of course, you would say you just weakened your potential management field. you just weakened your potential p.h.d. deal. that just makes common sense. for exaver reasons if we ask people to move to the side, it would be a larger number of women. but it also seems a shame that whether it's women or men that that would be bad for them in terms of their opportunities but obviously, from an example i gave, it's going weaken -- it's going weaken the potential labor force a country has or a company has. and i think it is a good point that people who are parents the ability to still be a good parent, to have that flexibility, is more likely to have you stay longer in the place you're at not think you have to leave, half the trade-off. so i think that's just another example just in trying the

president's efforts to get women in stem fields. get more girls interested in science, technology and workplace flexibility. this will be things that will disproportion natly help women overall. but they are good for the economy and they will benefit men and women because they just make economic sense. >> i'm look agent the numbers. it is 9:30. the job report released. overall unemployment has dropped a fraction to 8.2%. slight dip mostly because americans stopped looking for work. 120,000 jobs. the economy added far short of 200,000 that was expected. what do you think is behind this slowdown? are you concerned about this slowdown or is this good news? >> well, i think the general summary of most of what we're seing in the economy right now is that we are making progress but we still have a long way to

go because we're coming back from the deepest recession in, downturn in our economy in 80, 90 years. but i think that, you know, you can -- we always try to make sure that we don't overcelebrate a month when the numbers are better than expected or overemphasize when they're a little bit worse than exnted. the bottom line though is that our economy in the first three months of this year has created over 600,000 jobs. it's well ahead of the projection in our estimates, our budget of two million jobs. the unemployment rate was 9.8% in november of 2010 just to remember 9.8%. it is now 8.2%. actually the unemployment rate actually came down for women from 8.2% to 8.1%. i think that overall this first

quarter of 2012 shows significant progress for our labor market. 600,000 more jobs created. unemployment rate falling. but it's just not good enough for this president because he's not going to be happy. we're not going to be satisfied until we get tall way back to where we were before this terrible economic crisis we fell into, took place. >> karen wants to jump in but let me ask you both because the numbers are what they are. also long-term unemployment is not good. i believe since december, it's at 40% which is an extremely high rate. if you look at 1981, 1982, back in those days, it doesn't surpass 20% so there's a bigger picture that creates a big challenge for this administration. >> you are absolutely right. if you went back to when the president put his americans job act, he had four categories and

one of them was addressing not just unemployed workers but long-term unimployed workers. he has focused on getting infrastructure, construction jobs back. that may help more men than women jobs. but it deals with those in unemployment -- >> can those numbers be turned snarned >> the thing i want to remind people, there is much that is in our control. let me just mention two things that the president proposed in the american jobs act that were not passed. things that were passed that were very helpful were the payroll tax cut, $1,000 per family, the benefits extended, helped millions of women, the veterans tax credit. but let me tell you two things that were not passed, a simple provision to spend $30 billion to prevent teacher layoff.

we have lost since the end of the recession over 230,000 teacher and education jobs. they are almost 70% female jobs but even more importantly, they affect the quality of education of our young people. that is not about some big global technology globalization trend. that is just a simple issue of priorities. have we passed the president's initiative there? we would be adding more teacher jobs as opposed to still losing state and local government jobs. secondly the infrastructure initiatives, the thing that was always bipartisan was infrastructure, that we need modernize our roads, etc. that's totally under our control. so just those two common sense provisions would have -- be bringing the unemployment rate down and those are totally in

our control. those are things the president promoted, pushed for, fought for and were rejected and our labor force is not as strong. our economy is not as strong because those things were -- were not passed and again as i said, the proposal for teacher layoffs was one that larly hurt. >> so you're saying the republicans are getting in the way of job creation? >> i'm saying that the partisanship that we perceive particularly from the house of representatives i think has blocked us from having a stronger job market and again, i didn't go through the whole list. i mentioned two common sense things that were in our controlle that this president proposed in september that would make things stronger. that said, we still saw the unemployment rate go to 8.2%. we're still seeing 600,000 jobs created the first three months

of this year. and we still are going to have a long way to go because again the deep hole the president, the economic thole president inherited was very deep and he wants to see progress but he's nowhere close to satisfied. >> karen? >> he knows there are lots of women in construction firms out there and those numbers are growing. and we've done a women's controlling role to give them more access and opportunity to federal contracting projects that are out there. but i want to talk about the manufacturing jobs. this is something that gene and the president have really put a focus on. and we've created 400,000 manufacturing jobs. yesterday, i was out in green bay, wisconsin on the factory floor of a woodworking company with the owner and, you know, it was a family business. so the son, the daughter, the wife, everybody's on the

