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tv   C-SPAN Weekend  CSPAN  July 10, 2011 2:00am-6:00am EDT

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my thought is that, coming up on our centennial, it might be a good idea to put together the 10 in a set. so the pair in a boxed set. >> they are extraordinary books. they reverberate through the day. he was one of the first to write about the country stretching from morocco to indonesia. and their importance for the future. this is long before other people had focused. you can go it from book to book. i remember as we win by the washington monument, what you say to the president until noon? i said mr. president, 10 years, you will be back.
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10 years later, on the cover of the "newsweek." after she heard him make a presentation. he was back. >> i have snuck up behind you. that is a perfect note to conclude. we could go on all afternoon. we expect more forms, more talks about the 37th president. you see what we get into. thank you for watching. thank you for coming. we have another four months in 13. [laughter] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2011]
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[ >> president obama meets with congressional leaders tomorrow for talks on reducing the national debt. he said lawmakers should take advantage of an extraordinarily rare opportunity to change fiscal policy. he calls for a balanced approach to making political sacrifices. then the house and gop conference talks about her party posts of job creation plan in the republican weekly address.
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>> from jobs and the economy to education and energy. a lot of people also submitted different versions of another question. our politics have been grown so contentious. they would ask, when will both parties come together on behalf of the people who elected them? that is an important question. it goes to the heart of the debate we're having in this country. that is about how to tackle the problem of our deficit and debt. there are real differences in the approach. we need a balanced approach. that means taking on spending in our domestic programs and defense programs. it means addressing the challenges of medicare so we can strengthen those programs and protect them for future generations. it means taking on spending in
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the tax cut. spending and tax rates and deductions for the wealthiest. i also know the republicans and democrats do not see eye to eye on a number of issues. we will continue working over the weekend to bridge those gaps. the good news is we agree on some of the big things. after a decade of racking up deficits and debt, we need to get our fiscal house in order. in order to do that, both sides are gonna have to step outside of the comfort zone and make some political sacrifice. we agree we cannot afford to default on our national obligations for the first time in history. we need to uphold the faith in credit of the united states. with the recovery that is still fragile and not producing the jobs we need, the last thing we can afford is the usual partisan game playing. congress will be any stronger position to focus on some of the measures i have party proposed
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by putting people to work rebuilding america's infrastructure or ipad system so that are innovators have a greater incentive to make new products. or making college more affordable. businesses that may be holding back, we'll have a greater confidence to invest and create jobs. i know we can do this. we can meet our fiscal challenge. that is what the american people sent us here to do. they did not send guard -- us to kick the problems down the road. they sent us here to work together. they sent this year to get things done. we have an extraordinary opportunity to move forward in a way that makes sure our government that is within our means, that puts our economy on a sounder footing for the future, and then invests in the things we need to prosper in the years to come. i'm hopeful that we will rise to the moment and seize this
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opportunity. thank you and have a great weekend. >> hello. i have the privilege of representing washington's fifth congressional district. i served as vice chair of the republican conference. where are the jobs? it is the only question worth asking after the employment report. our economy is creating fewer jobs right now. more than 14 million people are out of work. they have been unemployed for 40 weeks. a new record. they promised the stimulus would keep unemployment below 8%. it is more than 9% and still rising. that is unacceptable. america can do better. by and large it is uncertainty holding the economy back, about our debt, energy prices, all
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the bird as some mandates coming down from washington. small-business owners are pleading for government to get out of the way. the republican majority has been listening. we're focused on implementing our plan for job creators which is designed to remove government barriers to private sector job growth. the kind of growth that the stimulus promised but failed to deliver. you can check out the details force yourself at jobs.gop.gov. we expanded domestic energy production to help lower costs in creating jobs. we voted to modernize the patent system to help america's innovators level the playing field. we never approved a budget that pays down our debt over time and makes washington live within its
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means. unfortunately, the democrat led senate has not considered any of these jobs the bills, not a single one. it does been more than 800 days since the senate passed a budget. president obama has said he is open to decoration ideas from anyone and any party. if that is the case, he should encourage democrats to take up the job bills the house has passed. from the look of things, the democrats cannot have a job plan. they have a spending agenda. they are proposing a rehash of what has already been tried, more spending, more taxes, and bigger government. these are the washington knows best policies as steered us toward a dead end. if we've learned anything, it is the weekend not spend or borrow our way to prosperity. to create jobs, we must stop
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spending money we do not have. that is why republicans have maintained their can be no increase in the debt limit unless it is accompanied by serious spending cuts and reforms. to be serious, these cuts should exceed the amount by which president obama once the debt limit increase. there can be no job crushing tax hikes on families and small businesses. washington democrats disagree. they say that to reduce our debt, the american people should sacrifice in the form of higher taxes. that is where they are wrong. the american people have already sacrificed and lost jobs. it is time to -- for washington to do the sacrificing. more than 150 economist echoed this view point. we will not succeed in balancing the budget and overcoming the challenges of art that until we succeed in committing ourselves
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to government policies that allow our economy to grow. tax hikes will not help the economy. they would make matters worse. if we do this right, we could reduce uncertainty and a pay down our debt over the long term. that is what our job craters made. mr. president, americans are asking, where are the jobs? we invite you to change course to empower our at small businesses, families. we can do this if we work together. you can learn more about the republican job plan at jobs.gop.gov. thank you for listening. >> remarks for -- from gene sperling. after that, a discussion on civil engagement and social media.
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on "newsmakers, jim jordan, chairman of the republican study committee talks about the budget. the republican study committee is a group of 175 house republicans formed to advance a economic agenda in the house of representatives. sunday at 10:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. eastern on c-span. campus progress, the youth division of the center for american progress held its annual conference this week in washington, d.c. this portion includes remarks from council director gene sperling and a panel discussion on how young people can pursue careers. this is just under two hours
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>> they call me the black weird al yankovic. song.k beyonce's but i'm not going to do that for you today. this one is based on a sun you might remember called "we fly." but we gonna flip it. i challenge my students to do not know any of the words on the study guide for the test there
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were supposed to be preparing for. i need your help. watch this. ', english is biology ♪ i need y'all. this is my seventh time in the seventh grade. i could quote songs but keep getting d's. it, my best with grade is a d i cut class like mowers cut grass for gradnough i know benjamin
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i'd rather holler at the hoes english, biology, can't divide or multiply this is my 7th time in the 7th grade only correct on my exams is my name my resume is half a page young rappers, lil' ill the teacher is broke mc's write about weed and dope i cheat off the guy in the front
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row who cares about mc squared? math, english, biology resumeivide or write a this is my 7th time in the 7th grade i'm quttin' soon schooledof getting gotta ask for a pass to take a leak tried selling drugs, it was bad for me
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can't read a playbook can't be a rapper math, english, biology resumeivide, write a this is my 7th time in the 7th grade thank you [applause] from new orleans. some of you might catch my accent. i have been in d.c. for some time. i am supposed to say that i am -- i have a sexy table over there. i have things for sale. i have business cards and press
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kits. i know your present campuses around the country. you might remember this song. this is why i am hot. i notice edit breakout session about global warming. why it's hot this is why it's hot this is why it is hot. it is destroying the environment this war is on our own ground look at hurricane katrina hurricanes happen because of actions industrial pollution, and cannot take the heat they have engineers designing
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engines that run off of greece from the kitchen you cannot get it because of greedy politicians taking kickbacks when they give a handshake every last american thinks its petroleum acid rain makes a storm to like a sauna al gore said the truth is inconvenient we can see of the refuse to believe it this is why it is as hot as an engine block this is why it is hot this is why it is hot this is why it is so hot it is going to flood the like noah's ark it is going to flood ♪ that is the remake. [applause]
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thank you. i'm going to pull out my phone. i just came from new orleans. it is beautiful down there. i fell on love with at all over again. after hurricane katrina, people are asking why rebuild? just forget it. this is about that. they will ask us why we matter. what a special about our specialties? they will call us a wannabe paris that ought to be embarrassed. to which we might reply, having never conversed with the spirits and stepped outside 7 -- st. louis for a smoke? i guess you never spent sunday's cursing as saints and vein. agassi never sang about 1825, tulane. look that up. half the houses are abandoned and the roaches pay the taxes.
