provides capital flowing to the markets and families, and that helps the recovery. host: thank you for being here. >> next, eric holder announces a commission to investigate the housing market collapse. then president obama's vice- president joe biden remarks. then, speeches by candidates and newt gingrich, mitt romney, and rick santorum. on tuesday, in his state of the union address, president obama announced that attorney general eric holder would create a special unit of federal prosecutors and leading state attorney general to investigate the abuse of lending and packaging of risky mortgages that led to the housing crisis. >> today, american consumers finally have a watchdog with one

job, to look out for them. [applause] we will also establish a financial crimes unit of highly trained investigators to crack down on large-scale fraud and protect people's investments. some financial firms violate antifraud laws because there are no police for being a repeat offender. that is bad for consumers and it is bad for the vast majority of bankers and financial service professionals out who do the right thing. so pass legislation that makes the police for fraud count. tonight, i am asking my attorney general to create a special unit of federal prosecutors and leading state attorneys general to expand investigations into the abuse of lending and packaging of risky mortgages that led to the housing crisis. this new unit will hold

accountable those who broke the law, speed assistance to homeowners, and helped turn the page on an era of recklessness that hurt so many americans. >> following on the president's announcement, attorney general eric holder announced a joint federal and state initiative to investigate mortgage-backed securities that triggered -- that were packaged and sold to investors that eventually triggered the housing market collapse. joining him more officials involved in the investigation, including housing secretary sean donovan and one of the cochairs, n.y. attorney general eric schneiderman. this is about 35 minutes. [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2012] >> good morning. with all of the people in law enforcement, this must be the safest place in the united states right now.

today, we are joined by sean donovan, the attorney general for the strait of new york, eric schneiderman, the attorney for colorado, john walsh, the civil division, tony west, and other critical leaders, including the attorney generals from illinois, lisa madigan, and a u.s. attorney from georgia at and the financial enforcement task force. we are here today to announce an important step forward in investigating the financial misconduct and specifically misconduct in the market for mortgage-backed securities. that contributed to army nation's economic crisis. -- that contributed to our nation's economic crisis. the team standing with me will be leading a new initiative. the residential mortgage-backed securities working group which will operate as part of the financial fraud enforcement task force. this working group brings together a variety of federal,

state, and local partners, including hud, the fbi, the irs, the consumer protection bureau, the financial crimes enforcement network, and federal housing finance agency office of the inspector general perry these and many other task force members have been conducting investigations into the residential mortgage backed securities market, as well as related aspects of the housing market for some time. they have seen it firsthand how massive failures in the market or a driving force behind the nationwide housing collapse that has had a devastating effect for investors, consumers, and for entire communities across the nation. beginning with its first full meeting, which will take place immediately after this press conference, the working group will streamline and strengthen current and future efforts to identify, to investigate, and to prosecute instances of wrongdoing in the packaging, selling, and the valuing of

residential mortgage backed securities. i'm confident this new effort will help victims, restore faith in the financial markets and institutions, and allow us to enter the call that president obama issued earlier this week in the state of the union address. tuesday night, the president referenced this initiative, asking us to, "hold accountable those who broke the law, speed assistance to homeowners, and helped turn the page on an era of recklessness that hurt some americans." that is precisely what we intend to do. the good news is we will not be starting from scratch. over the past three years, we have been aggressively investigating the causes of the financial crisis. we have learned much of the conduct that led to the crisis was, as the president said, on ethical and in many instances extremely reckless. we have also learned that

behavior that is not ethical or reckless may not be criminal. we find evidence of criminal wrongdoing, we bring criminal prosecutions. when we don't, we endeavor to use other tools available to us. such as civil sections to seek justice. my number one commitment to the american people is we will continue to devote significant resources to combat in financial fraud and be as aggressive as creative as we can be in holding accountable those who in violating the law contributed to the financial crisis. for example, in just the last six months, the department has achieved prison sentences of 60, 45, 30, and 20 years in a variety of a to fraud cases charging securities fraud, bank fraud, and investment fraud. just last month, i announced the largest fair lending settlement in history, resolving allegations that countrywide financial corp. and its subsidiaries engaged in a widespread pattern of

discrimination against minority borrowers from 2004 trhough 2008. with this new working group, we will marshall our criminal and civil capabilities to build on endeavors by focusing on abuses in the residential mortgage backed securities markets. i'm pleased to report this working group has considerable department resources behind it, and activities have been under way through the broader task force. currently, 15 attorneys, investigators, and analysts are supporting the investigative efforts of this working group that it will be focusing on going forward. the fbi has assigned an agent and analyst to work with the group immediately. in the coming weeks, another 30 attorneys, investigators, and support staff from the u.s. attorney's offices will join the group's work. we're wasting no time and aggressively pursuing any and all leads. in fact, as part of our current

investigations, the department of justice over the past couple days has issued civil subpoenas focusing on issues related to the market for residential mortgage-backed securities to 11 different financial institutions, and you can expect more to follow. i cannot go into detail about our existing investigations, but i can tell you that significant efforts are moving forward by but the federal and state authorities. i assure you that if we uncover evidence of fraud or other illegal conduct, we will have the appropriate civil or criminal charges. these teams will hit the ground running. already, the working groups cochairs have met to discuss the structure are or investigative efforts, how teams should and will be organized, and how information to be shared more effectively. with this focus on collaboration and by bringing our government's full enforcement resources to bear, i

have no doubt we will improve our ability to recover losses, prevent fraud, bring abuses to light, and hold those who violate the law accountable. that is the challenge before us, and that is what the american people deserve. i want to thank all of our working group members for their power dissipation and for their dedication to this effort. now i would like to turn things ever to one of the leaders of this important work. >> thank you, mr. attorney- general. mortgage products were, in many ways, ground zero in the financial crisis. individual mortgages were pulled and sliced and diced in sophisticated securities that were a world away from the house, street, and town somewhere in america where a family had realized their dream, dream of buying a house they could call home. if you invested directly in the sophisticated securities mortgage products called residential mortgage-backed

securities, or rmbs, but many had exposure to the performance of these investments even if they did not own them directly or had the performance of their other investments tied to these products. regardless of how they were connected, many share the belief that the investments were safe and secure, the right investment to protect their financial security, to fund their retirement, and to pay for their kids' educations. that turned out to be terribly wrong. these mortgage products suffered unprecedented losses, and the pain and loss that followed is well known to all of us. the job of the sec and fellow law enforcement, exist to hold accountable those persons, those institutions who lied and cheated and him misled investors and the sales of these products. it not every failure was a failure of the law, and not every failed investment that the law was broken, but all of us here are committed to identifying the violations that

did occur and prosecuting them fully. that is why i am so pleased to be part of this working group. each of this year may have a chip -- different jurisdictions, expertise, but the thing that unites us all is the drive to do what it takes to make sure our efforts leave no stone unturned, no dark corner unexposed to the light. at the sec, we have been very busy in this area. we're not starting from scratch in this effort. we have focused on misconduct by those at the highest corporate levels and by institutions with the greatest involvement in the products come transactions, and practices that gave rise to the financial crisis. so far we have charged more than 90 individuals and entities, involving public companies that fail to disclose the increasing risks of their mortgage business, including countrywide, new century, and others. funds and investment advisers that made misleading disclosures when offering funds that helped mortgages, such as charles

schwab and reserve fund. top executives at fannie mae and freddie mac for failing to accurately disclose their subprime investments. and banks with misleading disclosures about their subprime exposure and the structure of even more complex instruments, collateralized debt obligations, which involved goldman sachs, j.p. morgan, and wachovia. these actions we have named over 45 c.e.o.'s, c. f. bo's, or other corporate officials. the expertise we have gathered in this investigation will be greatly enhanced by participation in this working group. we have a long history of successful collaboration with our law enforcement colleagues, including the department of justice, the fbi, the u.s. attorney's offices, state attorneys general, and other 40's across the country. many of us are on the phone weekly if not daily moving our investigations forward. through the leadership of the financial fraud enforcement task force, created in november of 2009, we have strengthened

those ties, sharing knowledge, leveraging skills, and resources, and with that helps all of us hold violators accountable. today's announcement is another strong positive step in that direction. the working group will enhance coordination, efficiencies, and the sharing of expertise, it will ensure that we pulled the different capabilities, resources, and the legal theories and remedies that each of us bring to the team. information sharing and collaboration amongst the widest group of law-enforcement parties, including the state attorneys general that are part of this working group, is in everyone's interests. to be clear, the investigation into the offerings have been ongoing at the sec for some time, along with experts across the agency, we have over 30 staffers who are dedicated with the structured products unit focused on the effort. we have issued scores of subpoenas, analyzed more than 25 million pages of documents, dozens and dozens of witnesses we have spoken to, and work with

