this is a fact he's under investigation, and more than one allegeding ictim has come forw. but still, a lot of news organizations did int want to touch it. >> later in the evening, officials from facebook and other technology companies talk about whether government regulation e ints in the way of innovation in thone r field. >> if you look at the people in the u.s. house and senatrne i thitor by generous count 35 of them have any sort of background in science or enginthisring. the rest are sort of living in the miwhele ae ins. they don donand t understand th windmills don't work when the wind is not blowing. .

we wanted to not to something like freedom of speech or the right to vote for something like that. at that time this was a very important issue due to the conflict in libya. it was important to my partner. he is legitimately concerned for the country. because of these reasons we felt it would be a good topic. >> each of the interviews,

especially with the history teacher, a different perspective on who has the power to declare war. specifically the history teacher give us an interesting perspective on why defenders of our country had given the powers -- each of the other two interviews gave us a good understanding of different reasons why some people support the power of the presidents to declare war and other support the constitutional declaration of who has the power to declare war. it often has different understandings of people. >> how did your research help you understand the different perspectives of your topic? >> looking at supreme court cases that have dealt with the issue, we saw how presidents and congresses have dealt with this

throughout history. we were able to understand the reasons they felt at that time they were justified for or against declaring war without congressional approval. >> what was your favorite part of declaring this documentary? >> it was creating a motion of graphics that appear throughout the film. it was the first time i got to use my motion graphics skills in a project such as this. >> tell us what was the most important understanding you took away from the documentary. >> the thing i gained the most from making this documentary was it gave me a greater insight into the importance of research when it comes to making decisions that were -- effected great number of people. i saw how a single decision such as citing to declare war could

have consequences for a great number of people. it has made me understand to not only consult others but to try to view things from another person's view. >> thank you for talking with us today. >> thank you. >> here is a brief portion of the documentary -- the power to declare war. >> the president is given the ability to be commander in chief. the civilian control of the military was something the founders were interested in. they did not want the military controlling the government are rather the civilian leaders of the country being in control of the military. this was something important to them. congress would be the only entity able to declare war. as commander in chief could move troops and movements but congress would be the only ones who could declare war. in jefferson's administration he

sent the navy to deal with the pirates in north africa without a formal declaration of war. the first formal declaration came during madison's administration. he was drawn into the war. it was spurred on by a group of war hawks and members of congress who felt like the national reputation and prestige was being sullied. >> you can see this entire video and of the documentary's that utudentcam.org. >> sunday on news makers to take a look at some of the key senate races. 33 seats are up for reelection this year. 21 on the democratic side, 10 republican held. our guests are the democratic and republican senate campaign directors.

newsmakers airs sunday at 10:00 a.m. and 6:00 eastern on c-span. the executive director for major league baseball's players association spoke at the national press club last week. michael wiener talk about collective bargaining. the return five year labor deal the increased salary. it allows testing for human growth hormones and requires players to play in the all-star game unless injured or excused. [applause] >> thank you for the introduction and the privilege of speaking here today. before i get started i would like to acknowledge a few people

kind enough to come today. first, a longtime friend and committed leader while playing here. the executive director of the nfl players association and his longtime counsel were here. john newman, and judy scott, the general counsel, i am honored to acknowledge the presence of mark per se, sharon block, and richard griffin. patricia smith, the solicitor of labor, john lund.

i probably will come as well as a longtime colleague and friend, the assistant attorney general. thank you for attending this afternoon. if we are going on 24 years, i have worked for the union that represents baseball players. and for going on 24 years i have heard "that is great. it is not like you work for a real union. you get to hang out with jeter or zimmerman. it is part of your job you have to go to the all-star game and world series of recent year." i will can see there are benefits to working with this union. at the same time, we always have been and remains a real labor union. our members make more money than most. our guys have a higher public profile. at bottom, we do what every

union does. we attempt to further our member's interests and to protect member rights through the process of collective bargaining. collective bargaining as an institution took somebody shots of the past year. in wisconsin, most notably and other places the rights of employees was blamed for the state's fiscal difficulties. in indiana, the right to work legislation was passed with supporters contending collective bargaining hampered job growth. that dispute was resolved without the loss of regular- season games. nba fans were not as fortunate as the nba lockout resulted as a

truncated season. by contrast, we announced a new five-year labor contracts last november, one month before the previous deal ended. we had no lockout, no-strike, no threat of a work stoppage. why did collective bargaining succeed? how did baseball, the sport whose labor history is most contentious, avoid strife in 2011? some suggest a smooth negotiation was inevitable given the circumstances in which we bargain. neither revenue or profitability explain our results. coming into 2011, the nfl annual revenue exceeded major league baseball's and the nba's revenue lagged hours. both picked protracted fights with its players.