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debauchery language and bring home the bacon and learned in a blaze a plate of the neighbors like they're making occasion we my reply, do you know what means to eat red beans? pralines texas shrimp creole, a jumbo and jambalaya. a quarter for a fruit bill. drive through daiquiri stance sipping on such and such. top off with a hot sauce. we never closed. what is the big deal about the big easy? a poor man's vegas were only safe and vacations. where all the college girls of flash for payment. have ever gone to peaches at u.n.l.v.? [unintelligible]
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then we watch the project to shake a like a dog? hot girls talk about what it? maybe that is just me still there will last, to what we my reply, we london may 2 lifeline. a second line. so they can still hear the music. we dance with umbrellas over their heads leading the angels a confusion. it is hard to them and they cannot see where you are they will last and remain our reply because the a la the legends, all muscle and a spit, you have that in your hourglass. only time will tell. i have cds for sell. thank you for listening. [applause] >> please welcome angela and
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david. ♪ >> how are you doing this afternoon? [applause] lunch was dead? -- good? cool. mission is toess's support progressive idea and action in your community. we work with organizations on everything from insuring there are resources on college campuses. one of the ways we do this is through our granting and internship program. the goal is to create a more
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just and equitable communities through the strategic development of the youth led organizations. you can participate in these programs by applying for an organizing grant or a partnership. the grantees receive $1,500 a year to help with anything you might need to further your campaign. the progressive partners receive guidance, networking, splining, and training for their campaign. we have some current and past grantees in the house tonight. samuel meet throughout the rest of the conference. application for the grant is open on our website. we hope all of you will apply and be interested in working with us. go to the web site for more information. now i am proud to present a few of our most accomplished grantees.
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activist of the year, we had diego sanchez. julio and diego work with students for equal rights, the organization was founded and led by immigrant youth who worked to advance the rights of immigrants. they worked tirelessly to raise awareness about the dream back and push for passage. gaining national attention to the students working for the campaign to get a senator to gopac -- co-sponsor is. it is my pleasure to present them with the activists of the year award. [applause] our next awardee is natalie. she is a recent graduate and a former student body president of the county college. and her time as an activist, she is focused on helping
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undocumented students gain access to her school and increasing the college completeness rates of community college students. she worked with the community college to host a summit of government leaders from around new jersey to coordinate efforts around the state. she did all this while managing two jobs, helping to take care of her family, and raising two children. give it up. [applause] natalie is a prime example of our mission to empire -- empower young people to make progress and change on their campuses and community. thank you congratulation. [applause] finally, we have the bowling green coalition for justice. she had her sights on becoming a
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cpa and making those big bucks. until serialized she was much more passionate about something the site accounting. she loved working on campaigns. nash is a 2011 fellow with the senate in a file and is continuing to build your skills as a social justice activist. it was created in an effort to pass ordinances that would protect 12 categories of people including those within the belgae bt community from housing discrimination. the students were the lifeblood of the campaign. they canvassed and brought the vote tom. because of this, the turnout rate for young voters was higher than it did in the presidential election in 2008. that is unheard of. as a leader among the movement of many young people today, we
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honor her as a representative of the boeing -- bowling green coalition of justice. thank you. [applause] taken away, david. >> thank you. my name is david and i am the former journalism network associate. for two and a half years i led the journalism at work which works to find and train the next generation of progress of journalists. our program provides 45 alternative publications and radio shows with france. -- grants. a healthy democracy requires good journalism. i am here today to provide for my favor responsibility. acknowledging the most dedicated journalists, the one who ever done the best work and to show the most promise of making our
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democracy healthier. it is their job to educate their readers about issues that matter, to hold leaders accountable by acting as watchdogs, and to sponsor a debate over issues that affect people's lives. young people during the 2010 school year performed these responsibilities best of all. they inspire of us. they should inspire you as well. our first award goes to a quarterly magazine. from its design to content, ethos is a publication you cannot put down. congratulation to susie paeck. [applause] we could not select just one best publication. the second is one of the oldest in america that is still operating. it's storytelling is gripping
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and touching, proving that the best way to change hearts and minds is to tell a story. congratulation to "the new journal." [applause] our best of the question website award goes to an organization that never stopped improving. it is filled with attractive design, multimedia, an amazing content that is updated throughout the day. congratulations. [applause] when we decided to select the best contributor, one person came to mind. this young journalist has his finger on the pulse of journalists. he's willing to get down to find and tell a great story. his willingness to go the extra mile and ability to do it well
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are great. congratulations. let me send a congratulations to all of our winners. >> please welcome jessica mathews, and natasha. [applause] >> hello. can you hear me? >> yes! >> what i am excited to be here today. i ran from a bunch of the activists, some of the original founders. their legendary activists. one of them pulled me aside. i told them what the paddle was about. he said i did not understand how lucky i was and how lucky i generation is to be a will to make a living off of your
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passions. make a living off of making the world a better place. that is a new phenomenon. i told. , yes. it is easier now than it has ever been. that does not mean it is easy. that is what the panel is about. we will talk about some of the barriers. a lot of these conversations, we have had them before. people say, follow your dreams. that is great. it feels good. there are many practical questions. since we do not have time for q&a, i'm going to pretend i'm you. i'm going to ask my panel today questions that are common in figuring out how to make social change your full-time job. as was mentioned to my immediate left is jessica mathews. she is the ceo of a new company.
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i will let them tell you about what they do. he is the senior speech writer and communications adviser to the office of secretary of commerce. an impressive title. all the way on the end is my former colleague and now sustainable farmers. asked theto jump been most basic questions. what you do and how did you get there? >> this is going to be a contest in speed talking. let us know if we go too fast. i am 22 years old. i'm an inventor. i think it is the coolest thing to be allowed to say that. i feel very bill nye. i started out without an engineering programs. we invented something. a soccket harnesses the power of
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play a while you play with that. it can be used to power small appliances critical to developing worlds. [applause] my parents like it, too. the idea for us, we do not want to try to fix all the problems. we want to raise awareness about the global energy problem. we wanted this problem to be fun. that's as a lot about our generation. i do not think your life is to be a reminder of what you lack. we want to be fun. the minute you tried to do it, why can that be something that will boost your happiness?
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and empower you to start thinking, why not verses of why? fast toward a few years. i founded a company with one of the coinventors. i now run an innovative company where we produce on products and services. >> that is awesome. [applause] >> i am 25 years old. i'm from california. like many of you, i majored in political science in college and thought the next that was law school. somewhere along the way i came out to d.c. and worked on the hill. i got this feeling that i kept wanting to scratch. i started to work on issues that i enjoyed. not in a glamorous way but as part of the team.