experts to analyze the terms of these deals and the accuracies of the disclosures. we're looking for evidence if a firm failed to disclose important for mission selling the securities, misleading disclosures about the credit quality, the underwriting diet -- underwriting guidelines, the underwriting property valuations, and the defects of the mortgages and the pools. these efforts will be greatly needed by the contributions -- greatly aided by contributions of my fellow group members and i am happy to be here today. thank you. now let me introduce the secretary of housing and urban development, sean donovan. >> thank you, rob. tuesday night, president obama laid out his blueprint. he said this is a make or break a moment for the middle class and those try to reach it, and that what is at stake is the basic american promise that if you work hard, you can do well enough to raise a family, own a home, and put away a little bit

for retirement. unfortunately, that did not subscribe to our economy in the years leading up to the crisis, and nowhere was that more clear than in the housing market. as president obama said, mortgages were sold to people who cannot afford or understand them, banks made huge bets and bonuses with other people's money, and we'll pay for the very steep price. housing prices sank for 30 straight months in a row, foreclosures climbed to record levels month after month, about the time the worst of it was over, our economy has lost 8 million jobs. since those dark days, we have made very real progress. of foreclosure notices are down 45% since early 2009. more than 5.5 million families have received mortgage modifications with affordable monthly payments, and we will be announcing more relief for struggling homeowners later today. most important of all, we have created more than 3 million jobs

in the last 22 months. at the same time, we need to move forward from this crisis and rebuild an economy where hard work pays off and responsibility is rewarded. we still have the unfinished business with those responsible for this crisis. to be clear, to insure crises like these never happen again, president obama signed wall street reform into law, but millions of american families who have been harmed, countless families who have lost everything, not just their homes but their reputations and livelihoods. these families deserve justice. they deserve relief. that is why this investigation is so important. with the new residential mortgage-backed securities working group, led by attorney general holder and new york attorney general schneiderman, we will build on the work of the president financial fraud task force by investigating misconduct in the pooling and sale of residential mortgage- backed securities. misconduct that we know led directly to the financial

crisis. i'm proud that the office of the hud inspector general, which has been central to uncovering wrongdoing with respect to faulty foreclosure servicing practices, will play a critical role in the mortgage origination component of this review. his office is expanding the number of lenders, has expanded the number of lenders for compliance with the underwriting requirements of the federal housing administration, part of hud. their charge is to quantify the extent to which these at the chair requirements were not adhered to and to assess the impact on home owners and taxpayers alike. the goal of the investigation president obama announced is clear -- to hold accountable an institution that violated the law, to compensate victims, and help provide relief for homeowners struggling from the collapse of the housing market calls, in part, by this wrongdoing. and to get the bottom of the

rigid and to get to the bottom of will really happen so we could turn the page. all of this is about building a nation where, as the president said, everyone gets a fair shot, everyone does their fair share, and everyone plays by the same rules. that is what this investigation is about, and that is why i am so proud to be part of it. with that, it is my privilege to introduce a tremendous partner and one of the fiercest advocates for holding banks accountable that i have ever had the privilege to work with. that is state attorney general and co-chair of this group, new york attorney general eric schneiderman. let me just say, having gotten to know him and work with him closely, as we were building up to this day and the work of preparing this task force, it became clear very quickly to me that we shared a vision that it would be a grave injustice to hold these institutions

accountable and to potentially have tens of billions, hundred of billions be paid to private investors, to law-enforcement agencies, to state agencies and pension funds, but not make sure that homeowners, who hold those loans, who depend on being able to get those loans fixed to be a to stay in their homes and to be applied for their families. it is that connection of bringing together all of the disparate pieces of this -- federal and state -- that i think gives the potential that this working group can set a template, not just for accountability but also for a real relief to homeowners. i thank him for his vision in doing that, and i welcome him to the podium. thank you, eric. >> thank you, secretary donovan. thanks to the attorney-general

holder for convening us here today and executing the order, creating are working group. to the director, my other colleagues here, mr. west. i also want to acknowledge that in a condition to the attorney general madigan, there are three other states attorneys general that signed up for this effort and are working with us -- from massachusetts, nevada, and delaware -- who i have been working with for quite some time on issues related to mortgage backed securities. what happened tuesday when the president and not this working group was essentially -- that was the sign of approval that we were going to be able to go forward with the broadest, deepest investigation into the misconduct that broke the economy that has taken place. you need three things to address an issue this vast. you need resources,

jurisdiction, and you need will. in the days and weeks to come, i think that you will see, as attorney general holder has already stated, we will have the resources to undertake this, the groups that are involved and have been designated to be part of this working group collectively have jurisdiction to go after every aspect of the artificial inflation of the housing bubble in the mortgage- backed securities bubble and the crash that brought down the economy. whether it is a pieces of the tax laws, securities fraud, issues that relate to the area that attorney-general baden and i have been looking at, looking at the trust's which were the vehicle for every march biosecurity issue of the last decade, which were all new york or double or trusts. we have jurisdiction over everything, we have the resources, and we have the will. as the president said, people want real accountability. it want to know there is one set of rules for everybody in this

country, that the quintessential idea of american justice under law is alive and well, and this administration and every member of this working group is committed to it. it,honored to be part of but i'm even more excited about the fact that as soon as we get out of here, we're going into a meeting to continue our work in the investigation. i like to know, as has been mentioned, -- i would like to note, as has been mentioned, we started having conversations a few months ago about the possibility of joining forces to ensure we had the resources and collective jurisdiction to really pursue everything we need to pursue. it did not take long to realize this was the only way we would restore the public's confidence in the financial-services industry, which has been badly shaken, and that we can take steps to get the economy moving again. but president is quicker than

the rest of us. he heard about what we were doing, we talk to him, and he decided he would create a working group, direct us to go forward. that is what you heard tuesday night. i'm honored to be part of it. i'm confident that you will see actions in the weeks and days ahead that will demonstrate that this is going to be very aggressive effort. and with the will and jurisdiction and resources, and confident of our ultimate success. thank you very much. and i would like to bring back attorney-general holder, in case anyone has a question. >> in the press release, you talk about how this will provide relief for homeowners. number one, how was this going to reach the individual homeowner? also and mortgage servicing? >> on the second part of your

question, around servicing, to be clear, as i think you have heard, the focus here is really on securitization-related organization concept. i guess the way that i would describe it, if you think about the actions that really led to the devastating impact on homeowners out, on neighborhoods, on the entire world economy, in fact, it was really the origination and securitization of these products that created those devastating problems. the servicing problems that we have been investigating are contributed to that. they were sent to those problems, but frankly they did not fundamentally create these problems. i would say those servicing problems which we have been looking at separately are a small part of the overall set of causes of this crisis, and really compounded it rather than creating it. so the focus here is on the

original conduct that led to the inflation, the bubble, and the crash afterwards, not the servicing after that. but in terms of the way the connection between those can work, the fundamental problem, as i said earlier, is there is a risk here that tens of billions, even hundreds of billions of dollars are paid to private investors. we have many state attorneys general who have state pension funds that were hurt dramatically by purchasing these private-label securities. they have been harmed, the people of those states have been harmed. they need to make recoveries. fundamentally speaking, as those recoveries are made, as payments are made to investors, to law enforcement agencies for accountability, we need to make sure that at the same time, if those payments are being made,

that there is also a relief that happens for the homeowners within the securities, those loans that underlie the securities. it would be a tragedy if the investors were made whole, but homeowners who were wrong as well at the same time -- i believe, and we have begun significant discussions of this, that if we could provide a structure or simultaneously with those payments being made there are benefits provided to homeowners in the underlying structure, that is a goal that is very much achievable by this task force. obviously, we will have more to say about that as we go forward, but that is a fundamental principle in why not only wearing my enforcement hat threw out fha but as the housing secretary i feel optimistic about this work going forward. >> we are three years away from the meltdown.