factory floor. and they are telling me about more and more orders that are coming in. we are really seing in my travels and in our small business world that these manufactures who are part of american supply chains have capacity and are growing and are adding people and as they do, maybe it is a slower track but it is a more stable foundation. one of the things we're seeing is that big companies who have these small manufactures in their supply chain are noticing this. and they are bringing products and services and production back to the united states because they see they can have a supply chain of the same cost, better quality, faster turnaround that's a trend that's very positive. >> cici? >> just one number very quickly? we have created 466,000 our

economy has manufacturing jobs in the last 25 months. that's the strongest 25-month period since 1995, 17 years. so if you want one area of real hope, progress in our economy, that turnaround in manufacturing jobs is very significant. >> cici? >> i just wanted to add in terms of the labor market for which is many people think that men disproportion natly lost jobs the downturn but men's employment has recovered much faster than women. there are many factors but two that we can point out in particular. one is that while men are leaving unemployment, women have been slower to leave unemployment. and the second is what gene was mentioning is that women have less jobs because they're disproportion natly employed in the public sector but even given that they are disproportion natly employed in

the public sector. that's sort of hampering the opportunities for women. i think that's going to slow down the recovery for women as a whole. >> we were talking about flexibility in the workplace and that applies not just for women but for men in your company. is there a way to track whether that has increased productivity, profit. is there proof behind the philosophies you put in place? >> absolutely so. first of all, we started as an accounting firm. we've got accounting and metrics for anything you like. that's not a problem for us. analysis. you would be in heaven in our firm. analysis is what we're really good at. to me there's a couple of things to pivot back, as someone who's on the hiring side of all that data. not on the policy side of the data. you know, job creation is a good thing, period. as long as there's job creation

you should feel good about the country. two, back to you on stem. part of the 18,000 heavily weighted in technology and engineer as accountants. there's a part of that program that you're talking about that's flexibility and accountability. it sounds as strength of conviction. first, you have to believe. once you believe in what you're doing, you believe it's a right thing to do because it's a business imperative. i think the best example of flexibility, there is two people who work for me, jennifer and my chief of staff in communications. the three of us have not been standing in the same room, the same building or the same city to do any preparation for this meeting. it was all done in three different cities, different time zones using electronics. i don't know if they're home,

if they're at the office, if i'm at home. it doesn't matter. what matters is you're productive. that's what matters. and so the ability -- [applause] and so the ability to create an environment where exeem be productive is to give them a choice. i'm married to a person who has a career in technology. and the first thing we do every sunday evening is plan our schedules. who's going to be out of town. we synchronize outlook. who's got this child covered. >> thank you so much for this. now we know my girls know we're not the only crazy house. it's a lot of negotiation. >> flexibility is state of mind. you have to believe it can work. because if you start with the premise that it won't work, it won't work. it just won't work. a testament to the brave men back in the early 1990's, we're

skeptical because part of what we do is professional skepticals as auditors. it worked. and it worked because it worked with the women who wanted to take the risk and it worked with the men who were willing to take the risk. the fact that we have moved our percentage of people on those arrangements. we don't even call them arrangements anymore. we don't worry about how and where you are. it's a virtual model. so for us that's what starts. at the macro level and at the earlier level which is the program you're talking about. you have to make commitments. so we do all that great resources and tracking. we give back. so we announced that we made our commitment $60 million services we'll be providing pro

bono to not for profit organizations. and the focus of that -- [applause] that takes our commitment back to $1010 million -- $110 million. that's going to low income school districts and getting the children into the school believing that not only should they go to high school but they should go to college. and when you're in high school, 60% are girls. i'll never forget this story and really this is about putting a face. i went to my old neighborhood in the south bronx in the poorest district. this young lady looked at me. i was dressed like this. she didn't think i had anything in common because i was dressed like this. so we opened up the yearbook from 1974. it was quite a stylish period.