in the millionaires versus billionaires' line was also set of baseball in the 1980's and 1990's when every negotiation included a work stoppage. both profitable league in the nfl and a unprofitable one and the nba had work stoppages in 2011. baseball's profitability fell in between the two. the last three labor contracts were reached without a stoppage. one when they were enjoying substantial profits in 2006, and last year when the truth lay in between. there was nothing preordained about bargaining during this. as always, the union was prepared for a worst-case scenario. we had reserves in the bank and counsel players to save their money. we told players while nobody wanted a stoppage they had to be

ready as if one were coming. we have been applauded for having achieved labor peace. i will let you in on the secret. labor peace was not our goal will miss started bargaining. our list of objectives and bargaining generated over years of discussion with players including improved health care pensions, a higher minimum salary, better treatment of players, a better salary arbitration and free agency rules and other demands. labor peace was not on the list. we set out in this negotiation to achieve a fair deal for players, ideally a good deal for players. our preference just as it was before was to get the deal without a work stoppage. the goal was a good deal, not a quick, easy, or painless one. collective bargaining by design is an adversarial process.

our negotiations in 2011 were adversarial. at times there were intensely so. controversial and even provocative issues were advanced. meetings ended abruptly. players, negotiators for both sides got angry. we did not air our arguments publicly as we did in the past. that does not mean we did not argue. collective bargaining in the end is about power. federal law governing collective bargaining limits the exercise of that power but not very much. there is plenty of room to beat here counterpart into submission, even to destroy your industry. for years in baseball the power structure that is collective bargaining was defined by honor it tends to force the man some players throats, sometimes through distasteful but legal means.

sometimes not through collusion and unfair labor practices. in 2011 and in our most recent bargaining rounds, that power structure has manifested itself differently. baseball honor desires have not changed. the one to pay players as little as possible and control services for as long as possible. that is understandable from the owner's perspective. what has changed is that baseball owners have come to respect the collective power of their bargaining adversary, the players. that respect was earned through the solidarity of players in the 1960's, 1970's, 1980's, and 1990's. that culminated in the spring of 1995 when owners used replacement players throughout spring training to try to break the union and force acceptance

of a salary cap. not a single union member, not a single 40 man roster player crossed the line. that was then. the membership of our union turns over very quickly. only a handful of players active in 2011 were professionals during the 1994 and 1995 strike. we understand each generation of players must justify their respect that their predecessors earned. we must remind owners of the player pos a collective power every time we come to the bargaining table. that is why this union has insisted on direct participation in the bargaining process. players formulate strategies, that might come as no surprise. players attend bargaining sessions. we will not schedule sessions unless players can be there. players actively participate in those sessions.

at any given meeting, negotiators are as likely to hear from c.j. will send as they are to hear from me. player participation and our bargaining in 2011 was extraordinary. even for our unit was unprecedented. as for player leadership we had a remarkably dedicated negotiation committee of 25 active players. a week after week of conference calls that were responsible for developing and approving all of our major bargaining proposals. those negotiating members attended session after session. player participation extended to the full union membership. we had 238 different major league players attempted to go see asian session in 2011. 238 players. players and their first week in the majors and players with 20

years of major-league service. players whose tickets to cooperstown had already been punched and players whose careers may not extend into 2012. players making a minimum salary and players making $20 million a year. players from every country represented in our bargaining unit. it was a tremendous show of force. in the power structure that is collective bargaining, it is natural to gauge the strength of your counterpart. those 238 players by their presence provided an unmistakable answer to anyone who might have questioned whether in 2011 the collective power of players remained deserving of respect. collective bargaining changes when each side respects the power of the other. you have to try something else. you cannot push her counterpart around. you either have to persuade them to give it to you or you have to fashion a compromise in which to

trade for it. the most likely result is a truce. a deal close the status quo. that might not be what is best for either party or the industry, but that is what you are left with. our new collective bargaining agreement amounts to far more than a truce. it contains meaningful changes in the rules governing free agency, and the amateur draft, significant provisions in our revenue sharing and debt service rules. a new structure for the leagues and divisions and the new format for postseason play, improved benefits and other benefits going to former players. dozens of other improvements in the working conditions of players. this negotiation touched more parts of our labor contracts