there is some skepticism, what are you doing this now? has the quality of the evidence or what his recollection got in any better? ? people expect it will fix it this time, when we have not seen major cases? >> let's deal with that, you know, about defining major cases. there have been 2100 or so mortgage related matters we have brought to the u.s. department of justice. are state counterparts have done a variety of things. the notion there has been an activity over the last three weeks is belied by trouble some little thing called facts. beyond that, we are here today to work together, figure out ways to streamline our efforts, work efficiently, effectively. i'm confident, as the attorney general said, that with the will and resources that we will come up with results that will deal with, hold people accountable, get resources to people who were

harmed, and we will turn the page on this so we can get our economy focused on things that will provide jobs and growth for this nation. it is not as if we have not been doing anything. we have been doing a great deal. i'm confident with this new structure put in place today that our efforts will be enhanced. >> you are bringing in 10 fbi agents, there were thousands of agents investigating other at out cases. in 2009, they said the fbi was investigating 38 companies directly involved in financial crisis, and yesterday in reuters, the former head of the tarp program said he is puzzled that here we are three years later -- >> i will let eric speak as well to this, but with all due respect to my former colleague

and good friend, i think he has it wrong. the reality is we have done a substantial amount. we are looking now at a specific area in which we have found that great harm was done to the economy, and continues to do great harm to the economy and consumers in this nation. we are bound and determined and will hold people accountable in this sector, and we will as a result of that, as secretary donovan indicated, bring great relief to many people who were harmed. this is a new effort. we're coming up with ways -- we talked about some number of fbi agents. this effort we're talking about not only involves new agents, new sources, but attorneys from the federal government, but we're also bringing in people from the states. it is very significant we will have the ability to tap resources from the state level as well as the federal level, use statutes that exist at the state level that perhaps we cannot have on the federal side,

and come up with ways in which we decide where we can best handle these investigations. what we're doing today is extremely significant and i think it will ultimately be successful. >> yes, when i became new york's attorney general about a year ago, a few months into my tenure, i really learned about the depth of the harm and ongoing harm and how things are getting worse for not only regular americans but for the financial services institutes. the amount of negative equity out there is crushing, npr best efforts to move the economy. -- our best efforts to move the economy. you have to have accountability. .

people who are specifically deployed to this working group only to work on that, it does not mean that the 15 people in my office are stopping working. or all of the people in the sec or hut. this is to proceed in a more coordinated and effective way.

>> will states have access to documents and findings at the u.s. attorney level that has been reviewed for the past three years? investigators have said they had been stymied by their efforts. but they deny it to him -- prove intent with the martin act. >> we signed confidentiality agreements. the view is to share documents and to collaborate. one of us may proceed with the case. not everyone will be named as a party in every case. >> there are no prohibitions on document sharing? >> if there is some provision -- prohibition. we are looking to share everything we can share. >> there are ways in which we

can deal with those issues and structure in these investigations so that prohibitions on the federal side will prevent us from sharing information with our state partners. >> how does this affect your thinking about the settlements mentioned earlier? >> i am happy to be here launching this investigation and working with my colleagues on this. >> how will this investigation of fact that settlement deal? >> let me go back to the comment made earlier about how these issues really are separate in the sense that the originations

and securitization was the conduct that led to the crash. the servicing of the mortgages compound and the harm but did not create it. in that sense, the issues we're looking at are the larger issues. i would also say we would not be standing here today if we were not absolutely confident that the releases being contemplated were quite narrow, focused on the conduct actually investigated, on the conduct that we have found significant problems with. going beyond that -- if those releases are narrow enough to allow us to go forward aggressively with what we are describing today. i would give some real credit not only to the attorney

general eric schneiderman but others who are part of this group -- zero biden, lisa madigan -- bo biden, lisa madigan. all pushing to make sure those resources -- those are narrow. they are not only consistent in what i think this announcement today made very clear that the focus we have and the release is being contemplated are narrow enough to allow us to go forward with this. >> he talked about the accomplishments of the financial fraud enforcement task force. this is a pretty significant announcement of additional resources today and

collaboration information sharing. it has been more than three years since the market crashed. looking back on it, do you wish you had done something like this sooner? >> i think we always want to make sure that as we do an investigation or take on an effort, you want to check along the way. what we are doing today makes sense given where we are and the work we have done. this built upon the work has already been done by the task force and by our colleagues in the state. i think we're doing this at the right time. i do not think we would be in a position to do what we are doing today had we not done the other work. >> there are thousands of pages of documents. are you covering the same ground that has already been covered, including some of the

same firms are well as all the new things not investigated before? >> this is a good way -- example of how this task force will work. he made a determination as to where they should go and talk about the things they are looking at and we are not going to be looking at the same things. we will be working with them but looking at a separate group of institutions. >> have we seen the video released yesterday by the u.s. attorney's office of the military shooting spree in what was your reaction to that? >> thank you very much. bill [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2012]

>> next, president obama's and vice-president biden's remarks. then we continue road to the white house in florida with speeches from newt gingrich, mitt romney, and rick santorum. >> i arrived in paris, walked into the hotel lobby, met general mcchrystal for the first time. and he looked at me and said, so your the "rolling stone close guy i do not care about -- "the rolling stone" guy. i do not care about what happened. i just want to be on the cover. >> i said that it was up between

you and lady got up. he said put me and lady got done in a heart-shaped tub. >> now vice-president joe biden tells house democrats that he believes that actions by congressional republicans will help democrats win back the house and help president obama win reelection in 2012. the president's agenda is one that supports the middle-class, he said. this is about 50 minutes. ladies and gentlemen, the vice president of the united states, joe biden. [applause]

>> ladies and gentlemen, i know that our members from maryland, from our whip steny hoyer to each and every proud member of our delegation would like to extend a warm welcome to the vice president for once again joining us and our issues conference. mr. vice president, i think you find yourself, not just friends, but we would say family here, because you have been very gracious to always accept our invitation to come and not just address the members of the house democratic caucus, but to

listen in to work with us. in fact, most of us would say that, mr. vice president, every time we have asked, you have had our back. you have not only had our backs, but you have been gracious to invite us to join you not just at the white house, but in your home with mrs. biden, to talk not just policy, but about the things that make america tech, and -- tick, and for that week thank you. we thank you for your service. you're one of the longest serving senators in history. still very young. i see lots of hair on their still. as well, it is important to note that the biden's have served. your son bo gave service to this country in iraq. he served us and he is back home. and we thank the lord for that. [applause]

now the attorney general of your state of delaware, and so the biden's have served. and they continue to serve. and we're very fortunate to have as the vice president, the 47th vice-president of the united states, a man who has proven to be not just our friend, not just a member of our family, not just a man who has served in the u.s. senate and who make sure that his family serves his country with pride, but we have with the someone who has been a great leader in the history of the united states of america, and so i would like to introduce to you again, the vice president, joe biden. [applause] >> thank you. thank you. thank you very much and happy

birthday, by the way. i think i have told the speaker before that when i was elected with barack obama as vice president, i was also elected that year to the senate for the seventh time. i got sworn in the seventh time, because you may remember we had some votes early on in january, and so the day i had to -- and i apologize for my cold -- the day i had to make a choice -- which everybody thought was easy, but it was not easy in one sense. i did not want to leave the senate. i loved the senate. the day i left the senate, the senate historian came in. he was trying to think of something to say nice about senator biden who was leaving to become vice president biden.

he said the caucus should know, only 13 people in the history of the united states ever served as long as joe biden. all i could think of was my father saying that is the definition of a misspent adulthood. [laughter] but i love the congress, and i know a lot of you very well. i do not think you down for a second that i mean what i am about to say. the doubt for a second that i mean what i'm about to say. i admire you. i am one person who has not forgotten that there are three equal branches of government. quite frankly, i continued to think the congress is in a sense the most important one, because you're the ones who are there every day back home. he is a great honor to be back

with nancy, who -- it is a great honor to be back with nancy, who i think is going to be remembered not just for being the first woman speaker. she is going to be remembered for being the second woman speaker. [applause] i sincerely mean this when i say it, and steny has heard me say it and every one of you who i have worked with in this capacity, i think nancy you are going to go down as one of the most significant speakers in the history of the united states of america. [applause] your several years dent is going to extend, but the truth of the matter you are one of the most effective people i have ever known. there's not a single solitary thing on our agenda that would have gotten done without your leadership.

i mean that sincerely. and by the way, all of you, and a lot of people that are not here today, -- a lot of people who are not here should be here. it was a tough year, because they took some tough votes. you know the old expression the proof of the pudding is in the eating. the proof of the pudding is being cleared to the american people. those decisions you made, the risks you took, the losses we incurred, really did save this country, and the american people are beginning to figure out. the american people are focusing on a more and more. i have a great speech here for you. but because i am late and because you've just eaten, i'm

going to shorten it. i'm just going to talk from a few notes here. if anybody wants a copy of the speech, the press wants a copy, i will be happy to give it to you. look, the front end of this is, to me, pretty simple. it is becoming absolutely clear that decisions that we made and you implement are actually working. the public is beginning to understand that it is working. they are also understanding another thing. you know, god love john boehner -- and jon is a good guy. i sincerely like him personally. but john, when asked about compromise, said "i reject the word." well guess what? the american people are figuring amount that they reject the word, they reject the notion of compromise.

