it makes intuitive sense they shouldn't have massive trading operations, but that's not what the problem was the last time around. it had nothing to do with it. j.p. morgan -- everybody's up in arms with them, but they had 110 regulators under the existing regulations. the house permanently in morgan's headquarters and none had a clue what the trade was. it's a rather small fraction of one quart's earning. you are upset about what happened to j.p. morgan, to say the regulators were going to stop it seems to me a bit far-fetched. the only thing in my view that finally worked was the market discipline, that took away too long, and that's what they are lambasting, we can't have the derivatives -- they are basically shorting the regulators, saying this was a regulatory failure and now the whole thing is exposed when they bring the house of cards down. i don't think -- the idea, treasury now has in its building

300 economists and others who are supposed to prevent systemic risk. . they are in the belly of the beast. what will they be able to do? >> to reiterate that, i would say the theme of both of the papers, part of the rational, if not the primary driver of the financial crisis is where we've had decades long, we've replaced it with regulatory oversight and the dodd-frank continues along that trend of trying to replace market discipline with regulatory oversight and i think in that regard it's almost bound to fail. i will note since the vokele rule was -- of course, bear-sterns, for instance, the most was fannie and freddie securities. again, i don't think my own opinion is dodd-frank won't help us avoid the next crisis and i think we need to be very careful about sovereign risk

that even here in the united states as well as agency risk and how that -- financial system. i know we are coming up on 1:00 and i don't want to keep everybody too long. we'll see if we have one or two last questions and we'll wrap up over here. >> do you think we can wind down the g.s.e.'s maybe by selling off the assets to mortgage corporations or do you have an idea of -- or proposal of how we can do that? and do you think the 30-year mortgage would go away if we would get rid of the g.s.e.'s? >> winding down -- sort of a tough question. the reason that beginie mae -- ginnie mae was made was to take care of fannie mae. so of course you can wind them down. now, this whole notion of we won't have fixed rate loans

without them, well, they're intermediary. there's got to be investors on the other side. you can't do anything unless you can sell it. now, it turns out that when these institutions were created and when we got dependent on fixed rate mortgages, 85% of the market on the other side was fixed rate liabilities. it was all in life insurance companies because we had relatively low inflations. if you look at the 1970's, everybody has fixed rate going on forever. that's down to about 15% down of the market now. there's no fixed rate liabilities. it's all hedged to inflation. nobody wants that. there's a very other side of the margaret. if you want a fixed rate loan that's a pure gamble on your part that you could pay it off if interest rates go down, you will have to pay for it. fannie mae and freddie mac won't do anything about it. >> the point to emphasize, at least two the two risks is credit risk and interest risk.

fannie and freddie, do they take the interest rate risk. when they bought mortgages, rapid wrapped it up in the m.b.s., they provided the credit guarantee. so i think it's important to keep in mind that the fundamental -- it is the interest rate risks. that is something that fannie and freddie took in place. i will note we have procedures in law put into the housing economic recovery act of 2008 where there are receivership provisions to wind down freddie and fannie. the dodd-frank liquidation provisions mirror those to some extent. if you believe that dodd-frank gives us the power to wind down jpmorgan or citigroup, if you believe we could wind it down, then we will. we have papers online. i know that he'll hang around to answer any questions. thank you. >> thanks for coming.

[applause] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2012] >> here on c-span, we'll take you live next to the national press club in washington for comments by girl scouts c.e.o. anna maria chavez. they will be delivering remarks noting the 100th anniversary of the girl scouts organization. she's being introduced by president of the press club, theresa werner, here on c-span. >> please to note that 2/3 of the female members of congress have been girl scouts and all three female secretaries of state, condoleezza rice,

madeleine albright, as well as sand ray day o'connor, venus williams, lucille ball and the list goes on, including feature leaders, elly biel from troop 1327 from virginia, becky toundsened and troop 0006 from oakton, virginia. yesterday the president honored lowe with the presidential medal of freedom. and today anna maria chavez, her journey brought her here, she had a full scholarship to yale, then a career in public service. counseling then arizona governor janet knapp on urban relations, latino matters and community services. she spent some time here in d.c. as well in senior rules at the u.s. department of transportation, the small business administration and the federal highway administration. she became the c.e.o. of girl scouts u.s.a. a year and a half ago. and she quickly found out leading a national organization means dealing with politics. so even as chavez leads the