than any other in which i had been involved in 24 years. somersaulted from persuasion. one side recognize the validity of the other position and acquiesced to a proposal. many changes resulted from compromise and creative compromise. one side or the other often expanded the scope of matters under discussion to create more flexibility, more moving parts, to fashion a compromise. other changes resulted from the party's identifying areas of mutual benefit. i cannot say this has never happened before, but only in bits and pieces. in 2011 we made agreements that were unimaginable in our past. in revenue sharing and health care and most notably perhaps in our new 1515 alignment and additional wild card team.

that happened only because each side was ready to recognize a new idea when it appeared no matter who presented it and no matter if that idea historically is associated with the other side. more than ever before our bargaining was not just over how to resolve our differences but how can identify and further our common objectives. we avoided a work stoppage because of mutual respect for each side's collective strength. why did we not the fault to a status quo deal? the answer again lies in respect. respect here for the player's ideas, not just their muscle. i credit bud selig and negotiators for recognizing players are not just the force to be reckoned with by an area after area the players, the 238 guys that showed up at meetings

had good ideas about how to improve the game and the industry. it may seem obvious that the best players in the world and their representatives would have those ideas. it has not been obvious before to baseball owners and it did not seem obvious in the approach adopted last year by the nfl and nba toward their players. the real success toward bargaining last year was not just that we made a deal without a stoppage. it was that we made agreements in scope and content that should benefit players, owners, fans, and all connected with the game for years to come. i am now torn between prudence and opportunity. prudence tells the guy who has worked his entire professional career in baseball to limit his remarks to baseball. on my other shoulder, opportunity tells me i should at least try to relate baseball's bargaining success to the

broader world. this is the national press club after all. is not the mike and mike show. here it goes. the economic downturn has placed tremendous stress on the already adversarial relationship between workers and their bosses. private-sector employees in the u.s. face increased global competition. public sector relations have been caught in a vise of budgetary crises. in both areas, a response has to be -- the response has been to attack workers' rights. to strip bargaining rights and to handicap private-sector workers who seek to organize. that is unfair. in part because our current difficulties were not caused by america's working men and women. such blame may be inevitable, but that does not make it fair. it is not true that municipal

and state employees making $40,000 per year caused the present fiscal crisis. it is also unfair because depriving workers of their rights to organize and bargain deprives them of the only realistic leverage they have. it is ok and even laudable for political candidates or companies to have leverage because of their financial assets. it is ok to obtain leverage through successful polish through legislative advantage. why is it not acceptable for workers to exercise the only leverage they possess to act collectively? if you take bargaining rights away from wisconsin schoolteachers or indiana factory workers, it leaves one side in a contest with no ability to compete. it has long been the public policy of this country that labor relations should be a fight but never a one-sided fight. it is fundamentally unfair,

particularly in this environment to pass legislation that still allows that fight but rate set against working men and women. all the collective bargaining allows workers is a voice in the ongoing argument over their working conditions. bargaining does not guarantee any results. it does not guarantee that wages will not be reduced. under federal legislation on our books for over 70 years permitting workers to organize and to bargain collectively has been seen as a natural component of our competitive cut its -- competitive economy. what is a natural by the recent legislative efforts to strip workers of those rights. the economic health will not be finalized by depriving workers of their voice. in 2011 baseball demonstrated that collective bargaining can produce a progressive and a

productive agreement if each party respects both the power and the ideas of its counterpart. even in an economic environment as challenging as today's, better results will flow from the bargaining process then from unilateral position by management. better ideas will be generated with employee's input. we proven in baseball that through collective bargained innovations are jointly run international tournament to be played for the third time next march. agreements reached with employees support can be implemented more effectively and efficiently as shown by our jointly administered program. unions can effectively and productively represent workers even in struggling industries. collective bargaining in times like these may be difficult, adversarial, and contentious, but as demonstrated in baseball of all places it is the surest

path to advantageous and enduring solutions. thank you. enjoy the season. it should be a great one. [applause] >> thank you. since he believe collective bargaining agreement is the gold standard, have you been approached by other union leaders ask for advice? >> the leaders of the various unions cooperate on all kinds of matters and the unions do as well as evidenced by the soccer and football players representatives here. i more than occasionally will talk to the head of the hockey players association. he happen to be my boss for 20 something years. the industry's exports are different but we collaborate as