my god, what i look like. it was frightening. not to mention the mustache with the chain and the flare pants and the bad hair. oh, my goodness. but anyway. i said that's me. >> she said, you're kidding. that can't be you. she goes well how did you get from that picture to here. >> i have a request, though. that we -- you've made so many changes in terms of flexibility. except have you guys notice like when a guy goes to his baseball match and leaves works early you say, you're so amazing! it's so great. and then if a woman leaves, they're just a mom. can they be dads? >> we don't want to change

that. >> it's unbelievable, isn't it? god. >> our next program we got. i just made a mental note of that. >> ok. so cici and karen especially, i'd love insight from all of you. in my verge i found that women are are not so good in negotiating. there are some good ones out there. but overall, not good. i squst wanted to know from your own experience, from your own personal outlooks where you think women can do better? terms of inserting themselves into this economy, stepping up and closing the gap when it comes to leadership positions and salaries. ? >> you look ready to go. >> first of all, a round of applause for mika's book. [applause] >> because it's about stepping up and saying it's ok to go in

and ask for a raise. it's ok to be powerful. it's ok to be the boss. and it's ok to run a business, to own a business. it's ok to do all these things. we do them. this is our space. and if we own this space, we don't think somehow we've wandered into a bad place. when we know what we're worth and we know what it is that we need get paid. so thank you for writing the book. >> i'll just say, the advice there is not to worry when you're talking to people, negotiating, trying to accomplish something. don't worry whether or not that they like you. worry that they respect you and command that in every way that you communicate, whether it's how you sit, hold yourself, the words you choose. it's not for them to be comfortable. awkward moments are fantastic when you're negotiating, by the way. fantastic. let the moment breathe and

expect something back and it will come. do you agree? >> absolutely. when i first started negotiating for buying businesses, i got very, very tired, i had been up all night with the kifments i dime the negotiating table. and they say we want this. i said no. well, i was use today no, you can't have more cookies. no, you can't stay up late at night. and i realized, you know, the benefit of what we call the irrational no. somebody said well when did men learn that? women learned it from their kids, men apparently, are born knowing. >> that's right. >> we need to take all these lessons we are learning from every part of our lives an let them be with us in the workplace and as we go forward and to be all the things we need to be. >> cici? >> so i completely agree with what you just said. one is the people i admire most

in terms of how they live their lives are those who have when given an opportunity or a choice they have followed what they just wanted to do. they didn't worry about as you were saying what are others thinking about it or is it in my life trajectory because youle control your future but they follow what you want to do at the time? the second thing is don't be afraid to ask. if you don't ask, you won't get it. you to be willing to ask. that goes in terms of organizing the workplace. i have a friend who was a flaur a high paid firm and she had a child. and she wanted to spend more time with her child but still wanted to be a full-time lawyer. she worked out an arrangement with her firm. she was the first to do so. she negotiated it. it worked well for the firm. she was working part-time and 60 hours a week.

but it allowed her more time with her family. >> i will that moment speak as a man and say that -- >> ok. >> if there's one place that do i see just living life continuing sexism is the labeling by incredibly ambitious men labeling other women as too ambitious, too aggression. >> there's another word, i think. [laughter] >> i think that is extremely un fortunate. i mean, for women have to not obviously let -- not let that get in their way.

i never hear a guy being called he's too ambitious. but that's something that men have to be careful about, you know, unconscious or sub conscious biases. i want to make a bet about something. forgive me cici. i have no analysis for it. it's just a hunch. i think women in competitive sports in the last 20, 30 years is going to change the culture. i see it in the young women in my life. i think that that may have a positive impact on the degree of women who feel more comfortable -- >> getting in the game. >> being competitive and not thinking there's anything wrong with that. >> two athletes in the room, listen up. you make a good point. i also think the fear of being that word whether it's male in the rooms imposing it on the woman or the women thinking

that's the word. you worry about looking like this. you have to learn to be lie guys and reset. you want to know why they're so good about it? because they don't remember anything. you can have a bad moment with someone and get in there and get your money. just reset. unclutter the brain. those are great for personal relationships but the advice i give you about respect is great advice for life. from your advantage point on this very issue, do you see women coming to the table and negotiating differently than men and in ways that they could improve? >> i see them certainly the behavior's changed.

it doesn't happen over night. i get yelled at every day by somebody on my staff. it used to be the men would yell but now they yell equally. we did a few things. we have trainings like men and women as colleagues. men and women as buyers and you sort of learn a little bit about the d.n.a. of each other. you have to learn what the signals mean. what's the relevance of certain things? there was a conversation once and i apply it with my wife but i didn't think about it. i remember forgetting at this training and we're all there. we're all learning about each other. it's not women just learning about men. we're in the same room, learning about each other. one of the big debates are men prioritize things and women maximize things. i had thought about that before. they gave me this great example. when you're sitting at home and i'm getting gas.