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i started to realize that when there was something else trying me away from a natural path like law school, i was willing to take a leap of faith on an idea. i know that sounds generic. but if you ever have those moments, we're still young. do not shy away from taking something even if that doesn't sound as concrete as a loss ". i abandon that path and came to d.c. to work for a couple of different politicians and political organizations. that is how i got to where i am now. every now and then my parents try to afford me articles -- forward me articles about the price differential in salary about my career choice. you will face moments for their differences in terms of payment. you'll have to make intense decisions. if you have that feeling, be
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willing to take the leap of faith. [applause] >> i am excited to be back. i used to work here and take naps in the back of this room after working 24/7 shifts. i am happy to be back here. i'm 28 years old. i am based that of new york. i am a farmer. sometimes i have to repeat myself. i am a farmer and. i grow food. i'm a female farmer. i am a brown farmer. [applause] i put emphasis on those things because agriculture is so far from our mind. we all eat food. it has become a lost art for it
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to work. even recently, there are discussions around how we grow our food with the organic food movement. even suited justice which is a way of saying, everyone should have a fair slice of the food movement pie. there is still this niche of the voices not being heard. there are old issues that make people uncomfortable, like racism. when we're talking about fair food distribution, who was access to the farmers' market, who is getting the loans? all of these issues are sitting in the dark. if you really want to follow your food, it is important to go to the root of the food system, our farming tradition. practices that were here way before the movement picked up. women farmers who make up 80%
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of farmers worldwide. and brown farmers, people of color, who hold a dual titles of being in the majority of farmers worldwide but also having the shittiest end of this debt. i'm an environmental activist. as a person of color who wanted to get my crunchy on and get connected. where are all the brown people at? that is where i focus on outside of growing food. i'm not stay with the collective farming group. we grow a hundred varieties of food on 3 acres of land. i also write about these issues. i write for environmental farming publications. that is why i started this initiative. we're trying to raise the
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voices led by people of color. [applause] >> i want to ask you all, you spoke to it directly. but i want to get everyone else to talk about it. where is that moment? what was the moment it help to transition from a traditional path, natasha, i know you're working in a traditional environment, when was that moment? how did you make that decision? i often hear people talk about, waking up and deciding to do it. my brain does not work like that. by brant thinks about how my going to live? what is my mama going to say? [laughter] how did you make the transition a matter how earlier late? what was the decision making process? >> for me, this was not invented
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-- i did not want to tell my class. that is serious when the of nigerian parents. i'm sitting down. i'm a junior at harvard. we wanted to create a system of mobile health records. our professors said, meh. i locked into a room and we push, push, push. we came out with this crazy thing. none of us for engineers. it will work. no engineers believed us. we had to wikipedia everything and do it ourselves. for me, the moment when i realized it is something to do with my life, i saw the change in people the minute i showed them the ball.
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not a bottle cap for whatever. i am going to give you a solid ball. by the way, after 15 minutes, you get three hours of light. the way they view function than they assume the world should be, it changes. they start to question the status quo. they go from ought to -- awe to, i have all of these other ideas. it is another thing to inspire innovation. i believe this generates innovation. i hate the idea of people opposing change versus someone being the change. when i realized i could do that and it was so much fun, i love fun. i love seeing people happy. i want the world to be a better place. that may be the person who gets it done.
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i am only 23. in 20 years i might still have a boring job. the time is now to get things done. >> that is really important to talk about jobs. if you have not already, we will talk about jobs. that is an interesting thing to think about when i look at both of you, where the jobs around what is you want to do? how did you create them when they did not exist? talk about how you look at the landscape. >> there were probably two defining moments. we're at a time when you can communicate in a million ways. they're so many mediums in the palms of your hands. sometimes i would eat out for a moment and talk about some issue we were discussing on the
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debate team. if someone did not fire, where did you give that information? how did you know that? or there would scare me and say wiry such a rigid -- why are you such a nerd? global warming, you can wrap about it and solve the problem. abortion, when you try to address it, it gets harder. expressing the issue and getting people to care was a huge challenge. sometimes i would talk to somebody who did not want to know about it. if i found a compelling way to make them care, i got excited. in my job, i work to frame the messages of the administration to talk about certain issues related to intellectual property rights and innovation and the trade accounts from the country. my desire to make sure there was
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an easy way for people to start caring about what i thought was really what drove me to it. as the landscape -- as a speechwriter, no one says i'm going to school for speechwriting. there are many different paths to get there. you can look in the circle of communication jobs or working on the hill as an assistant to a press secretary. you can start somewhere outside of the realm of washington and work to articulate a cause or advocacy. what i learned most a high got to where i am now is to just keep hustling. you have to talk to everybody around you you think might be related to a passionate area or to what you want to pursue. that started by trying to reach out to speechwriters. it also started by looking out, maybe there is an interesting ad by the state of virginia.
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can i do go anybody who works over there and ask them about how they got the job? there is a reason why rick ross's rap song is a chart topper. you cannot stop hustling until you tap the resources you want. if you're going after jobs, talk around one another. it really begins by identifying areas where you think people can be useful and not being afraid to talk to about how they got to where they got and how you can get to where you want to go. >> when you talk about your moment, can you talk about the economics of it? one of the most common concerns many people have into a social change career was, we do not
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have parents that can find figuring out what we want to do. when you talk about innovation and social change, there is a picture painted than it is only for the privileged and those that can afford the luxury of living their passion. talk about the economics. >> it is interesting you bring that up. my answer would be, i was on this path of going to a for- profit industry. i was not sitting here where you are sitting right here. i was on my diploma, get my mercedes track. that was what was around me. we were all driven to do that. so my moment where -- we all have our issues. we cannot say this is what it's
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calling to me. this is why i chose to go here. specifically this is a panel on careers and social change, taking that leap of getting into a field where it might be privileged to work for social change or where you'll make rigid work nominee -- make no money, it was a simple question. it is something to keep in mind. am i putting my energy into building wealth for the handful of people at the top of the coup change? and my putting my energy into building my own resonate? -- resume? it is not about your individual goal. you have to remember that in working for social change. this is not about how many media
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hits i can get because i did this. this is about the people. it is called social change for a reason. if you're ready to jump off that cliff for the people, they will catch every time. that is what keeps me warm at night when i am counting my pennies. there is not a lot of money in farming. but there can be at the people come together. that sounds cliche but i really feel, having that network, identifying your mentors. it is about building those relationships. any social change movement, there were people there before you. you're not the first person to care about the issue. you're not the first and then something that is going to help people. there were people there before you. you have to find and talk to those people. your cards will fall into place. as far as the economic, i hope i
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touched on that. it is more about finding your network and not be scared to take a risk. you will not be alone. not your heart is in the right place. >> loss of the question is though -- most of the questions so far is about -- some folks know what they're doing. they have their plan and the business cards. the network. i want to talk on behalf of them. what are some of the common mistakes that you have made or that of seen people make? you're ready to do social change work. you have what you need in place. what is the mistake? what is the pitfall? about all theg mistakes. you'll never be able to buy all of them.
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the biggest thing of the is the difference between a great idea and an innovation is the execution. there has to be a sense of realism. do not live in the clouds. look at me and my super altruism. at the end, you have to sit down and say this is the world i live then. how can i work with the system to change the system? in doing that, having a business mind. even if it is a nonprofit. is sustainable nonprofit is a business. if you're going to not have to think about those details, it is going to fall apart. what delayed our project was that it was not a business. but until i sat down and said, we need to make this a sustainable idea and how we're going to live and pay people and do the research and development
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we want to do, then we make strides in terms of our actual mission. if you're working with 18, you want to be an idea person. you also want to be able to sit down and think through what is happening and what needs to happen to get you from a to b. >> a big part of it is, you need to understand that social change, he did not wake up overnight and think you're going to change the world. just like he said you did not make this for anything other than a class project, dream big for sure. but no that is not going to happen overnight. social change does not come overnight. it does come incrementally. even by having dialogs like this today. that is the first that. when you have those for stocks,
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i can only think about washington-oriented jobs. you might have graduated from the best universities are been at the top of your class or feel that you have a high aptitude. when you get there, you might feel a little downtrodden. why am i not talking to the press about why we need to have tappan trade legislation? realize the change will come incrementally for the issues and for your careers. they will come. not to be a deterrent, to make sure you will hit walls along the way. but if you know this is what you want, but you're willing to take and be in that moment, hit those walls as fast as you can. you will learn from them. work on those networks and then you will learn from other people who of been there. the final thing i would say about mistakes, hustling is my
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favorite word. i hope the trends on twitter. i want to reiterate what she said. harness those relationships. sometimes you can be out there meeting people and it feels to transactional. this is not getting e-mail addresses for you to say, it was nice meeting you. it is about cultivating a relationship and wanting to strike a genuine town in terms of learning and building something. that meant for ship model is something that does not come overnight but is -- it can possibly turn into something. >> mistakes are dead. if you're trying to make your change and yet not made a mistake, there is something going on.