100th anniversary, she is dealing with political fire saying that scouting promotes sexuality and even abortion. and the catholic bishop says they are going to investigate it. virtual troops meet online and a new badge that girls can earn for understanding online safety and preventing cyberbullying. chavez hopes to make her mark in a very big way. she's launched an ambitious program to close the leadership gap between men and women within one generation. we look forward to hearing all about it. please welcome anna maria chavez. mawsplaws -- [applause] >> thank you. thank you, theresa, for that wonderful introduction. my mother appreciates the fact

that you used the official bio. she does take credit. i want to thank the head table, deborah, thank you so much for, and lydia, who is my colleague. i am really grateful to lead a national organization but in partnership with 112 girl scout councils across the nation and lydia leads the nation's capital. thank you for being here. to our national board representative lisa gable, and to our national board president, bring our good wishes as well. to those in the audience today that are here to support us and also girl scouts who by the way we work for every day and we're so proud of you. you know, i wanted to start actually my remarks talking about a girl, a girl, a very special girl. a girl that grew up in china and a little about this girl. if you imagine your hand, ok, and her hand, however, she didn't have fingers. just a palm and a thumb. but there was a family that traveled to china to adopt her

in an orphanage and they brought her to georgia where they loved her and cared for her but even the daily task of, you know, of tying a shoe or picking up a toy was difficult for this young girl who they named danielle. and danielle had lots of aspirations but the parents wanted to figure out what they could do for her in her life. so as anybody does these days, right, they goingled a solution , and they found a whole community out there of people who wanted to support this young lady but they found a group, in particular, a group of leaders who wanted to investigate a process to help this little girl named danielle. so this group, they went out and for six months investigated different options. they visited manufacturing plants. they went to craft stores. after six months and about 180 hours of remp and work, they developed a prosthetic handmade out of molding, sort of, you

know, things they could figure out how to use in a craft store and velcro and they put it on her hand and it worked. for the first time danielle was able to write her name. well, these amazing individuals are called the flying monkeys. the flying monkeys. really, truly. that's what their names are. it's a girl scout troop from ames, iowa. yes. and they are amazing. so amazing that these members went on to win a global competition, beating out almost 200 other teams and claiming a $20,000 prize to patent their device they called bob 1. now, it's a great story and i tell it because it not only inspires me but it inspires other girls. you know, think about this. six intrepid middle school girls sitting there figuring out, hmm, how do we create a

hand for a little girl? you know, and so thinking about these girls, i really get sort of bullish about america's future given the fact that we have girls out there that have incredible ingenuity, creativity and not only that, they are thinking about other people and how they can help. so as the chief executive officer for the girl scouts of the u.s.a., i have the privilege and honor of seeing these girls across the country. you know, this story has a good ending but unfortunately there's another side to this which i will be very honest, distresses me. it distresses me because i know there are remarkable girls trying to do great things but enough of them grow up to realize their full potential because unfortunately don't see enough women in leadership positions across the country at this time. you know, if you look at congress, only 16% of our elected officials are women.

across corporate america, women occupy only 15% of seats on bored rooms, and just 2% hold a top job at a fortune 500 company. women manage only 3% of all hedge funds and 10% of mutual funds. yet, women significantly outperform funds in general even during tough times such as these. women hold just 16% of the top positions at movie studios and own fewer than 6% of tv stations in the united states. and currently women make up only 6.5% of the science advisory board members at u.s. high-tech firms. so let me give you another image. imagine this, imagine a classroom in an elementary school with 50 kids.