and my wife would say, why don't you stop at the drugstore? no, i'm just coming back. i can't go to the drugstore because it's not on my list. women have figured out, no, but the drugstore is right next to the gas station. and that's a really productive way to look at things. that was just this ah-ha moment that came out of this conversation. things like that have changed the conversation, created a sense of awareness of the two groups. basically i think we're well on our way to where, a place that's far better than 20 years ago. >> some of the things that have happened in the administration and i would like to end with some final thoughts from each of you on where we are today and what still needs to be done. and by the way, why this very conversation is fornt this

country's economic future, perhaps even vital. gene i'll start with you and go right down the line. >> i think -- as i've said, i think that you want whether it's a sports team or an economic or a company, you want to be at full strength. if you're are not at full strength you will not perform as well. i think one of the advantages the united states has for all of our problems is i think compared to japan and other competitors we do have more women in the workforce. and i think that's one of our great competitive advantages and there are still barriers to overcome and that policy matters. karen runs the s.p.a. for example reasons and i don't understand it. if it were not for s.p.a. so many women would not get loans. why? such a higher percentage of woman get loans from s.p.a. run businesses. do returns but they're turned down in disproportioned

numbers. i don't know. but i think that's a smart policy thing for us to be doing. it tears down barriers for women and great for job creation. it is about being a nation at full strength and being conscience of what the barriers on. we are tearing down the discriminatory barriers, tearing down the barriers that are just that just exist at our wear. and when we're doing policy be aware where something has a disproportion nat impact. if you're cutting programs, remember that when you're looking at something like the earned income tax creditor child refundable tax credit that's going to disproportion natly hurt women who are working and struggling to stay out of poverty and to be conscious of that as you're thinking at every step line by line of the budget, where are your values, what's best for

economy and in a lot of those cases you have to be very, very conscious on the impact of young and older women. >> karen? >> mika said and gina just said, i want the women out there particularly the women entrepreneurs to know one thing which is we are there for you across this administration. you'll hear from the president in a minute but his exitment to an inclues commitment around access and opportunity, it's very clear. and we know that that is foundational for making a competitive america. but if you're a woman and you have a small business or you're thinking about being an entrepreneur or you're a young person and you're thinking what am i going to do, this path to being able to own and grow your

own business is a place that you can own and we will be there to help you whether it's advice, counseling access to credit and just that encouragement to say, you know, you can be powerful. you be the boss and you can be successful. >> joe? >> sure, and i wanted to tell you that i was in davos representing our firm. america is still the envy of the world. kind of pause when you make that statement. because you dwell on all the things that you can do better. there are lots of them. we're still the envy of the world in virtually every dimension. this searchly be marked in my opinion those of my partners by the countries whose laws and economic institutions not only create growth but distribute the fruits of that growth in a

way that all of its citizens think it's just. and given the percentage of woman, that makes a difference. and to me, i believe america will be that country. >> cici, finally? >> i'm an internal optimism. we've seen dramatic changes in the last 30, 40 years in our labor force. i think we've come a long way. we still have a long way to go. but i think we've come a long way. i'm an optimism because the economic reality in order for us to be competitive we need all hands on deck and we need to be using every citizen that economic reality will get more firms to be don'ting flexibility workplaces, more women being more assertive and seeing that they have more opportunities. so while we have a long way to go, i'm optimistic that we will get there. >> we'll leave it there. thank you very much. thank you, everybody. thank you, everybody. [applause]

>> president obama spoke at the white house forum on women in the economy, citing the latest unemployment figures, and said that it is clear that there is more work to be done. this is about 20 minutes. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2012] cable satellite corp. 2012] >> alloys going to -- i was going to head over here earlier in the said, no, there are a lot of women and they're still settling down. settling down? [laughter] i'm happy to be in the company of such accomplished women could it makes me very comfortable.