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affiant farming and all my crops are perfect every year, i'm digging around thinking somebody sprayed some herbicides. there needs to be mistakes. you learn from those. it is listening to the community. one thing that is still happening today, i was hoping somebody would bring it up. being careful that you're not inserting yourself into a movement and is speaking for the community without speaking to that community. that happened some much. [applause] when i got my whole movement going on, i went to detroit to farm. i was not raised in detroit. i was raised in the suburbs of florida. here i was talking about all this stuff i was learning about. i did not live in a food desert.
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that was my humbling moment for you had to take a step back -- when you are working in social change, you want to work yourself out of a job. you want to empower the community you're speaking for and help the people to take your place. and find there a solution. [applause] >> along the way there might even be some in this room, you might not have a job or end up taking a job that you really love and are passionate about that falls outside the parameters of this bubble we are calling social change. don't feel like if you pursue that career that this room of people and the people you want to associate with are no longer your family are you can no longer connected with them. it is incumbent upon all of us since we have these resources
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and we can build faster and farm in new ways and communicated new ways, that your challenge to leverage and the resource around you, still had on those issues. beyond becoming a lawyer or banker, take a moment to think about those issues that you once cared for and never let them die. you have the resources to help. the people who continue on into those careers will never shut the door on you. >> that was a perfect way to wrap up. the reason i like that is because it ended where we should have started, what are we talking about when we say so for a change? so many people have their own definitions. i do not want to limit how you all decide social change. many of us will have different definitions. how you define the issues,
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using your network, it is up to you. the sky is the lemon. i would ask each of you for a closing remark to tell one final piece of advice. if there was one thing you could tell and you only have that one thing. what would it be? >> wow. how many of you know how you want to change the world? that is what i thought. ok. yeah. what i can say is that, before i came into this -- i am trained in psychology and economics. let's define who we are and what we can do. people say we are keen about leaving a legacy. we want to do something big. we believe that we can because our parents told us we are the best of the best. for a while i thought it was
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better than it whitney houston. what i can say for me is that if you would have asked me, do you know you're going to be an inventor and a social onto the near -- entrepreneur? now. even now. the fact that it is happening now, i would have never guessed it four years ago. until i was put between iraq and a hard place and i had all of these experiences traveling, being a first generation nigerian american and seeing where the need was. all i can say is, do not be afraid to go into the unknown as long as you have a good idea who you are and what you want to do. i knew i wanted to do something. the how and what will, as long as you stay passionate. you will take every opportunity.
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let's do it happens. -- see what happens. it will be worthwhile. >> that is a difficult thing to a express sometimes. sometimes we do not want to disappoint our parents. you can define social change on year round terms. do not end up disappointing yourself. you can reach calibrate what social change means. if you do not end up entering the career path you're thinking about, you do not have to see yourself as a sellout. social changes a moment in understanding -- thinking you made an impact summer and the world. that impact is going to constantly evolves and be redefined. i worked in democratic politics.
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i knew how i felt about things change. things vary based on experience. now they're going to be moments where you are not necessarily certain what have you want to travel. your the one that gets to define how you're going to pursue those things on your terms.
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>> we have locked at the president's 2012 budget, and i didn't see any new funding request there. if you needed it, i'm just curious. >> at the time the budget was prepared, these newest tasks haven't been identified to us that are currently in some of the legislation that are pending. >> pull your microphone up a little closer. >> pull it up, yeah, there you go. >> you know, in your written testimony, the president's proposing doubling in the next 10 years the amount of spectrum available for commercial use. how much megahertz can we expect to come from this repurposed federal spectrum? >> of the 500 megahertz, the f.c.c. had indicated it could deliver roughly 280 to 300 megahertz, so that would assume that the federal side would provide at least 200 megahertz, and that's the assumption we've been working on.
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>> last time we in this country did government spectrum allocation and asked users to vacate bands that were reallocated for use, i think the last auction was in 2006. >> the a.w.f. auction was then, yes. >> isn't it true we're still trying to get people to relocate out of their spectrum? hasn't this taken an inordinate amount of time to accomplish that? >> as i indicated earlier, i think 81% of the agencies have relocated. all the agencies have said they would relocate within three years have relocated. >> what you're talking about is
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something -- the auction was in 2006 -- the auction was in 2006, and i think they started in 2007, yet here we are, this amount of time later, and you're still talking about reallocation of people out of the spectrum, isn't that true? >> in certain events, that's correct. >> why is it taking so long and what have you learned from that to assure the american public that when you reallocate again that people actually leave? >> well, people are leaving on the schedules they committed to at the time of the auction. in fact, we tried to be pretty tough on the agencies. last year i had three agencies ask for extensions of time beyond the deadline they had committed to, and we rejected those requests. now, we did suggest to the agency that if they could work out an accommodation, that that would be ok with us, and that, in fact, is what the agencies did. but in some of these cases, we're talking about a relocation of a point-to-point microwave that isn't
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interfering with -- wouldn't interfere with the commercial entity if it started service or it could be it an area that the commercial entity hasn't started to build out in yet. there's plenty of a.w.f. spectrum that the licensees have not started to build out yet. >> so you think you've learned so that it would not be this slow again? >> i guess i'm taking some issue with -- you think it's a normal amount of time? >> it's on schedule. it's on the schedule the agency's committed to. >> ok. my last question, if i can get it out here. you state in your testimony that you do not have the expertise in the multitude of agency missions to discuss how they should meet their needs, it seems to me that the government agencies lack incentives to use spectrum as efficiently as possible and what have you done to address this issue? >> well, that goes to the question i had earlier. first and foremost, we require
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agencies to buy commercial where they can. beyond that, they are developing radio systems for particular mission. it is correct that we don't second-guess that. i have no ability to determine that the radio systems that control an unmanned ariel aerial drone can perform the function that the department of defense needs that particular one to perform. we have to accept that on face value, and i think that's true for a whole variety of systems to perform their missions. >> now recognize the gentleman from illinois. >> i'll hold for my time. >> recognize the gentlewoman from tennessee. >> thank you, mr. chairman. again, thank you for being here.
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mr. secretary, let me ask you a little bit. you talked a little bit about the cost benefit analysis, and making certain that agencies have the resources to undertake these issues. i want to highlight one item with you that i think some of our colleagues may kind of share this concern. i recall a hearing about six years ago where i ask one of our agencies why they had not moved to a temp plate for managing their financial resources in a timely manner. and the response to me was, well, they didn't have the timeline because they knew they had a continuing appropriation. and i think that this highlights quite succinctly what we see as a resistance from some spectrum managers in the government to get with the program and to get this done.