i thought it was pretty stark and remarkable the different mood at the state of the union, not just the quality of the state of the union, but the mood on the floor. i think it is become pretty clear to every republican the folks have figured out that they reject the notion of compromise. i think the american public understands that we have never been able to move this heterogeneous country along without compromise. you can compromise and be true to your principles. they're not inconsistent. leader cantor, when it came to the debt ceiling vote, called it -- and they meant it, because i was doing the negotiation, and steny and jim and others know, trying to deal with the debt ceiling -- he said, and he was honest about it, that this is a leverage moment. a leveraged moment. a leverage moment in which they were using may be the second

most significant thing we inherited from our forefathers, which was an absolutely gold- plated reputation around the world, that there was never a doubt about america's commitment to honoring its debts, that was used as a leverage moment. and i think the public saw it. and mitch mcconnell, who worked with for years and still work with, mitch was straightforward. he said the single most important thing we want to achieve is for president obama to be a one-term president. so the generic point i want to make here is i think a lot of things are becoming clear to the american people. that is not the way they want us to do business, and that is not the way we did business when it was reversed. we had our issues.

for years, i was chair of the judiciary committee with reagan and both bush's. the truth of the matter is, we never took the position that our fundamental objective was to defeat the incumbent president. obviously, we wanted to win. tom davis, a retired tom davis, republican john davis -- tom davis said just this week that for democrats to take 25 seats, they will need a wave. then he said, continued polarization can create that wave. that was not our tom davis. that was there tom davis. these guys know it, but i am afraid they cannot help themselves. and right now i do not see any

change yet in this policy of political strategy of obstruction and division. i think the people may straighten this out for us. we are not going to straighten them out on this, but the american people may straighten them out between now and november, capitulating, but on actually cooperating in compromising -- not on capitulating, but on actually compromising and cooperating. last september, that was a tie between republicans and congress and you. boehner, cantor, mcconnell, they made it clear. it is about obstructing the president's agenda. it is about defeating barack obama.

but i think mitt romney and newt gingrich -- and i am not trying to be funny. in deadly earnest here. i think they are slightly different. i think it is more than about obstructionism. i think they actually believe what they're saying. when these guys are out there saying, let detroit go bankrupt -- that is the front and of the quote, and it gets worse. let foreclosures continue and the housing market hit rock bottom. poor people have no habit of working. barack obama is the food stamp president. i think it is more than political theater and tactic. i think they believe it. and the reason i say that is -- and i do not want to get going on these guys, i know that is

not appropriate. i do not want to begin, but i know where events. i think it ends on january 20th of next year. barack and i once again standing with the majority -- [applause] folks, i will talk about this a little later, but you are lucky to have steve is there doing the job he has. as steve and i are meeting to get down to brass tacks next week, i really do think we're going to win back the house. i think you're going to win back the house. look, the president is always kidding me, and you're going to hear from him shortly.

he gives me credit for this quote. it is not mine, it is kevin white's. he said, "do not compare me to the almighty. compare me to the alternative." i think, like every election, the comparison is to the alternative. and these are not, in my view, and i mean this sincerely. these are not bad guys, but they really believe as strongly as we do the direction they want to take the country. i was talking to mike donovan, who i think is one of the smartest guys in politics.

the big difference between us and them, i think, can be distilled to a phrase. the difference between us and them is we are strongly supportive of the private sector. they are strongly supportive of the privileged sector. i think that we will be able to show, and americans are beginning to figure out, that we are committed to bringing back the private sector because we know that is the engine. we do not create jobs. we create opportunities for people to create jobs. they create jobs, the private sector, and we're committed to bring it back. and i think they are determined to preserve the privilege sector. because again, i think they really believe that what i would refer to as the privileged sector, wall street unabridged, the super wealthy

who are not prepared to contribute, and i could go on with a whole range of other identifications, the you know, america is going to get an absolutely clear comparison this year. i have been doing this, as has been pointed out by others, and i guess i look it too, a long time. i have been in as many elections as almost all of you except a few. i can honestly say, to my memory, this is the first election were the opposition is not trying to hide the ball. i mean it sincerely. think about it. i'm being deadly earnest. usually, every race i have run since getting elected as a kid in 1970 to a local office and the senate in 1972, every

election -- and it was admittedly a different republican party than as well -- i remember riding up to the university of rochester in a small plane, and we were talking about the history of the social policies of this country related to social security etc. i remember them saying that the republican party since dewey has been me to, just not as much. me too, just not as far. me too, does not as bold. and then they gave up on the me too, because they did not really mean me too anymore. then they were going to extend medicare, preserve social security, compassionate conservatives.

well, they're dead thing about -- the good thing about this election is they are being unvarnished now. they are making no bones about it. they are not trying to hide the ball. they're not trying to pretend, not only in their rhetoric, but in their actions, how they vote, what they propose, what their budget is. it is a start, stark, a star, a stark contrast -- stark, stark, stark, stark contrast. it is fundamentally different. i know there are some even among the republican leadership who still are the party of the 1970's -- or of the 1990's -- but they cannot control their party.

the was asked at a function -- and i'm going to get criticized for saying this -- i was asked by a group of people what we can do to help and i said, give me a republican party. i'm not being facetious. nancy can tell you. a lot of people do not like cantor. i personally happen to like him. he has always been straight with me. when cantor walked out of those talks, he did not walk out. he said joe, i cannot get it done, i cannot come back. the truth of the matter is, who do you make the deal with? who can you reach out and shake hands with and say we have a bargain? that is the way this country has always functioned.

right now -- and the public saw our lead in the debate over the extension of the payroll tax. when the wall street journal had to come in and say to the republicans, basically, what you doing? so, the fact of the matter is, there are a number of things that are clear as well. the way i divide this up, i think of what is clear, what is new, and what is at stake. to me, what is clear, and it is clear to the american people now, we inherited an awful lot. you know, the metaphor that was used, osama bin ladin is used and general motors is alive to sum up where we are. the metaphor is a lie. we inherited a world where we had 150,000 combat troops fighting in iraq, no political

solution in sight and no way out. no clear path. what is clear is that we kept our commitment to the american people, and one of the greatest honors i had -- nancy and i -- and i called the president from baghdad. i got to stand there in one of those body palaces of saddam hussein with the president and prime minister of iraq, with the chief of staff of the iraqi army and the chief of staff -- chief of our armed forces, american, and i got to say, mr. president, america is leaving. having kept our commitment, we're going home completely, and in the tradition of all american soldiers, we're leaving with nothing but our honor and our dignity. [applause]

that was the most important cigna the moment in my career. -- significant moment in my career. what was clear was we were engaged in a war of afghanistan without having any idea what our objectives were. really? what was it? we stated our objective, and that was to decimate al qaeda, the single threat to the u.s., and that existed in the region. well, for the president's actions -- and we have all been in committees. we have all been in groups. we all -- when something goes well, we all deserve a little bit of the credit, but it is usually somebody. i tell you, this guy has a backbone like a ramrod.

for four weeks, only four of us knew the possibility of where bin laden was. about a month later, the call came, and as you know, colonel, you end of making decisions based on the moon. will there be enough light? the president went around the table and said, i have to make a decision. what is your opinion? he started with the national security adviser, the secretary of state, and ended with me. every single person in that room hedged their bets except for leon panetta. leon panetta said go. everyone else said 49 of this, 51 of that. he got to me and he said, joe, what do you think? i said, i did not know we had so many communists around the table.