you might expect. >> you mention the labor struggles and wisconsin. have you ever advised public- sector union leaders and the people seek you out? what's the have not been presumptuous enough to try to give advice to somebody in advising public-sector employees. we frequently are contacted by unions and their members for letters of support and assistance. our players and our members politically are all across the spectrum. when it comes to labor matters they understand the importance of unions and we try to support the public sector unions of a chance to get. >> you are heading into years of labor peace. you think people are more willing to negotiate because of what happened with the strike of 1994 and 1995? >> you cannot understand our success and collective bargaining without understanding that success and history.

we moved to a world where there was respect for both sides about the bargaining power of our adversaries because of what happens leading up to 1994 and 1995. i do not think you have the agreements that we made in 2002 or 2006 or 2011 if the players did not take a stand back then. >> a couple of questions wondering if fans were negotiated you there and internal meetings or collective bargaining. is it a direct result of some of the players huge salaries that cost a family $300 to go to a baseball game? >> there are a few questions mobled in there. we did not have any fans and our negotiating committee calls unless you count the players themselves. i will tell you the players -- and we have representatives here -- of the players were negotiating committee members

themselves when they were active. players are constantly thinking about the fans and public acceptance of the game. that shows itself in our negotiation over things like the schedule, over things like the postseason and the drug-testing program throughout our negotiations. in terms of potential link between ticket prices and player salaries, i know there are a couple of distinguished economists in the room today. ticket prices are set on supply and the band for that product. owners set the prices as high as they can. really has nothing to do with how much money players can get paid. >> the think the players union would agree to restore the game to the way was meant to be played anchoret of the designated hitter? [laughter] >> i do not know if there are names on that one. that could have come from my

wife who has been known to parade route the house and say dumping the dh. >> neither the owners or the players came to the bargaining table this time looking to change the rules regarding the designated hitter. even the we change the alignment of the leagues and postseason play. i do not think anybody would design an industry where one leak had one set of rules and the other has another. i think the compromise is here to stay for a long time. >> safety in sports has become a big issue at the professional and amateur levels. what are the doing to address this issue in baseball? >> health and safety was as much a part of our negotiations as it ever has been. in addition to what we did in our joint drug program, to address substance abuse and substance use as -- by players

we negotiated safer batting helmets, and the protocols for treating, and diagnosing concussions. we negotiated say for bats. there was a tremendous amount of negotiation over health and safety. i think that is a reflection of what bargaining can do when you stop trying to knock the stuffing out of one another. it allows people to put their heads together and solve problems and it with you cannot do when is a death match. >> what the players on the be required to take a drug test for human growth hormone for reasonable cause. if they do not have anything to hide when the random drug tests like any other sport? >> again there are a few questions smuggled and there. i think the drug testing of blood testing we agree to stand up with that in any other sport including the olympic sports. in terms of what we agreed to as well, it is not only that

players can be tested for reasonable cause. all players were tested for blood during spring training of 2012. i dare to say we have more blood collections in 2012 than any sport has had in any single year alone just with our spring training question. we also have random testing for all players starting this off- season. every player in baseball is subject to testing once the season is over. >> what is the difference between not smoking on the ball field and not using smokeless tobacco? why should lawyers be allowed to chew tobacco in front of players and kids? >> there are a few differences. one is you cannot play baseball while you are smoking. it interferes with work and there are secondary health risks associated with smoking. the position of the union is

pretty clear. we have long advised our players of the serious health risks of the product. we have provided resources for our players to try to cease using. the discussion that we had in bargaining this time showed players understand they can have an impact on this product and three under people. we will do our best to be role models there. >> how can small-market teams like the pirates ever help -- hope to win without a salary cap? >> if i wanted to give a wise answer i would say the reason small-market teams like the twins and the marlins and the rockies have. major league baseball has shown we can have an extraordinarily competitive balance without a salary cap. since the collective bargaining

reached in 1996 has been unprecedented through revenue- sharing, through our reserve system that allows clubs to hold on to preserve rights for the first six years of their career and other measures including our competitive balance tax. the representatives think each has an opportunity to win the world series. >> that is a subject we focused as much on over the past 20 years as any other. we do it through a few different ways. we have an enforcement mechanism in our contract. clubs are required to spend proceeds to put a more competitive if team on the field. if they do not there is an