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we know we're facing a spectrum shortage in the commercial market. we know that by the end of the decade, they're going to be -- there are going to be one trillion devices that are attached to the broadband. now, if we're going to create jobs, if f we're going to keep the focus on jobs, if we are going to see a resurgence in the technology area, and if we are going to continue to be the exceptional innovators, it means people got to get with the program. and as you're able to pack that broadband down and you're able to layer and use that spectrum, we want to know, first of all, they are doing that efficiently and that you all have some benchmarks in requirements. do you have stated benchmarks in requirements for them? what is your plan specifically on where they are to use commercial product, not just in cell phones, but in other
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areas? what are you giving them? what are you doing to deal with some of the federal agency managers that are resistant and are kicking the can down the road? you know, people get tired with congress kicking the can down the road when it comes to dealing with the debt, and we are looking at spectrum that can be auctioned to help with that. we're also looking at putting the spectrum in the marketplace to create jobs and products that you need, whether it is in financial services or whether it's in health i.t., whether it's in entertainment. talk to innovators in all of these areas, and what we want to know is that you're serious about this and not saying, well, we've got continuing appropriation. you know, federal government doesn't create jobs. private sector does. we know that. we want to know that you all appreciate that. and that you've got a plan that you are making requirements and that you have a timeline. so can you articulate that? >> yes, ma'am, i think you're
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making some very good points. let me say our search for 500 megahertz is probably as important an undertaking as any in terms of dealing with the imperatives you described in your question. >> do you think you can go above the 500 megahertz? >> i think it's too soon to tell that. we have a candidate list between us and the f.c.c. of 2200 hundred megahertz of spoke trouble. a new total? a new total. that includes some bands that are currently underutilized on the commercial side, because if we're going to demand efficiency, i think both we and the f.c.c. agree it should be demanded from both commercial users. beyond that, on this issue of kicking the can down the road, one recommendation the g.a.o. did make to us that we are moving to implement is this question of the five-year review.
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>> i appreciate they've got a five-year review, but when you're looking at the life cycle of a technology product in the marketplace, you've got 18 months. so the exponential growth of this is enormous, and i think that what we need to know is that they're not slow walking because they've got five years. they need to pick the pace up, because things change about every 18 months. i know, sir, that you appreciate that. >> yes, and keep in mind that while what you're saying is true of the commercial world, many of these federal systems do have long lives. as i mentioned, the satellites have got life spans of 20 to 25 years that have to be taken into account. in any event, you're making very good points, and we are taking those into account as we look to improve the process by which we conduct these periodic reviews of assignments. >> excellent. thank you. yield back.
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>> turn to the gentleman from illinois. >> thank you, mr. tcharme. welcome back. good to have you here. if done right, you believe as we believe that this is really a win-win for both the government and the economy and for the communication sector. we need to get to that point. i will tell you my impression from federal agencies is they haven't quite seen what the win is for them. but i think that some of the suggestions in terms of allowing some upgrade in technology by federal agencies would go a long way toward making it true. >> i guess that's the whole crux of the hearing. how do we, instead of being the big hammer, how do we work with the agencies? how do we move them into
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commercial use when that's a very incredible opportunity and option, he is except if it's natural security? that's really why we're having the hearing. the great thing, i say numerous i'm about this subcommittee is this is where jobs are created. if we have a spectrum crunch, we lose this opportunity to really take advantage of -- at a time when this country really needs to be creating jobs. i've always focused on, in my dallas of looking at the f.c.c. , it who's managing the whole thing. when you've got satellite and microwave bits and pieces, i don't think there's one entity looking at how this all merges together, and then you get stuff like this. i think a process equals
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policy, and i think we have, because of the way we're organized, questionable process because of being stove piped in sectors and not -- it's an editorial opinion, but it's one that i think that's why i want to get the white board and erase it and restart it based upon a new technological age. we can't balance the budget, so i can't expect us to do that. but i think that's where the debate needs to be. you guys need to help intervene. how do we move this? i heard your comments on t mobile. i think the flip side would be they were trying to incentivize early release of the spectrum, but the goal post kept moving. so if there is more money given to an agency to help them move,
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then you don't see movement, then it kind of stems to that point of how do we -- i mean, how do we get them to do it without the big hammer? >> first off, i'm not sure what your comment about goal post moving was. >> well, i would say that money was offered by some agencies. maybe companies step forward to do that and then the timelines aren't met. >> actually, t mobile would have loved to have been able to have contributed dollars to help agencies move, and it's not allowed. >> but that's the issue of why not? i mean, if we're trying to reform the system and they're willing to come front to help them do that, then why not? >> i think that would be a great question for the committee to take up. it's a much broader policy issue than just spectrum t. comes to the whole question of businesses making gifts to government and the circumstances under which that would or would not be -- >> and i have no background, so i appreciate, especially our
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men and women in uniform and making sure they have a legitimate use of communication and all the new gears. but if we can marry the two, i think we both win, which i think was the opening part of my comments. let me just end on this. you proposed, in essence, some lengthy time frames for reallocate government, but you also state that you can accommodate requests for additional government users in as few as nine days. and the question would be, why can't n.t.i. accomplish the moves in shorter time frames? is it availability of equipment or what's the holdup? >> right, so the nine days is when we get a request to assign spectrum to an agency. presumably that agency already has the equipment it needs. it's simply seeking an authorization to install equipment. >> and we shouldn't have -- i
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mean, you're assuming, and i learned a long time that maybe we shouldn't assume. maybe we ought to know if they have the equipment to be able to use if you can grant that in nine days. >> now, when we're talking about taking all of the microwave circuits that all of these agencies have and moving them out of 1755 to 1850, now we're talking about an acquisition by all agencies of new equipment and, in effect, going in and taking out the oldie quiment, installing new equipment, in some cases, these circuits are in very inaccessible locations. all told, we have tens of thousands of these circuits overall in our assignment database. i think we have in the one in the band, so it's a question of resources and time. that's just for the microwave, which is one of the pictures i used.
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>> thank you. >> knowing a good do that. >> it's another example. >> even when the commercial side tries to relocate, they don't do it very quickly themselves. i mean, we've just been through with sprint nextel was involved in roughly two gigahertz, getting electronic news gathering organizations to move. that was the process that started in 2006-2007, and it's still not done. >> if they don't move, there is a big hammer on them. >> the gentleman from new hampshire, mr. bass. >> i want to thank you for having this hearing, and a apologize for being late today. >> and i would turn to the gentleman from louisiana for five. >> thank you, mr. chairman. appreciate the hearing.