-- i did not know we had some many economists around the table. give the man a direct answer. i said, you should not go. we have to do two more things. he said, i will give you my decision. the next day, he said go. he knew what was at stake. not just the lives of those great warriors, but literally, the presidency. and he pulled the trigger. that is clear to the american people.

that says less about bin laden than it does about character, about this guy leading from behind. this guy does not lead from behind. he just leaves. -- he just leads. that is clear. we inherited the world where we were not feared by our foes and not respected by our friends, literally. we're now the most respected nation in the world again -- [applause] leading not just by the example of our power, but by the power of our example. the american people know it. it is clear that we inherited an economy that was in free fall. as the president pointed out and you know because you have lived it every single day for the last three years, we lost 8 million jobs before our first pass at the recovery act.

we've now added jobs for 23 straight months. i have a chart. you do this in focus groups and they say, that is good. and then you hold up the chart showing all the jobs going down, and then what happened from the time we pass the recovery act and what happened on the stock market, and they go. they understand it now because they're beginning to feel it. they're not talking about reorganizing the auto industry. we were talking about liquidating two pieces of it. it is clear now that with your help, and i know there was weeping and gnashing of teeth even among some of our democratic friends. we insisted on a reorganization. and instead of losing four

hundred thousand jobs, we have now gained 176,000 jobs that pay people real wages. [applause] i could go on but i will not. the bottom line is, you have been educated. when i was here last, you had two messages for me to take back to the president. steny's message, make it in america, and nancy and everybody else's message to get tough with these guys. enough is enough. let's lay down our cards and stay pat. well, the message was heard, folks. the message was heard. and i think we have delivered on our message since then with your help. the most interesting conference i have attended since i was vice-president was two weeks

ago in the white house. it was a conference on a word that america had not heard very much, in sourcing. -- insourcing. there were ceo's or presidents from dupont, ford, master lock, rolls royce, chesapeake bay, candles, and you know what they wanted to talk about? they wanted to talk about why they're coming back home. is not because of the democrats. it is not because of barack obama and joe biden. it is because of america's incredible underpinning of strength and resilience and the productivity of our workers. i'm going to send a copy of. some of you may have seen it. there is a study done by a boston group that these guys hired pointing out why people are coming back, why it is economically sound to bring

manufacturing back to america. it ranges from everything from escalating wages and costs in china, vietnam and the rest. it literally makes more sense to come back. it is because nobody steals your ip here in this country. it is because your trademarks do not get stolen. it is because it makes no sense. they have figured it out, not to separate the factory floor from innovation and research and development department, making them 10,000 miles away. the list goes on and on, but it is coming back. it really is. it is not a joke. it is not a joke. it is coming back. and we are in a position now, with your help and your leadership, stuff you have already done, to record -- reward companies that come back

and not reward them for leaving. is there another country you can think of the rewards companies for coming to the united states? i am being deadly earnest. is there any other country you know? we pay your moving expenses to leave. we do not pay your moving expenses to come back. we let you deduct the corporate bond interest to build a new plant against your income back here because you do not have to bring your in come home from abroad. but the company that does it here has to deducted against their profit here, which is less consequential. why do we do those things? there are a whole lot of things we can do. we are in a position of what is new is, we have gotten the message. your leadership in the house particularly, on being made in

america -- you can make it in america without violating any, any international standards. [applause] you can make it in america now because it is economically more feasible to make it in america. and i will summarize this whole conference. if you're going to build a factory, the cost of building the factory has to be advertised and you have to look at it over 30 years. within five years, even the wage advantage is that exist in going to china will be less than 5%. by the way, the other thing we have to do -- and you guys have been doing it all along -- we have to convince the american people out there of the truth, the facts. everybody thinks the chinese people the party even our lunch. i want the chinese to grow force -- have already eaten our lunch. i want the chinese people to grow, but the truth is, we are the most reliable nation in the world. they make of 19.6% of

manufacturing value added worldwide. do you know what we make up in the middle of a recession? 19.4%, now, without any change. so this idea that we have to yield to the inevitable i find offensive and historically inaccurate. where is it written that we will not be the manufacturing capital of the world and the 21st century? where does this say that? i'm serious. how many lectures do you hear from economists, even liberal economists, saying we have to be a service economy. we're never going to do that again. guess what? with all those jobs having gone abroad the last 30 years, outsourcing, now the they are coming back, now that it is making sense to be here, guess what? we are lacking skilled workers. we do not have enough tool and

die makers. so what are we going to do? we're going to make a deal. a direct correlation between the help we give community colleges and partnering with major corporations. i will not start to name your districts, but seven of you are already doing and in their districts. creating jobs, providing the talent for the new investments that are occurring here in the united states of america because we have the most productive workers. we decided not to take mitt romney's advice and figure out that you can help people who are in trouble with their housing, and there is a way to do that. ok, i know that people do not want to help a guy who took a mortgage out on his home and bought a boat and now he is under water, but guess what, there are 14 million americans out there -- >> vice-president joe biden

they never missed a mortgage payment. and the mortgage rates are between 3.5% and the maximum 4%. they can save an average $3,000 year. in the neighborhood i grew, and that means whether or not you can keep your kid in a community college. it makes a big difference for people. and guess what, we can do that without costing taxpayers money. when the president said in his speech that now the banks will have an opportunity to make a contribution to the trust deficit, what he was talking about is simple.

if you take banks that have a minimum of $50 -- $50 billion in assets and charge them pennies on $100, you can come up with the funds that are $9 million sitting over here that the experts tell us, if you took a chance on all 14 million homes being refinanced, the maximum prospekt, the possibility of foreclosure and exposure to the small banks, would be $9 billion. so we have a fund over there. so now we have to go to a bank in wilmington, delaware court in wilmington, calif. and the bank says you can take a chance. even though you have not missed a payment, you're not underwater. yes, i am under water. help me out. well guess what. now they can do it. what is new is a lot the we're

proposing -- it is also common sense. not only have the american people figure out what we did, which is complicated. it is bearing fruit, which gives them more willingness to accept that what we are proposing may work, the things we're proposing are not ideological -- are non-is illogical. what is in a logical about the american people having bill that institutions with $50 billion more. they're not bad guys. i am not making demons. but what is the big deal for them to come along now for pennies on $100 in assets and make sure that the very people that bail them out get above the water, have a chance? this is common sense to people. and so, as i said, these guys

are helping us. they are hoping is by saying what they believe. last point i want to make is this. what is at stake here is literally about restoring the market. this is not a political slogan for us. what these guys do not get, in my opinion, i do not think they get it. it may be cheaper and make more sense long term for people to rent rather than own. we're also told, you know what, maybe kids to qualify for

college, it is not important for them to go to college because it costs a lot of money. the present will have a lot to say about our college initiative when he gets here. -- the president will have a lot to say about our college initiative when he gets here. but what they do not get is that it is about this connective tissue that holds this country together. but father used to have an expression. he said that a job is a lot more than about a paycheck. it is about your dignity. it is about to respect. it is about the place in your community. and a home is a lot more than about whether it is cheaper or rational to own all or rent. when you own a home, it matters to you whether there is a little league team. when you own a home, it matters to you whether you show up to the fire department to volunteer. when you own a home, you want to make sure the street looks really good. it does not mean that renters do

not care. but they are psychologically not invested. i would argue two essential elements of what has been the middle class dream -- this is pure biden. there is no study about this. it is just me. and it is simple to me. the way i grew up and all the people around me, what are the two dreams that you get on a home and get to send your kid to college. you take both of those pieces out and you put in it on a purely flat economic scale and say this is just more efficient to do it otherwise. you take part of of the word thou as a country. you take a piece of community and the sense that i can be, that my kid can do something better than me. i remember my dad.

you as a graceful, decent man, well read, a high school- educated guy. and he ran an automobile agency. one of the great things about that, for all of my province, i got a new car. that is not a joke. so i would drive down in my 1951 plymouth. and this is in 1961. i would drive down and would pull into the lot and my dad would have a shiny simonized car on the used car lot. some of you know this area. claremont, delaware is right on the border. we had a baseball game where i went to school. i was still in my uniform. i took off my stipespikes and pn

my sneakers and i went to my dad's place to trade cars to take my girlfriend to her junior prom. i talk to the secretary, mary. i said, where is dad? he said as she is over at the site appeared this is what they do not get. it is not about the kids getting to go to college. it is about the kids. my father was pacing back and forth and he said, joe. he had a worried look on his face. he said, a joy, i am so damn sorry. i thought something had happened to my mom. he said, joey. i said, dad, what is the matter. he said, i went to the farmers bank today and asked if i could borrow some money to send you to school. dammit, joey, they will not lend me the money.

i am so ashamed. i am so ashamed. how many mothers and fathers have said that. what is the most damaging thing that can happen to a parent? to look at their beautiful and talented kid and know there is nothing they can do to help. this is about more. this is about more than the money. this is about who we are. this about whether or not we really mean what we say when we say we've value family, we value community, we value neighborhood, we value. the core of it is the middle class and those people are aspiring to get into it. you guys, that is what is at stake. and the president means it. that is not a political one in his bid of the union.