although usually have my wing man bo with me. man bo with me. i want to thank members of my cabinet and administration were participating today and i want to thank all of you who have come, lending your time and energy for the critical cause of providing opportunity for america's women. right now, no issue is more important than restoring economic picture for older citizens. that begins with making sure everyone who wanted job has one. we welcome today's news. [applause]

a welcome today's news that recruited another 121,000 jobs last month. our economy has created more than 4 million private-sector jobs in less than two years. but it is clear to every american that there will still be ups and downs along the way and we have a lot more work to do. that includes addressing challenges that are unique to women's economic security, situations that have been around long before the economic recession hit. that is why we created a white house council on women and girls. i wanted to make sure that every agency across my administration considers the needs of women and girls in every decision we make. and today, we're releasing a report on women and the economy

that looks at women's economic security through all stages of life, from young women, further their education and beginning their careers, to working women, who create jobs and provide for their families, seniors and retirement or are getting ready for retirement. there has been a lot of talk about women and women's issues lately, as there should be. but i do think that the conversation has been oversimplified. women are not some monolithic block. women are not an interest group. [applause] you should not be treated that way. women are over half of this country and its work force. not to mention a% of my household if you kill my mother law appeare. [laughter]

and i always count my mother-in- law. [laughter] every economic decision impact women as much as men. i would like to spend some time talking about why we have done what we have done. for me, it begins with the women who shaped my life. crew up the son of a single mom who struggled to put yourself through school and make ends meet. she had to go on to stamps to help us get us by. this year for education. she got through with scholarships and hard work. and my sister and i burned our degrees because of her motivation and her support and her -- my sister and i urge our degrees because of her motivation and report and her

dedication. when we lived overseas, she made sure that i kept up with my american education. and when i complained, she let loose with "this is no picnic for me either, buster." [laughter] that is part of the reason that my sister chose to become teacher. teacher. when my mother needed help, my grandmother stepped up. she got a job at a local bank and she was smart and tough and disciplined and she worked hard and come the eventually, she rose from being a secretary to being vice-president at this bank.

and i am convinced she would have been the best president that bank had ever seen it she had gone the chance. but at some point, she hit the glass ceiling. for a big chunk of her career, she watched other men that she had trained, younger men that she had trained, past her up that ladder. woman whohere's the once advised me at the law firm in chicago where we met -- [laughter] once -- [laughter] she give me a very good vice. that is why i decided to marry her. and once michele and i had our girls, she gave it her all, the balance of raising a family and pursuing a career. and something that can be very

difficult on her because i was gonna lock. -- i was gone a lot. i was in the legislature and i was a teacher and we did not have the luxury for her not to work. i know that when she was with the girls, she felt guilty that she was not giving enough time to her work. and when she was at work, she was feeling guilty that she was like giving enough time to the girls. and like many of you, we both wished that there were a machine that could let us be at two places at once. so she had to constantly double it -- constantly dojuggle it. and she carried that for a long time. the highlight of my everyday is asking my daughters about their everyday, their hopes, their futures. that is what drives me every day

when i stepped into the overall office -- the oval office. every decision i make is to make sure that they, all of our daughters, all of our sons, giving them the chance to be anything that they set their minds to, a country where more doors are open to them than there were open to us. so when i think about these efforts, when we put together this council on women and girls, this is personal. this is what is at the heart of all our efforts. these are the experiences, the prism through which i view these efforts. when we say that these issues are more than a matter politics. when we talk about these issues that primarily impact women, we have to realize that they're not just women's issues. they are family issues. they are economic issues. their growth issues.

they are issues about american competitiveness. they are issues that affect all of us. think about it. when women make less than men for the same work, that hurts businesses. when a job does not offer family leave to care for a new baby or sick leave to care for an ailing parent, that hurts men as well. when an insurance plan denies women coverage because of a pre- existing condition, that drains emergency rooms and drives up costs for ribeye. when many of our citizens cannot fulfilled the potential they have because of things it do not have anything to do with character or work ethic, that diminishes of us all --

diminishes us all. and it says something about us as americans. right now, women are a growing number of breadwinners in the house will. but they're still earning 70 cents compared to what a man does. a woman with a college degree will earn hundreds of thousands of dollars less than a man over the course of her career. ending pay discrimination is about far more than simple fairness. when more women are bringing home the bacon, bringing home less of it then men who are doing the same work, that weakens families. it weakens communities. it weakens our kids. it weakens our entire economy. [applause]

which is why the first bill that i signed into law was the littllily ledbetter law. it makes it easier for women to demand fairness, equal pay for equal work. we're pushing for legislation to give women more tools to fight pay discrimination. and we encourage companies to make workplaces more flexible so women do not have to choose between being a good employee or being a good mom. more women are also choosing to strike out on their own. today, nearly 30% of small- business owners are women. their businesses generate $1.20 trillion last year. but they're less likely to get the loans they need to start up or expand or to hire. which means they often have to depend on credit cards and the