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is the fast track evaluation report had recommended a total of 115 megahertz be made available for commercial use within five years. can you expand upon measurable goals, any concrete things you all have put in place to achieve that? >> we believe that can be reallocated. it is up to the f.c.c. to make that happen. i think in january of this year, we is not a formal request to the f.c.c. to proceed with that reallocation. they will have to conduct a proceeding to lay out the terms of how that spectrum will be made available. they will have to conduct whatever auction would be undertaken should they choose to auction it. so that's really out of our control at this point. >> so from ntiaa's perspective, there's nothing else you all can do to see that that's met. it's up to the f.c.c. at this
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point. there's nothing else measurable that you can do? >> they have the authority. we will support them in any way we can, but yes, it's theirs now. >> ok, thanks. in your testimony, you talk about the g.a.o. report that had been critical of some of the agencies -- agency's spectrum management plan as it relates to at least ntia and how it's going about things. you talk in there about some of the things that you think need to be done to improve. i guess if an agency can just tell you they still need their spectrum, that's good enough -- or it's all you can go by, and it seems like you were indicating that there should be a higher bar that an agency has to prove that it still needs that spectrum as opposed to just saying they want it. we all see how federal agencies, just the nature of the beast, once they get something, whether it's a budget request or anyone else, when you try to chop it away, they say they can't do without it, and all of a sudden you take something away and they manage to do with what they have. if an agency tells you and
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you're managing their plan, but you might have some limitations, if they tell you, well, i still need that, right now, all that you can go by is their atests that it's something that they need as opposed to requiring a higher bar, because if some cases they got it and they don't want to let it go and they could if there was some higher requirements. if you can kind of touch on this, the criticism and then your response. it seems like you were indicating some policy changes that could be made to improve that. >> yes, the g.a.o. suggests that perhaps we should consider requiring sworn-to statements either requesting a new assignment or getting a new one and suggested we should consult with the agencies to manage all of this spectrum, and we are in the process of doing just that to determine which of their recommendations makes sense to
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implement and how quickly we can implement them. i will say that it is in the incentive of an agency to give us accurate information, because when the next agency comes in line and is interested in using spectrum and the same band and roughly the same location, it's very important that the first agency not suffer interference from the second use. so because of the need to protect against interference between agencies, i think every agency has a pretty strong incentive to give us accurate information. nonetheless, the recommendations from the g.a.o. seemed useful to us, and we are working with the other agencies to go forward and implement certain of them. >> ok. i want to get your take on, as you look at all federal agencies' use of spectrum, there's a lot of review right now by the f.c.c. and others regarding life squared and how it -- how these issues with some of the other users of the spectrum near there's can possibly be worked out, is it
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something that is reckon sible from your view as it relates to federal agencies. is this something that you see a reconcilable solution short of some kind of major interference with f.c.c.? and how are you working with them on that? >> with respect to the life squared situation, the f.c.c. in its waiver order from last january or february indicated it would only move forward and allow life squared to commence commercial operations after consulting with us and after reviewing a wealth of testing that's been conducted over the last several months. those testing reports are just coming in now. my folks are in the process of evaluating those to determine at what point life squared might be able to come in. i think the one conclusion everyone has reached so far is that their original operational plan is not going to be one
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that they can pursue because of the interference it will cause to g.p.s. receivers. we are in the process of evaluating the test cat to determine what are the options for a different form of operation. >> do you know when you would have those recommendations? >> do i know when we'll have the recommendations? the f.c.c. has put the test reports that it's received out for public comment. i think that -- i'm not sure what the close date is for that. our people, my experts are looking at the data now. we'll certainly want to inform our conclusions from whatever public comment there is on that, so i think we're still a month or two away. >> thank you, mr. chairman. i yield back. >> gentleman from ohio is recognized for five minutes. >> thank you very much. appreciate it. thanks very much for being with us today. i think that in listening to the questions from my colleagues on the committee, i think you're all hearing the same thing, that we're all very, very interested in this
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topic. especially when it comes to the question as to creating more jobs. we all see that broadband, we all see what they can do, get it out to market faster, and we have to make sure businesses know where they're going to be going. on your second page of your testimony, let's start there. you were talking about -- you state that the first spectrum will be freed up through voluntary incentive auctions. i've got legislation out there to do just that. but one of the things, in talking with folks in the private sector that we all want to make sure that they are fairly compensated if someone does give up that spectrum, and sometimes they fear that there might be strong-arm tactics out there, that it is truly voluntary. i was wondering if you could just touch on that voluntary incentive auctions as you see them. >> i think along the lines that you suggested, the
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administration position is that these auctions, the f.c.c. does need this authority to conduct incentive auctions and that they would be voluntary auctions. >> let me go with this. i know that mrs. blackburn brought this up, especially on the private sector side. and also, i believe it was -- i think it was mr. stearns that also had a line of questions about how long it's been taking to free up the spectrum and get it out so that the private sector can be utilizing it. the cost of private industry that i worry about, i know other members worry about. they're thinking, ok, if we're going to have this, how much time do we have to get this out to market so they're not creating something today that -- my greatest fear is i never look in the paper to see what these things are on sale for, it's usually the week after i
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buy it, they're 50% off. you know, i think the same thing is happening in technology, that things lose so quickly. you know, again, if you could elaborate more on more on how we can assure business to get this spectrum to them so that it can utilize it, so that it can get developed. i don't care if it's new laptaps or you name it, or in your testimony, you list the different areas that folks will be using smart phones, tab lets, and tap tops, but we want to make sure they can develop it today knowing it can be out there. >> it's a very good question. the first thing i would refer you to is the auction that was conducted back in 2007, i believe. a lot of that spectrum still has not been billed out by the people who bought it at auction, even though they have
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the full ability to do so. we're taking a long time horizon at this. we can see the growing demand. we can see that there's going to be a continuing need for more spectrum. our spectrum that we are identifying now -- again, some can be made available in five years. our overall target is whatever we recommend needs to be made available within 10 years. we think that that gives us a good progression for industry to see where they're going to meet their needs. keep in mind, there is a lot of commercial spectrum out there right now. >> let me ask you this, especially with the wifi technology, is this becoming more popular, being embedded in more and more devices? wifi is also what service providers are turning to to offload networks.
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what plans does the federal government have right now, if any, to evaluate whether more spectrum will be available, especially for wifi, in the five gigahertz range? >> the five gigahertz range is an interesting band to talk about, because they ban in which the wifi is sharing spectrum with radar systems, including federal aviation administration, radars. when that sharing was proved, the manufacturers of the wifi equipment were given radar characteristics that the f.c.c. of the using in making sure that their equipment would not interfere with these radar systems. in fact, we have found instances where that is happening, where there is interference. when you're dealing with wind sheer -- wind shear systems, you don't want to get involvement in terms of the planes that could be affected by wind shear.
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we are learning a lot about sharing as a result of this. for example, the f.a.a. would now like to modernize its radar systems, so they will now have different characteristics that will affect those wifi sets in a different way than the original designs. yet, how do you get the wifi industry to go in and modify its designs to accommodate an upgrade in the modernization that our f.a.a. feels is necessary to take for, again, to protect human life and airplanes? wr trying to learn from them, because this is the wave of the future. we are going to have to find more and more of these opportunities where the commercial use can coexist with the government use, and we have to find ways to minimize and prevent harmful interference from taking place. >> thank you. i yield back. >> thank you. well, we have no other --
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charlie, have you thought of a question? all right. well, that concludes. it was your last chance to keep mr. strickland here for five more minutes. so that concludes all. questioning. mr. strickland, thank you for being up here. it's been a very informative hearing. adjourned. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2011] >> next, a discussion on civil engagement in social media. and live at 7:00 a.m., your calls and comments on "washington journal."
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>> ohio congressman jim jordan, chairman of the republican study committee. he talks about the budget and debt ceiling negotiations. the republican study committee is a group of more than 175 house republicans formed to advance a conservative social and economic agenda in the house of representatives. "newsmakers," today at 10:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. eastern on c-span. >> i want to emphasize that nothing is agreed to until everything's agreed to, and the parties are still far apart on a wide range of issues. >> the debt limit is the legal limit on borrowing by the government. since 1962, it's been raised 74 times, the last time in february 2010. learn more and follow the process of raising the debt ceiling online with the c-span video library. search, watch, clip, and share. it's washington your way. >> next from the ronald reagan
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presidential library in simi valley, california, a discussion about civic engagement and social media. participants include the founder of the harry potter alliance and one of the youngest women ever to run for a seat in the u.s. congress. the audience is made up of high school students and their teachers. this is 90e minutes. >> two years ago, while lying on the beach in hawaii, my niece gets a text from her friend, o.m.g., michael jackson is dead. i didn't believe t. i thought it was a hoax at the time. but when we got in the car, i turned on the news, and sure enough, the text was correct. and just a week and a half ago, i was in hi house playing with my kids, and my husband was on facebook.
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we didn't have a tv on in the house, and he said that all of his friends were posting on facebook that osama bin laden was dead. we quickly turned on cnn, and sure enough, and had my husband not been on facebook, who knows how many more hours had gone by before we heard this important story n. both instances, i learned about the news not from the traditional news, but from social media. yes, i confirmed what was going on by turning the television news on, but that wasn't my first point of contact. what does this really mean in the way in which we engage with one another and share information? when i was asked to give today's introduction, i have to admit, i immediately got nervous. not because speaking in public makes me uncomfortable, but because the topic, mixed with the audience, made me a little intimidated. why? because i think i know more about social media than you. but through my job here as director of communications for the reagan foundation, i have definitely learned the
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importance and the reach of social media, whether it be facebook, twitter, youtube, in getting our out message and the message of ronald reagan and pulling people together through the power of his word. by using current issues of the day, we can instantly send out some piece of communication which not only keeps ronald reagan relevant in today's news cycle, but reaches constituents from all over the world at every age level, potentially introducing president reagan's beliefs and policies to people who may just now be learning about him. for example, following the raid on osama bin laden's compound, we immediately added a quote on our facebook and twitter pages, from ronald reagan's remarks in 1986, one day after the united states air strike against libya. we posted, "terrorism is the preferred weapon of weak and evil men, and as edmund burke reminded us, in order for evil to succeed, it's only necessary that good men do nothing."