arbitration process we can go through. we have used that in the past. we have beefed that up in the last round of bargaining. we try to create incentives so that each team has the maximum incentive to increase their local revenue to put a competitive team on the field. i think some of the most creative bargaining we have done -- this goes back to check o'connor who was involved in the national bargaining -- some of the most creative bargaining is done in revenue sharing and fashioning a system to where every team has an incentive to try to win. >> the head table is populated by players who are active in union leadership. what role did they play that other staff members do not? >> there are a lot of people in this country to think they know a lot about baseball. then there are guys who play the

game. guys who played the game know what it means to play the game. they know what it means on the field. they know the stresses that being a professional baseball player bring. they know the joy that being a professional baseball player brings. it has always been our view to effectively represent baseball players you have to have the input of those players. we get to the end but of current players all of the time. -- the input of current players all of the time. is useful to have the deep group of players we have on staff. we have people on our staff even on this day who's playing careers spanned virtually the entire history of the players association. part of our success is having the resources to tap anytime i need to make a phone call. >> how do you think drug-testing in the molb should have been

handled? >> i do not have 2020 hindsight. nobody else does. in retrospect it would have been better if everybody associated had moved a little more quickly. without getting into too much history, the bargaining history of baseball suggests that it would have been very difficult -- the bargaining history explains we got to random drug testing about as quickly as we could. with everything else in baseball there was very contentious baseball -- drug-testing history. in the 1980's we had a joint drug program and the owners terminated. the drugs involved were cocaine. they chose to terminate the program. who knew what it would be like if we had a continuously operating up through the 1980's. we had contentious legal fights about drug testing.

the owners did make a proposal in 1994, but i think it was fair to say was not seriously pushed by the honors at that point. the first time this seriously proposed random drug testing was 2002 and the players agree to it. in retrospect it think everybody can take a hard look at what they did. the understand the history of bargaining in baseball i do not know if we would have reached an agreement. >> from the players association perspective is there any concern about how young baseball players are developed in high school and college that you would care to address? >> sure. we want the best athletes playing baseball. we won all young people playing the game that are playing athletics to do so safely. we are very much involved, the union is. this is another area of great cooperation with management in trying to provide research, equipment, playing fields for

more players to play the game, particularly in urban areas in the country and around the world were resources do not exist. the baseball tomorrow fund, something jointly trusteed by union officials. we have provided billions of dollars to try to get more players on the field and give markets a chance to play baseball. >> with so many kids a choosing soccer what are you doing to encourage them to play baseball instead? [laughter] >> sitting over here i have the head of the soccer players union general counsel. one of my dearest friends who would be very upset with me if he thought i was discouraging people from playing soccer. there are a lot of people in this country and whirled and a lot of great games. i do not think we need to discourage any young kids from playing any sport. there are plenty of kids playing

baseball. there are more girls playing softball than ever before. as long as there are plenty of kids active there is plenty to go around. >> will be the impact for the tv deal for the nationals being organized now -- >> do you want to take this one? the local tv revenue is a crucial part of our game. it is a crucial part of our industry. you have seen the local broadcasting rights go through the roof for team after team. that really only makes sense when you think about it. baseball is 162 new reality shows a year, very cheap to produce, tremendous content.

baseball fits the new media very, very closely. i will not try to predict how the negotiations involving the nationals, orioles is going to play out. it will be a very important negotiation for both franchises. >> players have benefited financially from the rise in regional sports networks. the you see a potential bubble bursting eventually? -- do you see a bubble bursting eventually? >> i in not a media consultant. i understand all ratings for national events -- not just athletics -- are facing a challenge. when it comes to baseball locally, the power of baseball as programming is extremely high for the reasons i said. it is a tremendous amount of content whether that is for satellite radio, television, the internet and other ways is transmitted.

i give baseball a lot of credit for recognizing the change in technology and seeing different ways to bring the game to people not only in their local markets but people who want to follow the tigers were red sox even though they may live here in washington. i do not think there is a bubble there. i think the value of the content is there. >> could the new smartphone at fully replace baseball cards? >> that may be the hardest question i have been asked. it requires me to know what a smartphone at is. i am not the most technologically savvy person. as a kid who grew up collecting baseball cards and even swapping baseball cards as late as college, i think you can marry

the technology with the joy of card collecting. i think our licensees with major-league baseball in this area for cards to continue to be vital are going to have to continue to figure out a way to use the new technology in the area. >> will mlbpa ever endorse other cards besides topps? >>the mlbpa and have long had agreements with other cadr companies. while topps historic plea have been making parts for the longest period of time, we have had licenses with other companies that we still do. >> what is the position on hall of fame induction for players who use steroids?