mounting debt that comes with it. it. that is why, after some outstanding work by sharon mills at the sba and other parts of our administration, we have extended more than 16,000 new loans worth $4.5 billion to women-owned businesses. [applause] not to mention cut taxes for small businesses 17 times so that more women have the power to raise more jobs and more opportunities. we are also focusing on making sure that more women are prepared to fill the good jobs of today and tomorrow. over the past decade, women have earned well over half of all the higher education degrees awarded in america. but once they get a college, we still have a lot of ground to cover. fortune 500 ceo's

are women. is it possible that congress will get more done if there were more women in congress? [applause] is that fair to say, joe? that is almost guaranteed. [laughter] while women account for her four in five degrees in areas like education, which is terrific because, obviously, there is no profession that is more important than teaching, we also have to recognize that only two in five business degrees go to women, fewer than one in four engineering and computer science degrees to women, and make up just 25% of the work force in the science and technical fields.

no unspoken bias or outdated barrier should ever prevent a girl from considering careers in these fields. when creativity is limited or ingenuity is discouraged, then it is up to all of us to do more to encourage women to join the skills as well, to make it easier to for the education that is required to make it, send a clear message to our daughters like i am doing every night. math, science, nothing wrong with it. we need you to focus. that is why our education reform, raced to the top, has put a party on science, technology, engineering, and math education and rewards states that the specific steps to make sure that all students, especially underrepresented groups like girls, have the opportunity excited about these

bills at an early age. and we have helped more than 2.3 million more young women afford to pursue higher education with our increases in the pell grants. [applause] that is good news. >> health reform has been in the news lately. [laughter] because of the health reform law that we passed, women have more power to make their choices about their health care. [applause] last year, more than 20 million women received expanded access to preventive services like mammograms and cervical cancer screenings at no additional cost. [applause] nearly two million women enrolled in medicare and received a 50% discount on the

medicine they need. over 1 million more young women are insured because they can now stay on their parents' plan. later this year, women will receive new access to recommended preventive care like domestic violence screening and contraception at no additional cost. [applause] and soon, insurance companies will no longer be able to deny coverage on pre-existing conditions like breast cancer or to charge women more just because they're women. [applause] we have not gone on the dry cleaning thing yet, though. i know that is still -- [laughter] frustrating, i'mesh cit sure. [laughter] so when it comes to our efforts

on behalf of women and girls, i am proud of the accomplishments that we can point to. yes, we have a lot more to do. but there's no doubt we have made progress. the policies we put in place in the past three years have started to takeover. and what we cannot do now is go back to the policies that got us into so monday of the problems we had been dealing with in the first place. -- so many of the problems we had been dealing with in the first place. first place. when people say we should get rid of planned parenthood, they're not just talking about restricting a woman's ability to make her own health decisions. they are talking about denying as a practical matter it preventive care, like

mammograms, for william -- that mammograms, for william -- that millions of women i they are not thinking about the cost of the young women being able to afford to go to college. when we talk about the violence against women act, a bill that once passed by bipartisan margins is suddenly called into question? that makes no sense. [applause] that is not something that we should be arguing about. to tell anybody here progress is hard. change comes slow an opportunity

does not come without a fight. sometimes you have to keep fighting even after you have won some victories. things don't always move forward. sometimes they move backwards if you're not fighting for them. but we do know these things are possible. and all of you are approved today -- are proof today, this wonderful collection of accomplished women, you were proof of change. for the first time, young girls across the country can see three women sitting on the bench of the highest court in the land. [applause] or they can read about the extraordinary leadership who went by the title madam speaker. [applause] or they can turn on the news and see one of the most formidable presidential candidates and senators is standing abroad as

one of the best secretaries of state that we have ever had. [applause] and they can see that every single day another 500 women just like yourselves take the helm of their own company right here in america and do their part to grab those doors of opportunity and walkthrough them and open them a little bit wider for the next generation. as long as i have the privilege of being a president, i will keep working in a single day to make sure that those doors forever stay open and widen the circle of opportunity for all of our girls. thank you for what you do. keep it up. [applause] god bless you. god bless the united states of america. [applause]

>> thank you. thank you so much. >> for more years. >> sunday, we will have the speeches by president obama and gop presidential candidate mitt romney to the american society of news editors. the talk about the budget, tax breaks, and other campaign issues. we will share the president's speech at 10:30 a.m. and former governor romney at 11:30 a.m. eastern, sunday on c-span. u this year's student cam competition asked students which part of the constitution was their favorite and why. >> i am a christian. >> i am an atheist. >> i am jewish.