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yesterday we demonstrated once again that doing nothing is not america's policy. it's not america's way. that quote was read, retweeted, reposted, and commented on by thousands of people who, without the advent of social media, we would not have been able to reach, at least not as quickly or as widespread. social media thus becomes the opportunity to speak with people from all over the world that you might not have had the opportunity to speak with otherwise in an instantaneous approach to spread your message, to share your cause, to rally the troops. during president reagan's farewell address to the nation, he reflected back on the things he had done and the things he had said, and he remarked, and in all the time i want a nickname, the great communicator. but i never thought it was my style or the words i used to made a difference. it was the content. i wasn't a great communicator, but i communicated great things.
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obviously social media, as it is understood today, didn't exist when president reagan was president. his ideas or his content were communicated through television, radio, newspaper, public speeches. we can only guess now how his messages and causes would have been spread differently if facebook and twitter were around. that's why it's our job at the reagan foundation to communicate his ideas through social media to help continue his legacy and share his principles today and far into the future. as ronald reagan once said, let us be sure that those who come after us will say of us in our time, that in our time, we did everything that could be done. thank you. [applause] >> excellent. thank you very much, melissa. before we get started today, i wanted to acknowledge a few of our guests and thank them for coming. mr. stanley mantooth, the
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ventura county superintendent of schools, thank you for coming. we also have with us today, marty murphy, a member of our national advisory council and does some amazing work with the organization facing history and ourselves. so marty. and also, her colleague, also from facing history and ourselves, miss mary hendra, thank you for coming. and we are also delighted to have christian limke, the program director at the arselan program, whose work focuses on youth civic engagement. he's also responsible for the attendance of some opportunities here who are giving commentary as we go through the program today. so thank you very much. also hello to our live audience of students and to people who are watching on the internet. thank you for spending about 90 minutes of your time today listening in on this very
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important conversation. at the end of the last millennium, time "life" magazine selected johan gutenberg's printing press as the single most important invention. it beat out the automobile, vaccines, telephones, airplanes, refrigerators, and even the personal computer. why? why is it that something that helps mass produce books is considered more important than cars, which changed the way the industry and transportation work? why is it the printing press is more important than vaccines, which have saved countless lives across the globe? or why is it more important than the computer, which has changed the way we learn, the way we work, and the way we communicate with one another? why? because as sir francis bacon once said, knowledge is power. books were the first item in the history of mankind to be mass produced. what once described countless hours to copy could now be printed hundreds and even
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thousands of times at a fairly rapid rate. the wide availability of printed matter led to a tremendous rise in literacy rates. no longer did you have to be from a wealthy family or the son of a nobleman or a member of the clergy to attain a manuscript and to read. reading and books, even more important than the books, the ideas within the books were suddenly available to large segments of the population. and what did this mean? well, it meant some pretty drastic changes in the way the world worked. in religion, the church clergy were no longer the only ones able to read and interpret the bible. this went to the reformation of the catholic church and drastic changes in the way christianity and religion worked. in the united states, printing enabled men like benjamin franklin to rise to fame and influence. in fact, even later in his life, ben franklin referred to himself as a printer. and the ideas that led to the american revolution, the ideas that were so jefferson, these too were spread through the use
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of the printing press. it was the original form of mass communication. as history moved forward, mass communication became even more quicker, efficient, and reached a larger audience. in the 1930's, and 1940's, president roosevelt used radio to effectively communicate with an entire country during his fireside chats during the depression and world war ii. in the 1960's, john f. kennedy used his good looks, his charisma, and the power of television to help ride away with the presidency. and ronald reagan, the namesake of this library and museum, used mass communication first to rise to prominence as a radio announcer and movie star, and then as president, he utilized mass communication to console the nation after the explosion of the challenger space shuttle, to denounce the evils of oppressive communist regimes, to help bring down the berlin wall, and to restore america's confidence in itself. and now we have the nextity ration of mass communication in
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the form of social media. it's the quickest, cheapest, most efficient way to share information. in a sense, sites like facebook, youtube, twitter, they've taken the power of the printing press and placed it in the hands of anyone who has access to a computer or smartphone. as recently as a deck ad ago, if i told you that you could have a piece of equipment the size of a candy bar, put it in your pocket and be able to communicate with anyone, anywhere in the world in a second, you would have looked at me like i was crazy. this was the thing of science fiction. now it's an everyday reality. as social media evolves, we see the further democratization of mass communication. you don't have to go through a publisher to share your thoughts, ideas, writings, pictures, videos with the world. you can blog, tweet, upload to youtube. it will be there in seconds. it's faster and more efficient than ever before to share news and information. it's easier than ever before for companies, organizations, celebrities, and politicians to
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communicate with and inspire their followers. encouraging them to buy goods, voluntary their services, and organize in an effort to bring about powerful change in their communities and the world. what does that mean for you, the students and educators in our audience today? what does the ease and scale of social media mean? it means that you have a tremendous amount of power. it means that you have the power to share your ideas, to influence others, to connect with those who share your passions, to engage with those who think dmptly than you do, and to affect positive change. president eisenhower, one of president reagan's great friends and mentors, said there's nothing wrong with america that the faith, love of freedom, intelligence, and energy of her citizens cannot cure. and social media offers an opportunity for citizens, both in america and abroad, to join together in pursuit of making their communities better. today's panel will examine the connections between being civically engaged and the use of social and digital media
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with a specific focus on the ways in which young people, like the students we have in the audience today, are able to leverage their use of social media as tools to promote civic engagement. our panelists today come to us from a diverse group of organizations. at the far end of the table, from the harry potter alliance, a group that uses the mythology of the harry potter stories to inspire good deeds across the country, we have the founder and executive director, mr. andrew slack. from the national conference on citizenship, which is a congressionally chartered organization that, among many other things, measures the civic health of the country. we have kristin campbell, the director of new media and programs. from flash life, a movement that works with members to volunteer, donate, exert their citizenship, produce, share content, all in exchange for points that can unlock deals on
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anything from textbooks to jeans to laptops and healthcare, we have the founder and crew crew, melissa helmbrecht. and from the digital use network, a group that gives students digital tools to foster engaged, informed, and collaborative citizens, we have the director of digital strategy and development. i'm really excited, because a couple of our pagists will be tweeting live from up here. they're actually going to be tweeting their own reactions and things like that as the panel is going on. so the work they do is quite dempt, they all seek to promote civic engagement. i'm really looking forward to the conversation we have. you're probably tired of listening to me speak, so i'm going to begin with our panelists and open up with a question that some of you who went out to classrooms in the last week or so, we asked you the same question. it's not one that's necessarily easy to answer, which is why i
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thought i'd put it to them, because they're very smart people and probably have good ideas. but my first question is, give a little context, what does it mean to be civically engaged, and if you could also share a bit, talk about how your organization works to promote civic engagement. maybe i'll start -- i'll just start closest to me and move our way down for this one, and then we'll open it up. feel free to jump in and respond. >> so, again, i think this is a term that definitely probably has a different meaning to different people, and i think that's ok. i think we should embrace that to some extent. for me, i would define being civically engaged as being an active member of your community, however you want to define community. that can be any from from your school, your block, your city, your country, looking at yourself as a global citizen. but how are you staying aware of what's going on around and you how are you taking an active part in determining what goes on around you? so recognizing that everything around you is essentially
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malleable, it can all be change and had how you can use the skills you have, leveraging social media, you know, traditional kind of activism, work, etc., how can you leverage those skills that you guys have, whatever is unique to you, to make sure you're actually contributing to that reality, so not being a static part of some larger group and not necessarily seeing yourself as one who can really be a catalyst for change.is making se informed about what is going on around you when you take an active part in impacting something for the better in terms of what is going on around you. the way we try to approach that echoes of a lot of the points that tony made in his intro comments. we start with the literacy component. >> literacy does not sound like it is a fun thing the relates to technology but i think being informed is the first part about being an active citizen and being connected to this larger community and how you
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decide to define community. that transition we have seen over the decades from the printing press to television and now to the internet, it redefines how we approach literacy. how do you communicate can get -- how do you get information? the same comments we heard about osama bin laden, michael jackson, to twitter or facebook, people are internet it -- interacting in different ways. the sources of information have not been a centralized. you used to have to rely on the printing press. only a certain number of folks said resources to publish books and newspapers. right now you can do anything from a blog to your website and web magazine. you can do all that with an access to smartphone or a computer. from our perspective, we are saying, how can we work with young people to leverage technology, understanding that
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it is a different landscape. whether it is digital media, we want you to be an informed citizen who can leverage skills to be more active and impact what is going on around you. >> melissa, question. -- same question. >> all of your high school students. i remember when you were in high school -- when i was in high school. what i thought it meant sickly in gage was to believe what my -- said it -- civicly engaged, it was to believe what miny parents believe. when i was in ninth grade,
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everybody that my parents wanted to vote for, what they cared about, is what i cared about. i think that part of becoming pacifically engaged -- civically engaged means making up your own mind for what you stand for and what you believe in. high school is the time when you start to explore all kinds of political issues and social causes. you begin to decide what it is you believe and what you want to stand for. i think civic engagement is different at different phases of your life. as high school students, the most important thing is to figure out what you're going to stand for and what you are going to believe by participating in the school the day program, by -- school debate program, by falling current events, wyclef wanted to run for president of haiti.