>> i cannot necessarily speak for the union on that one. when you ask the position, i would like to talk to the current members of the union. i will give you my position. the hall of fame is for the best player -- baseball players who have ever played. pete rose belongs in the hall of fame. the based -- best baseball players should be in the hall of fame. it is a museum. if you want to have a notation on the plaque that indicates they were either judge to have used substances, so be it. there are people in the hall of fame and will be people who have been adjudged by several arbitrators to engage in a massive conspiracy call collusion -- those people belong to the hall of fame as well. from my perspective it is for the best baseball players and the most influential executives that have been involved.

it should all be in. >> do you think the drug scandal has jaded young fans and made the more suspicious a player achievements? >> i think young people are more jaded than they used to be. . maybe that is a good thing. athletes and celebrities are covered in a way that they were not when i was a kid. it would be impossible, i think, whoever your hero is to see them as the larger than life figure we might have seen when we were kids. baseball is as popular as it has ever been as shown by attendance and ratings and the people following the game. it is extremely popular by today's youth. i think they understand the beauty and power of the game and the incredible talent to players playing it. >> should the union have a role in selecting bud selig's

successor? >> absolutely not. one of the positive things that i have seen in baseball since 1988 is a recognition by everybody that the commissioner of baseball is the top representative of the owners. there was a time when the commissioner was viewed as being representative of the fans, a representative of the game or the institution. i am not saying they do not think about the game and the institution or fans like players do. like i said in my remarks, it is an adversarial process. but it was an owner and is unabashedly the head of the owners when it comes time to bargain and represent baseball against third parties. that is how it should be. we will wait with interest 20 or 30 years from now when he steps down. [laughter] we should have no role in

selecting his successor. >> should financially strapped cities be subsidizing stadiums for millionaire owners? >> i have to decide whether to answer that one as the head of baseball players association or as a citizen of this country. i will answer as the head of the baseball players association. anybody in any industry was to get as much support from the municipal authorities as they can. i think it is a subject of some economic debate in particular cities whether subsidizing the sports arenas or entertainment facilities is the best use of public funds. in many places, baltimore being one for sure, it was important to revive a part of the city there. baseball is an important institution and we welcome the assistance of any municipality that is willing to provide it. >> what impact will the sale of

the dodgers and the lawsuit have on the game considering these are two of the largest markets? >> a large impact. the dodgers and the mets not only play into the largest markets but our flagship franchises for the sport. whether you are a fan or not you want to see those franchises thrive. the dodgers sale and having the group involved there -- a group that not only has the financial we're but the excitement for the game and the acceptance in that community is great for dodger fans and everybody in baseball. i am not saying this because my wife is a mets fan but it is great for everybody in baseball that the mets can focus on trying to put the best team on the field. baseball in new york is one of the treasuries of the his -- treasures of the history of this

game. i can always be better if the mets have a chance to be competitive as possible. >> there has been a lot of talk about paying ncaa athletes. you think they should be paid or unionize? >> and that is a little bit different for baseball players then it is -- those questions usually come up with respect to football and basketball players. in college they are a little bit different because when a baseball player goes to college he must remain -- he cannot come out and play professionally for three years. baseball players are much closer to the model of scholar athletes that many people would like to see. they do not generate the kind of revenue in college that football and basketball players do. i think there are reforms that can be made that could benefit the owners. one thing this union has stood for is giving more baseball players a chance to use their

talent to get an education before they try to play professionally. we are working to try to make that more of a reality. there was a serious debate that can be had with respect to baseball and basketball players with revenue they produce. i do not think that applies to baseball. >> what do you advise players when it comes to social media like twitter? >> i do know what twitter is. we advise players on the one hand, part of why baseball is as popular as it is is that fans have a personal connection with baseball players that may be different then there any other athlete. social media allows fans to connect with those players in a very intimate way. nationalist fans think every

single guy on the 25 man roster is a celebrity. we advise fans that it is great for you to use social media if you are comfortable doing it to establish a connection with fans. on the other hand you have to think before you do it. we have been fortunate. i am not saying we have not had any difficulties, but compared with athletes and other sports our players have used that media responsibly. it is a great way to cement the connection between fans and players. >> what advice can you give young players who hope to become professional baseball players? >> learn to throw left-handed. [laughter] another possibility is learn to catch and hit left-handed. those are two things that will keep you in the game for a long time.