i know this guy. i spent four hours to six hours a day with him when we are both in the country in washington. guys, these guns are not bad. they do not get that part of its. they do not get that part of it. the other thing i think, a simple judgment of whether or not we have met the test, at least barack and i and we talk about it, whether we have met the test of bringing this economy back. it is for me to test -- and i use all the time and he does not disagree -- it is us changing the economic environment so that ordinary people can turn and look at their kid and say, honey, it will be ok, whatever it is. it will be ok. a lot of you guys came up -- i

was a typically middle-class kid. when things got bad with my family, my dad looked at me and said, honey, it is going to be ok. he believed it would be. go back to your old neighborhoods. clearly, go back to your old neighborhood. go to your old friends. ask them if they are confident they can go to their kids and say, honey, it is going to be ok. that is the test. that is what this is about. it is not about 49,860 -- it is about, honey, it is going to be ok. i am convinced it will be ok. the reason why is that i think the american people are tired of being tired. another is a bidenism. but i do not know any other way to express it.

i think they are tired of being tired. i think they're like my dad would say -- just get up. that is all in need and we will give it to them. and we have given them more. the glimmer of the possibility. just get up. some of them will not hold them up. the summit will also not push them back down. [applause] -- somebody will not push them back down. [applause] look, we know what they will say, the opposition. they will say -- i met mitch daniels, who i do not know, but he seems like a good guy. he talked about trickle-down government. i started thinking about that and how they talk about us and how we are big government and trickle-down government and they are free enterprise. and i started thinking. remember, nancy, when -- i do

not know if it was you or a certain came up with the idea -- in a, -- you know what, we will pay banks to process loans to send kids to college. we thought that was free enterprise. it is the taxpayers' money, but that is free enterprise. that was the market. then we came along and said, well, why not use the tax moneyes -- the taxpayers' even more directly. and george miller, george, if you're here, you did a hell of a deal. let's go ahead and give it directly. what is that? that is trickle-down government, man. no, no, no, i am serious. try to be logical about their arguments. i recollection is that we did not get one republican vote. we may have, maybe one or two. i do not think we get a single republican vote because they are for free enterprise.

they will spend 60 billion those of your money to help someone as long as it goes through a bank. banks are not bad. but if you can take and immediately spent $4 billion and send it to kids to go to school, that is free enterprise. the one you just did is the payroll tax. the first thing, when i raised that -- and i know that some of you were mad at me when i negotiated that peace two years ago, i remember that -- we all felt that we needed the payroll tax extended. what is the first thing the opposition said? they said we're going to do it anyway. we have to pay for it. ok, we will pay for it. the way you pay for it is to take away the same things that those middle-class people need and that is how you will pay for. i will not mention the

republican congressman i was talking to in the stocks. i said, let me get this straight. you want to extend the bush tax cuts that cost $800 billion. how will you pay for it? what you mean? no, no, tell me, charlie, how will you pay for it? we do not have to pay for that. these are job creators. what is one man's meat is another man's poison. the only thing we have to make clear to the american people is what is the meat and what is the poison. and you know what? they are helping us a great deal. [applause] ladies and gentlemen, i am absolutely convinced that we will do fine this year. as i said last time, i have been meeting and i will meet a little bit with steve and i am going to do whatever you want me to do.

i have been given five states as a focus. pennsylvania, ohio, michigan, iowa, new hampshire, and florida is where i will be spending most of my time. coincidentally, that is where a lot of your targeted seats are. as jimmy slen said to me in 1978 when i was running for reelection, he said -- he never called me senator or joe. he always called me young man. he said, young man, what would jim eastland do for you in delaware? that was a tough election. i said, well, mr. chairman, in some places, you help and in some places you hurt. and he looked at me and said, well, i will come to delaware and campaign for you again or not, which ever will help the

most. i will campaign to be against you if it helps you, our campaign to be for you if it helps you [laughter] thank you very much. >> president obama also spoke of the democratic retreat in cambridge, md.. he spoke on some of the themes that were in his state of the union address. he was talking about the state of the economy. and the need for wealthier americans to pay more in taxes. he has -- he is introduced by democratic house caucus leader. >> mr. president, this has been an emotional and inspiring week, which was underscored by your

embrace of our colleague gabrielle difference. [applause] it was carried on every newspaper. it epitomizes what is rich about public service. it means so much to all this year. we thank you for that, mr. president. you then gave an address that reignited and energized this caucus. [applause] but more importantly, the american people. [applause] inspired, we came here to work! [applause] we came here to work on reigniting the american dream because we know that, if we reignite the american dream, if we build these ladders of

opportunity -- is that not right, madam speaker? and in building those letters, we make sure that we're laser focus to on small business -- laser focused on small business. and we make sure that innovation is in the forefront and that the entrepreneurs, architects, and engineers to make a robust middle-class will make it so that we can make it here in america. [applause] we know, when you make it in america, every american makes it. mr. president, we implore our colleagues on the other side of the aisle. you have made every attempt humanly possible to get them to

bring your legislation that will put this country back to work on the floor. we stand committed. we stand with you to make that happen in this session of the congress. ladies and gentlemen, our leader, our champion, the can lander in chief -- the commander in chief of our forces, the 44th president of the united states, barack obama. [cheers and applause] >> thank you! thank you, everybody. thank you so much. thank you. thank you, everybody. ok, everybody have a seat. let me begin by saying that i was told that, on a cd that i

have just received -- [laughter] that all of you participate in a rendition of al green. what i did not realize was that you also had a reverend who can preach as good as l. green indrawn larsen -- as good as our grain in john larsen. i kept looking -- as good as al green in john larsen. i kept looking for the collection plate. the leader of this body and the soon-to-be speaker of the house

again, nancy pelosi. [applause] to the rest of the leadership team, steny hoyer, jim cliburn. we have an all-star team assembled and ready to get to work. i know that you have been here quite a bit. you already had to suffer through a relatively long speech from me this week. so i will not be too long. what are wanted to do first of all was say thank you. so many of you have served this

country, your districts for years. through good times and through bad times. it.s face public-service does not always get the credit that it deserves. but knowing each and everyone of you personally, understanding the sacrifices that you and your family members, some are here today, make each and every day, understanding how much your heart bleeds when you see constituents who are going through a tough time and how much you want to make sure that government serves as a force for good in their lives, i just want to say thank you for everything that you do. you are putting it all on the line. inu believe in an america tha which everybody gets a fair shot and everybody does their fair

share and everybody plays by the same set of rules. that is what you have been about. that is with his caucus is about. and that is the vision that we are fighting for. this year and in the years to come. as i said at the state of the union, the critical debate in this country right now, the defining question that faces us all is whether we will all restore the sense of an american promise where, if you work hard, if you are carrying out your responsibilities, if your taking care of your family, if you are participating in your community, you have a chance to get a job that allows you to support your family. you will now be bankrupt when

you get sick. you'll send your children to college. you can retire with dignity. with respect. you can expect that the next generation, your children and grandchildren, will do better than you did. that american promise, that central driving force is what has created the greatest country with the largest economy and the broadest middle-class on earth. that promise has been eroding for too many people and all of you know it. this is not a new trend. this is something that has been going on for years. wages and incomes stagnant at the same time that costs keep going up and up and up. outsourcing and jobs moving elsewhere. young people wondering, even if they invest in a college degree, will be able to find a job that

supports an ever-increasing load of debt. and all of that was before the economic crisis hit in 2008-2009 that put millions of people out 0 work. now here's the good news. the good news is that we are moving in the right direction thanks to your efforts, thanks to some tough votes that you took, thanks to nancy pelosi and the leadership the she has shown. we did not slip into a great depression. the auto industry was saved. credit started flowing to small businesses again. over the last 22 months, we have seen 3 million jobs created, the most jobs last year since 2005, more jobs in manufacturing than we have seen since the 1990's.