evenly divided between boys and girls and then ask every single girl to leave the girl except one and ask the group of 25 boys and one girl to take on and solve a challenging problem. well, that's the situation we have here in the united states. and unfortunately, you know, we are making progress in some areas. we, young women are going on to college. you know, they're earning a degree. nearly half of all law students are girls, are women. but as i've noted, in too many cases we're not getting girls from aspiration to action. especially when it comes to critical fields like science, technology, engineering and science and math. so it's a vicious cycle, and as the saying goes, you can't buy something you can't see. and if there aren't enough successful women in technology and engineering, girls can't sit back and say, i can do

that. i see myself there. so, again, i work with a lot of girls. i travel the country. one of the best jobs in the world is the job i'm sitting in today. i get to talk to girls ages 5 through 17 and they tell me their dreams, but they also say, eagle one -- by the way, that's what the girl scouts call me. they say, eagle one, help us, because this is what the reality is for us. you know, i go to school and i'm really psyched about math and science. and around fourth grade people are like, girls don't do math and science so then they opt out. then they go out and they go to high school and they are thinking about student government and they get up and they do things and unfortunately some of the remarks are, well, girls, that's being too bossy. why are you doing that? then they go on to their careers and, again, sometimes they don't see the female role models in the firms, the companies they want to work at. so what they say to me, the

girls honestly say, anna, help us. help us change the messages that girls are getting in today's society. because unfortunately at girl scouts we have a research institute that brings out some unfortunately neglecta data around girls. right now -- negative data around girls. right now 90% of girls say the fashion industry in the media pressures them to be thin. 42% of girls in this country are growing up economically disadvantage and those rates are higher for hispanic and african-american girls in this country. and while eight out of 10 girls are interested in interacting with successful women, a majority of them, 60% say they haven't been offered a chance to visit the workplaces of successful women in their community during the last school year. now, is it any wonder why 61% of girls say that leadership is neither important to them or say that they don't want to be

leaders? so i know that you're probably taking a pause with me because, again, we've got to get beyond this data. now, looking at girls, specifically -- we found a great statistic. on february 14, valentine's day, we published a support saying girls love stem. it's true. if you ask most girls, the majority of them, over 74% of them say i love math and science. what they want is a hand up. they want somebody to say, and come by them and mentor them around these issues. and talking to girls we wanted to let them know, it's a career option. because, again, we can't have girls opting out because they can change the world. you know what, and it's not just about girl scouts. it's about all girls. you know, there's one girl in particular. her name is angela xeng. at the age of 17 invented a

nanoparticle. not any nanoparticle but one that kills cancer cells and surprisingly enough she won $100,000 grand prize recently at a math and science competition. and coming up right next to her is marian who is also 17. and she had done some research on buried land mines around the world so she didn't just sit back. she wanted to do something so she went out and she created actually an alternative. a device that actually goes out there and identifies where these mines are buried. she won a $25,000 fellowship and her invention is a great thing because people can produce it at a cheap cost in other countries. the thing is when you inspire girls, when you support them, when you mentor them, they are going to get on their journey because they truly know the path. sometimes adults, we kind of put barriers in the way. we put, you know, stereotypes. we put negative images, but if

you're truly sitting there with a girl and you start kicking those barriers out of the way, they're going to jump to where they need to get to. you know, i'm very fortunate. i had a lot of people in my life that mentored me. from a very young age in arizona where apparently i was poor. didn't know it because we were rich in love, but i remember thinking, the only thing i wanted to be was a girl scout. and when i had the opportunity to become a member of this movement, i moved to san antonio, texas, dragged my husband and my son and we moved site on scene to work for the girls in southwest texas. and i remember sitting there and thinking about girls and, you know, for a girl it's very simple. they see our organization. it's iconic. and one day we were doing this recruitment event, because in girl scouting we still work in partnership with school districts across the country to recruit girls. we do the brochures, we take to

the school to announce recruitment event. we hope it gets in the teacher's boxes. we hope they put it in the girls' backpack and we hope it gets home and a parent found that form. well that worked today in san antonio, texas. a little girl, 8 years old, and she had the form in her backpack and she showed up at one of our recruitment events at an elementary school one night. after everything was done, my staff and the volunteers looked and there was one person left and it was the 8-year-old girl. beautiful little girl. they were like, honey, where's your parents. oh, no, i came by myself. there's my bicycle. and they're like, honey, it's late. it's like 8:30. i know and i had forgotten my way. can you take me home? this little young lady was living with her father, single parent, who was working two jobs because he had been laid off. and they scraped and scraped because it's only $12 to be a girl scout. that's only what it costs to be

