities, an act was the most important civil rights bill of the past several decades. almost as important is that the bill has bipartisan support. it was signed into law by a republican president, george h. w. bush. i was proud to be a part of it, and know it has helped thousands of americans with disabilities for the past 20 years. it has enhanced the freedom for people with disabilities, and therefore everyone else, demonstrating that america can be a shining example. i think those of you that played

any part in making -- i thank those of you that played any part in making this a reality. god bless america, bob dole. [applause] >> boyden, again, we have been talking about the direct link to the president. i can testify openly about how much president h. w. bush was focus on this and wanted to get it done. he had a great lieutenant that was always there working with us. give us a sense of any little insight about working with president bush and working with us to bridge the gaps we had at that time. >> thank you for the opportunity to celebrate this wonderful legislation.

one of the key people that as an should be mentioned and honored is evan kemp. [laughter] [applause] [no audio] [applause] he was our teacher in the white house. pat told us what to do, but evan introduced us to pat and set listen to what she tells you to do. [laughter] evan was an extraordinary fellow. everyone knew him. he graduate number two or three at law school and cannot get a job. he was disabled and in a wheelchair. i cannot believe today that something like that happen. someone said this morning that he had been turned down by 57

law schools. he was a great friend to all of us, and became very close to the president and mrs. bush. the president had evan and his significant other, a woman named jermine bertrum, [laughter] [applause] together in the white house. at first, the secret service would not let them in the gate. this secret service called up and said she had a police record. janine was a weatherperson and had served time in jail where she was given awards for prison

activism for the evengood, but e had a record. the secret service would not let her in. the president called down to the gate and said i want her in the residence and i want turnout. they let her in. the rest is history. that was one little anecdote. president bush was very patient about this, and would not take no for an answer. another person whose name i think should be mentioned is dr. henry bets. [applause] key runs a clinic in chicago, a rehabilitation clinic. -- he runs a clinic in chicago, rehabilitation clinic. he once said to me of all the

politicians that have been connected to this issue, no one has the direct intuitive connection with people with disabilities as president bush had. there is no hesitation. he said i do not know how to explain it. he has members of his family that are disabled, but so does every family. i just want to say that his view about this was a truly instinctive. it was a pleasure, really a lesson to work with him. another anecdote and then i will set hut up. one day we had a delegation come to visit him, a group called california first. it is a group of down syndrome mostly. she was so taken -- he was so

taken with the group that he marched them down to the oval office. i sat doing nothing for a full hour as they had fun with the group from california. they were into it about this. -- they were intuitive about this. i think it was under reagan that he signed education act. there were predecessor things going on in the reagan years. working for president bush was a joy. he was very impatient about this. the head of walmart came in. he was retiring and said i made a big mistake in this judgment.

he said we fought the americans with disabilities act and we were going to fight it, but now i am one of the founding officers of walmart. i owe you will ian an apology be people we have hired have been the most loyal. this is the best thing that has ever happened and just want to thank you for what you did for the american business community. [applause] >> i have said many times i always have a love-hate relationship with walmart. every time i walk into walmart there are people with disabilities of french working. i think that is a wonderful thing that walmart has done all

over america. -- every time i walk into walmart there are people with disabilities up front working. steve bartlett reaching out to the republican side to get them involved. just some thoughts from you about what it was like working at that time on your side. >> it really did start from the grassroots. it started with individual human beings, those with disabilities and family members that new others. it seemed the barriers, talking with individual members of congress, started with that guy, and outside salesmen who develop lightness as an adult and was fired and his employer would not discuss or talk with him even on the telephone because he said i

am hired to sell chemicals. he became the no. 1 singles person at another company predicts sales person at another company. -- he became the number one salesperson at another company. or another that was fired because the station was beside him and stacking up beyond his ability to deal with it cognitively and the department of agriculture would not put the station behind him. with a job coach we were able to get him a job. we said put the dishes behind him. we would call that a reasonable accommodation. today we will call a common sense. [laughter] so it started with the thousands

and millions of stories as people would talk with the members of congress and build the need for this in the case one on one. then it became the point that' e needed to write the bill and get it right. this was bipartisanship with a purpose. we were going to pass the bill all along with an overwhelming vote because of the title of the bill, but the fact is that steny and others in leadership wanted to make sure we got it right. we sat on the same side of the table. they were not across the table negotiations. we went through the piece of legislation line by line, word by word to make sure we got the right definition of reasonable accommodation to make sure that we got the right balance between

litigation and common sense and just simply making sure we got it right. to make sure we got every single element in the right way. i have to say that we had some sort of steps in the road. we all thought we apply this to state and local governments, but little did we know, but by and large it has done this tesstoodf time. the world is not perfect. there are still barriers, but the barriers are over, bcomeabl and thousands of ways because of the americans with disabilities act. justin dart was bipartisan just by himself. the democrats knew he was a democrat, and the republicans thought he was a republican.