[applause] a lot of that has to do with tough decisions. there are very few states that have been harder hit with these longer-term trends than michigan. but you can puissance of new porpoise and renewed hope in that state. -- of new purpose and renewed hope in that state. had the not happen, a million jobs would have been lost. had we not acted, the big three auto makers, the suppliers, the entire ecosystem of the economy in that state would have been decimated. is now they're thinking gm no. 1 again. and chrysler is on the move again. and ford is investing in plants and equipment again.

and you get a sense of movement, of restoration of hope and possibility. the people understand that the job is not done, not even close to being done yet. and they understand, if we will finish the job, then we have to first of all make sure that american manufacturing is strong. that means that we are out there creating a tax code that does not provide tax breaks for companies that shipping jobs overseas. we're focusing on companies that are investing right here in the united states because we believe that come when you make it in america, everybody benefits. everybody does well. [applause] witness stand that we need

american energy. part of my goal on -- we understand that we need american energy. part of my goal on tuesday was to say that we understand we have not been on top of energy. the percentage of imports have been lower. we have been developing opening up millions of acres to development. but what we have also said is that oil is not enough. we have to think about the future, not just look backwards at the past. where to invest in solar and wind and biofuel. we have already doubled our proficiencies on cars and trucks. we have to make sure that we build on these incentives, which is good for our economy and create jobs and, by the way, is also good for our environment. that is important to the american people as well. [applause]

i know the other side does not always believe in this agenda. they think that the only subsidies worth providing is for the oil companies. we have been providing subsidies for close to century. they have never been more profitable. let's take some of the money, take some of those tax breaks and make sure we are investing in a clean energy future that is just as promising. skills for american workers, making sure that every young person in this country has the skills to succeed. i told the story at the state of the union, but i want to make sure that everybody here is this. we will have to work hard on this. companies are starting to say it makes economic sense to move back to the united states. [applause] wages in places like china are going up faster than

productivity. american workers have never been more productive. energy costs increasingly are competitive here in the united states because of the developments taking place around natural gas. transportation costs are higher than other places. when you look at the whole package, a lot of companies are saying we want to be here, close to our market. but one of the biggest impediments is that we have to be able to find the skilled workers that will be managing these million-dollar pieces of equipment. they do not all have to go to four-year colleges although we do need more engineers and scientists. we need to make sure that college is affordable and successful. we also need skilled workers going to community colleges or middle-aged workers who are allowed to retrain and have a commitment to work and have that but want to make sure

the technology is not passing them by. so focusing on our community college and making sure that they are matched up with businesses that are hiring right now and making sure that they helped design the programs i will put them -- put -- the programs that will put people to work. we have an average of $24,000 worth of debt for every young person that is graduating right now. they are starting off in a hole that most of us did not have to start off with. it is brittle. there are ways we can solve it. -- it is brutal. there are ways we can solve it. there things we have to do right now, like make sure the interest rates do not double on student loans this year in july. [applause] we will require congress to act. we will also put pressure on

states to make sure they are prioritizing higher education. we will make sure that colleges and universities are held accountable and that they do what they need to do to hold down costs. but most of all, we have to restore our commitment to the american values of hard work and responsibility and shared responsibility. over the last three days, i have travelled around the country amplifying what we said on tuesday. one of the points i make and everybody understands this -- you know, if we are going to make the investments we need, if we're going to invest in science and research that leads to inventions like the internet that create entire industries, entire platforms for long-term economic growth, if we are going to invest in the skills of our workers, if we make sure that we

have the best ever structure and the world and pay for this incredible military that just say this young woman -- [applause] out of somalia, if we're going to take care of veterans once they're finished serving so that we serve them as well as they serve us, all those things cost money. we have to pay for it. and if we're serious about paying for it, then, yes, we have to cut out programs to do not work. this caucus has been ahead and willing to make some of the toughest cuts we have ever made. $2 trillion, over $2 trillion in deficit-reduction. but we have also said, at a certain point, you know what? everybody has to participate in this. and when we have more than a trillion dollars worth of tax

breaks that were supposed to be temporary for the top 2% slated to continue, a tax coot full of loopholes for folks who do not need them -- a tax code full of loopholes for folks who do not need them and did not ask for them, we have to ask what is more important to us? is it more important for me to get a tax break or is it more important for that senior citizen to have that medicare or social security benefit? is it more important for that young person to get a college education? is it more important for me to get a tax break or is it more important that we care for our veterans? this is one of the biggest things i will be pushing back against this year, this notion that somehow this is class warfare, that we are trying to stir up any the. nobody in these rich people. everybody wants to be rich -- nobody envies rich people.

every once to be rich. everybody aspires to be rich. but are we providing opportunity for everybody? the question is how do we pay for that? when you give me a tax break but i do not need and the country cannot afford, two things happen. either the deficit increases or, alternatively, somebody else has to pay the tax, that senior or that student or that family who is struggling to make ends meet. so we will push hard for the buffet rule. we will push hard to make sure that millions, making over $1 million a year to enact a tax breaks or subsidies that they do not need. not out of envy, but out of a sense of commitment to this country's future. that is what we're fighting for. and the american people understand that.

the same way that they understand we will have to keep in place smart regulations that ensure that a health care company cannot drop you off right when you get sick or charge women differently than men. these are the folks who want to roll back financial regulatory reform after all that we have been through? you want to water down and weaken the rules that make sure that big banks and financial institutions have to play by the same rules as everybody else? that makes no sense. the american people understand that. you understand that. that is what you have been fighting for. obviously, we are in an election season. when the other side decides to it is that will be their standard bearer, then we will have a robust debate about whose

vision is more promising when it comes to moving this country forward. it will be a tough election because a lot of people are still hurting out there. and a lot of people have lost faith generally about the capacity of washington to get anything done. the main thing i want to urge all of you is that, even as we are out there making our case, even as we pushed hard to persuade, not just the american people, but hopefully some people on the other side about the brightness of our future if we work together. i think it is important during the course of this year not to forget that there is still work we can do right now. we can extend the payroll tax cuts right now without drama and

without delay. we can work together right now to help start-ups and entrepreneurs get easier financing and use are in the more effectively. -- and use our&d -- and use r&d more effectively. wherever we have an opportunity, where ever there is the possibility that the other side is putting some politics aside for just a nanosecond in order to get something done for the american people, we have to be right there ready to meet them. we have to be right there ready to meet them. on the other hand, where they

obstruct, where they are unwilling to act, where they are more interested in party than their own country, more interested in the next election than the next generation, then we need to call them out on it. we have to call them out on it. we have to push it. we cannot wait. we cannot be held back. at the state of the union, obviously, i talked about our military. i had a chance to see some folks out at buckley and in colorado as well. there you go. you know, obviously, the work that our military has done in this last decade has filled us with alwe. as you saw in the state of the

union, everybody stands up when you mention the military. appropriately so. that is something the should not be partisan. but the argument i tried to make that day and we hope that we all keep in mind, there is a reason that we admire them. it is not just because they do their job so well. it is not just because of their incredible capacity and training and skill. it is also because of an ethic that says that we're all in this together. i can only succeed if the guy next to me and the gal next to me are successful as well. i can only succeed if somebody has my back. we do not succeed on our own. we all have to pull our weight. we all have to do our work. america is not about handouts or bailouts or cop out. we all have to focus on what our

responsibilities are. we have to do our jobs. but we also understand that we are always more successful when we do it together. black, white, hispanic, asian, latino, native american, they, st., it does not matter. what matters -- gay, straight, it does not matter. what matters is that we have a common resolve. that will help ensure that this economy recovers. that is what will help insure that this country's future is bright. that is at the core, i believe, not only of what it means to be a democrat, but i also think it is at the core of what it means to be an american. i believe in you guys. you guys have had my back to some very tough times. i will have your back as well.

and together, we will move this country forward. god bless you. and god bless the united states of america. and thank you, democratic caucus for all of the great work that you do! let's go out there and change the country! thank you! [applause] ♪ >> members, please understand that we have buses waiting out there. if everybody could be quick, and the president, understanding his time, and boarding some of these

buses for some of you have planes. that would be most greatly appreciated. ♪

♪

>> remember, members, buses will be boarding right away. ♪

♪ >> members, you are doing an extraordinary job.

♪

>> to next, c-span's coverage continues in florida with newt gingrich and mitt romney speaking at the hispanic leadership network conference and rick santorum speaking with the latin builders association. tomorrow on "washington journal," susan macmanus

previews the presidential primary and looks at issues of florida voters care about her. and retired colonel cederic leighton on how they might impact counter-terrorism. "washington journal" on c-span. [applause] >> newt gingrich and mitt romney spoke at the hispanic leadership network, a group focused on engaging the hispanic community a conservative policy issues. jeb bush is a co-chair. the primary is next tuesday. we begin with former speaker gingrich. this is 25 minutes.