i go back to a day when kids played sports because it was fun to play sports, not necessarily thinking when you were eight years old you would get a scholarship or a chance to play professionally. i would advise any kid to play sports, be active, play as many sports as you enjoy rather than just focusing on one particular game and playing that year round. if you have the talent and the competitive drive to use your athletic skills to get an education, that is great. do that. if you happen to be one of the minute percentage that have the ability to make a living professionally you can try. you cannot be thinking about that when you are a young kid. >> i throw left-handed so i was wondering, when will baseball had its first woman baseball umpire, general manager? >> general manager could happen

any point in time. there are several baseball executives right now working for clubs and the commissioner's office who are eminently qualified to be general manager. that is a matter of time and opportunity. umpires i know less about. i generally consider -- i know it is a stereotype. i generally think of women as being smarter than men. why would it want to be an umpire, that is a different question. it is a difficult and thankless job. we are ready for a female general manager. i know a number of great candidates right now. >> will there ever be a true world series in which the top team plays a top foreign team? >> i am not sure we will get to a stage where the world series champion in north america plays

a team in japan. we have thought about that. there are a lot of challenges there. the world baseball classic, tournaments i have described really gets that. the world baseball classic has the best players in the world -- they are competing against one another at a high level of competition. we really hope -- the wbc is a great tournament. this is the first time we will play with qualifying rounds. i think the world baseball classic has within it the potential to be that true world series fans have been looking for. >> you said the umpire job is tough and thankless, will you ever utilized instant replay to assist umpires? >> i think as many of you know, we already use it to some extent

on what we call boundary calls for home runs. if the ball is over a fence or if it has been interfered with by the fan. in our collective bargaining, we did reach an agreement to expand in-state reply to other calls, to what are called trap plays, whether the player caught the ball or it hits the ground. that was subject to further bargaining has not been concluded between the owners and the umpires union. instant replay is a subject where the owners have an obligation to bargain not only with the players union but the umpire union. you very well may see instant replay in the game after that has concluded. >> to baseball players consider themselves as part of the 1% or the 99%? >> if given the choice most baseball players would say the 99%. the best part about this job -- there are a lot of challenges.

the best part is working for the players. the reason for that is the players recognize how fortunate they are to get to make a living and to get to make an unbelievable living playing the game of baseball. they are humble guys. they do not take for granted at all what they have. they give back to the community. part of this is what makes them great union members. where the economics of many of them would place them in the 1%, their outlook towards life shows these are regular guys. >> who do you think were the best baseball players of all time [laughter] and why] -- who are the best baseball players and why? >> i will be a little politics here and not name any names. i can say everybody thinks the

best baseball players are the ones that were playing the game when they were about seven or eight or nine years old. i think i can say with confidence the best of all time are those playing the game right now. the quality of their training, fitness, the skill and the competition has gone to the point where the players -- and the fact we are more inclusive that we have ever been in two back through the history before african-americans could play and we had the best international players playing, i will not name any names because everyone has their own opinions. i will say with confidence the quality today is as high as it has ever been. >> if you were trapped on a desert island, which two owners would you most prefer to be with? [laughter] >> the challenge here is doesn't

honor want to be on that list or not is what i have to figure out. maybe tom warner would be a good choice because he is responsible to creating all of these wonderful television shows and entertainment. he would be an interesting guy to have. let's see. i guess magic johnson because -- who would not want to be on a desert island with magic johnson. >> we are almost out of time. before asking the last question we have a couple of house keeping matters to take care of. i would like to remind you about our upcoming speakers. on monday april 16 we have alec baldwin. tune into c-span or log on to npc.org to see it streamed live. on may 9 we have billie jean

king, tennis legend. i would like to present our traditional npc mug. it will be handy for drinking coffee on the desert island. i have one last question. do you think will win the world series this year? >> somebody predicted i will give this question. the answer is, every player plays the same amount of days. those are what pay the salaries here. in seriousness, i think even the most ardent writer would say this is almost an impossible year to pick that. you have six or seven teams in the american league that are just as good as any other to make it to the world series and the national league is completely wide open. >> how about a round of applause for our speaker today? for our speaker today?