>> i am a mormon. >> no matter who we are, where we come from, or what faith we have, we are americans. >> the establishment and exercise clauses make it to the religious liberty clauses. >> we shall make no prohibiting the exercise thereof. >> but what does it really mean? >> the establishment clause is basically about no establishment. we would not set up an official state religion. and the free exercise clause is about individual being able to freely exercise their beliefs. >> the establishing clauses there to protect division of government, and government from religion. >> is religion from state, but not religion from politics and public life. it keeps the government from taking sides on religion. it is meant to be neutral on

religions and non religion. >> this keeps government neutral to all religions. it is meant to protect the rights of religious and non- religious people. >> religious individuals and groups, like non-religious individuals and groups, have the right to debate in all issues that are important in political and civil life. >> people have the right to practice their faith, to follow their conscience, and engage in public life and bring their fate into public life if they so choose. the united states is very fortunate to have this arrangement because i think that gets the most credit for keeping us from being a place where people kill each other

over the constitution. >> it keeps people contend in their religious life. >> if you just allow for everybody to have freedom in the concept of their personal religious life, a rebound -- everyone would get along better, to. >> it is a fundamental inalienable right of all people, religious and non-religious. >> the freedom of conscience is a freedom that cannot be taken away. it is a freedom for all people, religious or not. >> people benefit because this is the best arrangement for allowing religion to thrive and non-religion people benefit because they can live in a society where they do not have to be coerced into being a religious or being involved in religion. >> each provision protects

people's religious practices. but how do they affect the younger generation? >> i am a christian. without the religious liberty clause, i would appeal to go to church every sunday. i would not able to read the bible in the security of my home. and i would not be able to go out to regular people on the street and be able to say that i am a christian. >> being an atheist, i have the right not to be forced into a religion that i do not want to practice or that i do not believe in. >> i think that different religions make you more unique than just having one religion. >> i am mormon and a member of the church of jesus christ of latter-day saints. with the mormon people live in illinois, there were told to get out by the governor. they had to go in the middle of winter and leave from illinois. if they did not, there would be

killed. it affects my religion because it failed to remember our religion. instead of protecting it, they did not. >> under the religious liberty causes, the government cannot have control over your religion. but how would you feel if all this were to change? >> i kinda would feel betrayed. this country is supposed to be about freedom. and we came here to be free of a certain religion. >> ag would feel like they were infringing on my religious freedoms and rights. and that is not right or fair for anyone. >> i would feel like they were denying our freedom and our rights. it would be like the jews in the holocaust, having secret meetings for our religion. >> if someone wanted to -- it

would be like making the united states one religion and making someone else change their religion. >> i would not feel like i would be important to the government and would feel like all my right for taken away. >> we americans are unsure about all of these different religions and whether they really think they should have the freedoms their religion and joyce. -- enjoys. without the establishment clause, the united states would not be the country it is today. >> we have articles of faith in different ways. but they are our articles of peace. and now more than in any time in our history, it is imperative

that we live and model these articles of peace in our life together as citizens, one nation with many faiths, with many cultures, with many people's. >> go to studentcam.org to view all the videos. >> next, live, your calls and comments on "washington journal." then a discussion on ways to ensure safe food and medicine. after that, pahrump examines the recent increase in disability claims. >> this sunday on c-span's q&a -- >> when i got the opportunity to meet both of my senators, just being able to meet them and talk to them. >> leon panetta talks about how

important it is to be financially sound. if we are not financially sound, devoting money to national defense will not be worth it because we will not have any money to devote to it appeared >> high school students from all 50 states who participated in a week-long debora program in the nation's capital share their observations and experiences as they interacted with members of congress, the supreme court, and the president. >> there is a lot of partisanship going on. everybody we have met here has said that and it makes me wonder if he is just saying that and it is not actually happening. is there a discrepancy between what they're saying and what they are actually doing? >> the u.s. senate youth program, sunday night at 8:00 p.m. eastern on c-span's q&a. >> this morning, bloomberg news reported