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well was that about? there are all of these issues. to not be a spectator but to research and use the internet to search if you hear something like he wants to run for president of haiti. to get on google lead to figure out why he wants to do that, what it means. and to develop your own independent ideas. >> thank you. i think i would echo of a lot of what the first analysts have have rst two panelists ta said. we were discussing backstage how challenging this question is. civic engagement mean so many different things to some many people. it is a personal experience and a lot of ways. it makes it hard to talk about it and how you promote it. from my perspective, and my organization, i would say that i think of the more as the process of taking an active role in creating the community want to live in.
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that can be done in a variety of ways. it is volunteering, it is community service. it is contacting your congressman. it is staying connected to information and current events. it is doing favors for neighbors. it is a diverse set of skills and activities and actions and behavior's that leads someone to be civic clean days. i think it is more of wanting to make a contribution to the greater good than playing an active role in that. i think that is what it means. one of the ways that we do that at the national conference on citizenship is we measure participation and a lot of the areas i mentioned. but what we really want to do is understand more of the challenges in our communities and how people are connecting with each other's and what sort of policies, initiatives can be developed to help people be more active participants.
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one of the things i think that online engagement does to help inform us is, we are a 65 year- old institution. we were founded in 1946. what it means to be an active citizen in 2011 is not the same thing it meant in 1946. in a lot of ways i think we are charged to define a modern citizenship and what ways are people currently are engaged. that is why it is important to have conversations like this. in a lot of ways, and even in surveys and metrics to not capture those activities because they are so rapidly expanding and evolving. in the same way that the census used to ask you, do you put a bumper sticker on your car or do you put a lawn sign in your
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yard for a politician or a candidate, now it is important to say, do you put your cost on facebook? do you support a political candidate through online engagement? a lot of the ways that people are interacting with each other are changing because of these tools. it is important that the way we measure that government that can keep up with this. >> thank you. my name is andrew. i think all three of you just answer that question. i almost want to just skip. but i have one thing to add that is a different approach to the question. who here is 14? raise your hands. 15? 16? 17? 18? 44? [laughter] i cannot see you if you're watching this on a web cast
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but, hi. one of our members in the harry potter alliance and someone who lived close to me in boston became close friends. her name is faster. she died at the end of august at age 16. she did so much in terms of civic engagement. she had cancer when we met. she died. changed me and our friendship. it got me thinking about a lot of things. i am close to her family still. the way she lived is more important to me than the fact that she died. i bring this up for a reason. here is a shocking statistic, 100% of babies born today are going to die. that is injustice. it is a job. we are all going to die.
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there is a story i heard about this that is inspirational. it ties into the question. i feel like i am rambling. there is a little boy waved in the ocean, flopping around. having fun. thinking about girl waves. all of a sudden, he realized what is going to happen to him. he saw he is going to smash into the shore. he was miserable over this. he was scared and sad and felt like his life was pointless. he starts moping around thinking he is so smart and house to put all the other ways that are happy. if only they knew we were going to die. then he saw a girl wave that was happy. she looked and asked him why he
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was sad. he said you do not understand the truth. we are all moving quickly to the shore. when we do, we're going to smash apart and be nothing. we are going to die. she smiled and looked at him and said, you do not understand. you're not just a wave, you a part of the ocean. to me, that is the fundamental reality as to how we want to think about civic engagement verses nothing. do you want to have an attitude that is all about me? if you want to have that, i am cool with that. but if you wanted to be all-out of you, you, you,. it is not that happy. it does not bring that much happiness. the reality is that we are all united in some way. some larger way. we are all part of the ocean. we can think about something bigger than ourselves.
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we can give love. the weapon we have is love. for those of red "harry potter," it is the most powerful thing. love is something that the more you give, the more you get. it keeps spreading. there is a lot of people who need love. there are a lot of people next to you who need that. you need love. if we spread that, that matters a great deal. if we have a sophisticated understanding of people in washington and the people in the u.n. that we pay, they make decisions that end up affecting the people we love and people we never met we would love. they will affect their level of happiness and suffering. we begin to develop a sophisticated approach.
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thinking about the people sitting next year, the people in your community who may feel lonely or six. and the people who are in our larger world. systematically, politically. these are all forms of civic engagement. the fundamental truth is that no matter what you feel about politics or whatever, we are part of the notion. we are holding each other here. it makes our lives so much more meaningful and exciting than this sort of self-centered approach to life. that is my philosophical answer. >> thank you very much. i want to pick up that idea of being part of the ocean. to tie that into our next question, how does social media help foster civil engagement? social media helps us to see how big the ocean is and how big our reach can be. it helps us realize we are not just a wave. we are part of a much larger movement. my question to you is, how does
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it help foster engagement? if you could share some examples from the work you do. if you feel you have a good response, you can chime in. how the social media help? >> one way is because no longer do people have to wait for an organization to come to them and ask them to vote or to serve or to get their friends involved in something. they can stand up and say this is what is important to me. i want to do that. it is helping to foster a power shift in terms of becoming less centralized and the coming to a network based strategy and seeing how empowering their supporters to be advocates on their behalf actually decreases them of their workload and gets more people involved in the process.
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that is important. i think social media provides a low-cost, low barrier of entry, easy way for people to take action where they might not have been able to otherwise before, whether it is volunteering, sharing their opinion, getting other people involved. our report that measures the civic actions and behavior of our country as well as community, it found that in a lot of ways, the internet is benefiting health. people, young people who use the internet for civic purposes are more likely to be involved off line as well. there have been other studies that -- the macarthur foundation. they found the same thing. they found the same thing. people who pursue

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