a girl scout, $12. for them that was a heavy lift. so they looked under sofa, cushions, they looked under the refrigerator and she found $12 in change. she brought that change in a bottle and she put it in front of my recruiter and said, you know, we may be poor, we may be alone today but i want to be a girl scout because i know i'm going to be able to change the world. i got to tell you, she changed my life. because i knew at that time it wasn't about just girl scouts. it was about girls changing their lives but changing the world. you know, they're ready. it's up to adults, it's up to adults to step up and say, you know what, let me pay that $12. let me buy you that sash. let me give you the opportunity to integrate with amazing women and men who want to support your journey. come on now. go out, the flying monkeys.

go ask angela or marian. you know, for us we sit here in the nation's capital where innovation and creativity and governance happens. can you imagine if we doubled the number of girls in that pipeline, of leadership here in the nation's capital? because right now look at our roster of girl alumni. theresa read the list and it goes on and on. imagine if right now we only served 8% of girls in this country, imagine if we doubled that percentage. you know, in our study recently we found that if you compared girl scout alumni to nonalumni they outperformed in almost every single measure. they were making more money per year. they had a higher educational attainment that nonalum. they were happier. and they were contributing to their community.

they were volunteering and they were voting and they were voting often. and what we also discovered is that currently we have 59 million living alumni in this country. approximately one in two women have spent time in our organization during her lifetime. and what i love about it is that it's going to give us the opportunity to connect with that alumni, to bring them back in to mentor other girls. because our system is simple. it's worked for 100 years. it's called discover, connect and take action. allow a girl to discover the issues around her in her local community and the demrobe, connect her to other people who -- globe, connect her to other people who ared from in that project and allow her to take action and make difference. so it works. 100 years. lowe if she stood her today would say it works because,

again, we are not only in every zip code in this country but we are in 92 countries in the world making a difference. not only for the girls but for their community. but i need your help because we can't do it alone. so we're going to create an opportunity for you and it's called to get her there. it is the largest, boldest advocacy campaign for girls leadership in the nation's history. what we're trying to do with your help is to create balanced leadership in this country in one generation so that every single girl has the opportunity to step into that leadership role because we're going to need her smart ideas. we're going to need her to sit next to boys in the classroom and contribute. and, you know, it's not about boys against girls or men against women. i am a mother of a 10-year-old beautiful boy, but what it's about is this great country and the about this girl scout movement that needs to continue

because we need to help more girls. now, the issue for us is scale. we can't do it by ourselves. it's going to take every nonprofit that serves youth. it is going to take every government leader, every parent, every entrepreneur to invest in girls because unfortunately today only 7% of the fill tropic dollars goes -- fillan thopic dollars goes to girls. i am convinced that some are out there across this beautiful country, there's a girl sitting there with a cure for alzheimer's. there's a girl figuring out how do i make other lives better like danielle, but the question is, will we get her there? will we? do we have enough passion around these issues? will we dedicate the time to sponsor a girl, to mentor her? and will we be strong enough in

our moral fiber to stand up and say, today, not on my watch will you make a girl feel less than? and, yet, when people start casting aspirsions against an iconic organization, will you stand up and say, that is not true? you know, i'm going to end just with a simple story. the fact of the matter is i stand before you as a product of this great organization, but for girl scouts i probably perhaps would have been on a different path. i was on all the indicator lists, right, latina, i was in an agricultural rural community. my parents hpt gone to college. but -- hadn't gone to college. but you know what, somebody, an adult in a rural community reached out her hand and say, you matter. today on my watch, you matter. and along the way my path was filled with adults that understood the potential of a

girl. what i ask you today and the country watching is that you invest in one girl. it could be your neighbor, it could be your daughter, it could be your niece, it could be a daughter of somebody in foster care or in child protective services. just take the time because there's a girl sitting in memphis, tennessee, ames, iowa, or birmingham, alabama, who needs us and i'm convinced that with -- when a girl suck seeds a country suck seeds. thank you. -- succeeds a country succeeds. thank you. [applause]