>> thank you very much. we had a more modest group downstairs. i thought there would come up to see if the rest of you decide you would like to join us. we had folks from louisiana, texas, a number of other places for may council. i am thrilled. we have developed here in miami nine years ago. we have had a consistent effort to develop a nationwide approach to a center-right capability to talk about issues that matter to all of us. we have no boundaries. every ethnic group that comes to america has the right to pursue the american dream. it is very important -- i was thrilled when lionel and kathy came today.

they get it. they understand. everybody in the latino community has aspirations that are precisely the heart of the american dream. they want to work and have independence. [applause] we're honored to be here and to be with you. i want to thank everybody who was put this together. it does matter a great deal. these are all first-rate people who've done the first rate job. i can promise you that with the help of many of you i become the nominee, we will work closely in every single state and we recognize that working with the latino community is every single state because there are people everywhere who of the background who came from someplace either in spain or latin america. let me talk about some practical things.

i would move mexico from the northern command to the southern command here in miami to create a capacity to deal with all of latin america. it makes no sense to divide mexico. [applause] i was treating the southern command and its personnel. we invest more in bahrain or japan -- think about the scale of the media say. we are neglecting this hemisphere. almost 50 years later, we continue to neglect this hemisphere and it is dangers and foolish and we should have different policies. our commitment to every person

in latin america -- we want you to have the opportunity to live under the rule of law and we want america to be your closest friend in your closest ally in giving you a chance for your family to pursue a better future. and that message and a human level will be received by people across all latin america and could help us break out. i was deeply influenced in the 1980's and how you break through. i would like us to have that kind of program that gives hope to everybody. hugo chavez says he is our enemy. i am prepared to accept that. [laughter] [applause] there have been a few occasions

in an administration filled with embarrassments that when president obama met with hugo chavez and he smiled and handed him an anti american book as an active delivered contempt. we do understand that what we get together and they say they want to harm the united states, they mean it. we should take an aggressive strategy of replacing hugo chavez and giving the people of venice well the opportunity to live in freedom -- the people of venezuela. [applause] i come to you as someone who helped pass the helms-burton act. i was -- i will not waive article 3 as president, which

every president has waived. i think the important for us to implement that -- i think it is important for us to implement that. but we need to do more than that. it is amazing that president obama can look east and worry about freedom in tunisia, libya, egypt, were a little bit about freedom and syria and more about iran and all because that would be embarrassing. he cannot bring themselves to look south. i would like a cuban south to -- spring to help the people of cuba liberate themselves. [applause] if you look at the non-military strategies of president reagan

and pope john paul to defeat the soviet empire, and we were serious about communicating to the next generation and the cuban hierarchy, there will not be a transition to a dictatorship but a transition to freedom. you get to decide which side you want to join. we will notice who does what and we will do accountable for every act of repression. i think he would find the morale collapsing. we have the scene where one reagan talks about the evil empire. then we have a prisoner who says -- to answer rating, they have to use the word "evil." the morale of very guard inside. -- in sibera dropped and the

morale of every prisoner when to up because a western leader had the courage to tell the truth about the soviet empire. the willingness to intimidate those who would be oppressors by saying to them, you'll be held accountable and those of you engaged in violence against the people of cuba will suffer the consequences of your behavior. in an age when people can take film -- [applause] one of my goals is to flood the island with enough cell phones and video cameras in any act of repression gets filmed by 30 people. this person will be on the list after the revolution. watch the morale of the police force drop. the other part of land america

-- of latin america -- we have to help the government of mexico win the war against the drug cartels. this is extraordinarily important. [applause] i helped pass the plan columbia as speaker. this was compounded by the drug cartels which was compounded by the the power in rural colombia. we need to be prepared in a different situation with different complexities to help the government of mexico in every way we can defeat the drug cartels because it is a threat for everybody in the hemisphere to have a failed state in mexico and to have the

drug dealers surviving. [applause] there is a broader pattern. the broader pattern is the question of how do we maximize our trade and how we maximize our ability to compete? i am bothered when i see the chinese gaining ground in latin america because their government cares, their government is engaged and wants to maximize the opportunity to import and export from latin america. what changes in regulations and in tax laws -- what we need to do -- i will do everything i can to maximize our opportunities in latin america and to maximize the opportunity for miami to become the center of commerce, the center of

education, the center of opportunity so that all of -- will overhaul the legal visa system. when we make it harder to get here, we should not be surprised when we have too few visitors. we have an obligation to reshape the entire visa program. i say that on behalf of the cruise lines and on behalf of disney world and on behalf of universal. we're losing thousands of jobs because we have a visa program that is so complicated. one item that was not covered last night. i have had a firm position on

the right of the puerto rican people to have a referendum. the people have to make that decision. i think they have every right to have the referendum to decide on stated or not. -- statehood or not. that is something i would support, their right to of the referendum. and then to negotiate the right of a session -- if that is what they want to do. i do believe the people of puerto rico -- this was my position when i was a speaker. have the right to clarify their status. >> i have a question.

the united states armed forces -- we have 4 million puerto ricans in the united states who are voters. the question is simple. you want our vote -- yes or no? i do not want you to make the decision. we will be going to referendum. the believe that to be a state or not -- do you believe that to be a state? [applause] >> i believe the people of puerto rico should make the decision. [applause] it is not my place. the people should make the decision if they want to be a state. i will work with them.

but the people have to decide their future. i would welcome them if they make the decision. i will not tell them what decision they should make. period. [applause] now, let me talk about one other controversial issue. this cannot last night -- this came up last night. i don't believe you can pass a comprehensive immigration bill. any bill you write has too many enemies. you have to control the border. we propose to control the border writing a bill.

there are 23,000 people in homeland security in the washington area and i would be willing to move up to half of them to texas and arizona and new mexico if that is what we have to do to have enough manpower. things could easier you have a different conversation when people take you seriously. i'm for english as the central language. english is the old language of maximum opportunity. every parent knows this. this should not be controversial. i met with the president of miami-dade. they have 94 languages in their college alone. we want everybody to be able to talk with each other. that should not be controversial. we're inviting people to come to america to be americans.

i think that people applying for citizenship should have a higher standard of knowledge of american history than we currently require. i think our own children should of a higher standard of american history that we currently require. [applause] this is a remarkably unique civilization which integrates people from every part of the planet with a skill that no other country has. there's something unique and it is worth learning. i want to modernize the visa system. i like to modernize the deportation system. american not an

system, which should be able to review -- we should be able to get rid of you in two weeks. there are some people that we did not want here and the neighborhoods to not want them here. i think we have a guest worker program and it has to be economically driven. i would outsource it to american express, visa, or mastercard. if you had any effective guest worker program and an effective card system, there is no excuse for any employer to hire somebody illegally and i would be far higher economic sanctions on employers who do that. would not come to the question

of 11 million who are here. i had a deep disagreement with governor romney. i opted to worth exploring -- i think it is worth exploring. a number of migrants would go back home and apply for cards. i try to deal with an honest way with the complexity of what is going on. you have people who've been here for 25 years. they have children, grandchildren, and a local church. some of you may remember this from the debate in washington. i got attacked as though i had sold out on americans. they started yelling amnesty. for folks who have been there for a long time and are financially responsible, if they can have an american family sponsor them -- let

local citizen panels. can prove that they have a family sponsor them and they should get a right of residence -- not citizenship. to get citizenship, they should go back home and a file like everybody else. there would take a trip and file. in some countries, it is a matter of years. it is not enough when you get to people with strong family ties to say deportation and letting go. they are not going to self- deport.

in other passion the most families have -- you know the passion that most families have. the idea that a grandmother will self-deport. this is a fantasy. this is not a solution. citizens should decide that you should have residency. come in under the law. it is a practical step. i hope you would support the idea that no one is in america illegally. those here without citizenship are here with the proper papers. this is an improper way to reunify the country -- this is an appropriate way. [applause] two last things. about don't think a lot

specific ethnic by ethnic, how we go round to capture people. i think about how we can create millions and millions of jobs so people will be better off and so everybody will be working. america works when americans are working. it is true or in some communities than others. there's a new study on the cost in the hispanic community of the president's decision to veto the pipeline. it is a significant cost in higher prices of energy and in working in houston and working in the ports of houston and galveston. this is a bad decision to president has made. it has an impact specifically on hispanic people. we want every american to have

a chance to get a first job, a better job, and someday to on the job by owning the business. i think the hispanic chamber of commerce told us there were 3 million hispanic-owned small businesses in the united states. this will do very well if we haven't of entrepreneurial tax code an entrepreneurial precatory system and a president who likes people who create jobs. i think we can start moving very fast. [applause] the last thing i want to say affects every hispanic american and every american. gasoline last year was the highest price in american highest price in american history, twice the price when