[laughter] [applause] . . correct he has had his own personal difficulties. it is so good, so good to see paul miller here today. [applause]

the second thing i would like to just say is that if you read doro bush cooks' book of god her father, she says that the ada is the most of the mcginn thing he did as president of the united states -- most significant thing he did as president of the united states. that sure tell you something about his commitment to those with disabilities. and it steve will tell you that when i left the congress i asked newt gingrich to make sure that he supported and helped us get the 88th through congress and he committed to do so. -- get the ada through the

congress and he committed to do so. he was involved in the cantor the republicans did not oppose us, but helped us and worked it all the way through. >> following up on that, i think it is important to note that the national council on disability had come up with a proposed legislation in 19806, i believe -- in 1986 i believe. then we kind of work on it, but the first bill that was introduced with that title was introduced by a whole weicker in 1988 [applause] he first introduced the bill and then i was one of the co- sponsors. fred also want to note that senator weicker also wanted to

be here today on the panel, but he is attending an a.g.a. celebration in connecticut today. -- attending and ada celebration in connecticut today. i know she is probed to quiet and conservative to say anything, but i'm going to call on pat wright. my image of pat wright is having all of these different meetings. you see, a lot of people think up the entire disability community was united as one in this effort. [laughter] everybody had different opinions. i said it was like herding cats to get everybody together to support this bill. but my image of pat wright is going from one group to the other group to the other group, modifying, getting people finally rounded up. i will have more to say about that when i introduced bobby silverstein.

but pat wright was just indefatigable. tell us about that. [applause] there are a couple of people that we have not mentioned get and where would like to say some the about. the first from was congressman hamilton fish on the house side. originally, he and silver at -- silvia conti or the first republican sponsors willing to go on the bill. >> before low weicker? >> on the house side. >> oh, sorry. an >> and congressman fish was one of the best of champions on the house side getting the past and i miss him a lot. also, i think the house misses him a lot. also sandy perino should be

mentioned for a number of reasons. one, she's got more guts than i do. [laughter] #2, she is the parent of a disabled child and because of that, force the council to do the first draft of the ada when they did not want to do it go all. i have heard she is writing a book. i am sure we will all be in it. [laughter] she has a place in the history of the ada. >> before you go on, sandy is in town. she will be at the white house this afternoon and will be at the gala tonight. and with her will be roxanna vieira who was also on the council at the time. the two of them are the ones that came to me to introduce the bill with senator weicker at the

time. a major that they came to today's activities. >> thank you. and another person that has not been mentioned is norm mineta, who is help for us on the house side and transportation peace changed the ada. the transportation peace, as you know, was not really popular. it was norm who stood up and major that remained in. and another group i would just like to make comment to adapt, who as a result of their commitment to the transportation issue at the time, there demonstrations across the country -- everyone remembers the scene of people climbing up the steps of the capital.

there were not ready washington lobbyists in that because they would not get their pants dirty. but it was people from all over on the country from adapt who did that memorable scene. ray blank was absolutely wonderful leader who worked very closely with us, although they were not in washington. they were still aware of what was going on. and my thoughts regan -- mike sredin who was in charge of the council when sandy was involved. and arlene and maryland, to my colleagues dreaded because i was

always out front because i had a pair of pearls and a necklace. but their work was invaluable to make me sound and act like i sure have. -- like i should have. >> [inaudible] [laughter] i was a little shocked when this panel was described as the past panel as -- verses the next panel, which was the future. first of all, i hope you guys have not working on these issues. that is important to me. what is important about it is that the ada to meet was never the end. it was really the floor. the foundation to me is the constitution of the united states. the ada became the floor upon which build upon the constitution.

i look at this audience and it is up to the rest of you to keep building that structure. if you are going to quit at the ada, that is not what it is about. and i will move back to mexico if you tell me that is where you are going to do. [laughter] the ada was a shift in the paradigm for us, which was historical up to that point, disability possible -- policy was based on the disabled person being the problem as opposed to the ada actually said the environment was the problem and the physical plant was the problem and the structure of some of our laws was the problem. the 88 came through and shifted the paradigm. -- the ada came through and shifted that paradigm. i think it was true during the ada that it really was a disabled adults and parents of disabled children standing up

and changing, or asking congress to help change society on how people with disabilities were viewed. i look at the ada as the standard for us not to fall below. one important principle that we held on to throughout the entire fight was that it was an inclusive bill. everyone should be treated the same no matter what your disability was. and if i can say anything to all of you, it is to that principle. because this year, your disability may be the -- is to hold on to that principle. because this year, your disability may be the end disability. it knows no socioeconomic background. it knows no political background. background.