>> you talked about reaching out to just one girl. if you could speak to younger girls and convince them to stay in the girl scouts, what would you say, and what does being a girl scout mean to you? >> wow. there's a lot -- i'd love to share with girls and, again, i have this great opportunity. what i'd tell them honestly is to be a girl. you know, i had the great opportunity to work for two great governors in arizona. one of them gave me the opportunity to work in the child protective services and so where girls unfortunately had issues, had impacted their lives and i met this young lady 15 years old. and she had lost her youth, and i said to her, if you could talk to other girls, what would it be? and what she said was, tell girls to be girls. stop being such a hurry to be

an adult. enjoy life. you know, go out, create friends, create positive environments, don't let the social pressures bring you down because you're going to have a mortgage one day. don't worry about that. you know. it's ok. you know, just be a girl and enjoy life. because that's what's really going to make you happy. >> what do you think are the two or three biggest barriers to girls becoming girl scouts? is it different in urban versus rural areas? >> you know, surprisingly what a lot of people don't realize, the barrier is financial. and even though i will put this out there. it's only $12 a year to be a girl scout. you know, that's two lattas. -- lattes. but where i came from in san antonio, texas, we had about 0,000 girl scouts. half of them were on scholarships. that meant i fundraised every year to pay for half the girl in girl scouts. so that can be a barrier but

adults can step and help them. i think been rural and urban, i think it's a different experience. you know, i grew up in a rural community with one girl scout troop. we were very tight. you know, we did everything together. in an urban community, they make -- have more opportunities to do field trips around different things. but what i think what's great about girl scouts, it's like a lovingly field. whether you enter, whether you're in san antonio, texas, in elroy, arizona, you're entering a national movement so your experience will be the same because it's the same girl scout leadership experience with 15 outcomes. >> can people contribute directly to pay a girl's $12 dues and how do they do that? >> absolutely. [laughter] >> absolutely. we can start today. you know, our website's girlscouts.org. you can also go to our cause

campaign site called togetherthere.org. you can contribute. there's a button. we would love for you to invest in the future of this country but not only that, invest in the promise of a girl. they're going to do great things. >> the girl scouts gold award is comparable to the eagle scout rank yet no one knows what it is. will that ever change? [applause] >> absolutely. a little history. so in 2016, actually, the gold award will turn 100 years old. but what i think the issue is a branding issue. we've changed the name of the gold award. the gold award is the highest award a girl can achieve and earn in girl scouting. and so it used to be called first class scout. and so every the decades there are women out there that earned the highest award but it was named a different thing. so you're going to see in the next few months a ramp up

around a campaign around the gold award. because we are going to show the country all the amazing women who've earned the highest, you know, award in girls scout and we will show them. again, what i'd love to see, as with the eagle scout award, that girls walk in with their resume and it says gold award recipient and they're hired on the spot. you know, wouldn't that be great? but it's an educational process so we can tell people, again, that if a girl receives this award she's only represents 5% of girls in all of girls scouting so it's the pinnacle of their girl scouts career and we should support them. >> how do you think participating in girl scouts will help women achieve leadership positions in all sectors and levels of society? >> for girls in girl scouting, it's an opportunity to learn different things. whether it's about educational issues, whether it's about

societal issues in their community, homelessness issues, domestic violence and through community service, they're constantly giving back. they're constantly raising funds through their cookie program to fund nonprofits to solve community issues. so i think, again, with girl scouts and being involved it can really expand sort of their horizons and, again, help with other people. >> speaking of the cookie program, how does that fit into today's modern girl scouts? >> well, you've got to meet some of our amazing cookie sellers. you know, they're hardcore. they go out there and they got a goal. but what i love about the cookie program, first off, a lot of people don't know it's the largest entrepreneurial program for girls in the country. i meet women in the highest positions of corporate life of government and the first thing they tell me, i made the pitch, selling my girl scout cookies,

setting goals, tracking inventory. and oh, by the way, i volunteered my mom to be the cookie mom so then i dragged her into girl scouts and then my dad had to help. all of a sudden all the family was involved. but what the cookie program does essentially with girls it allows them to set a girl 5 years old. they are daisies. they sell the cookies and they get a percentage of the revenue. they get to decide what they're going to do with that. a lot of them travel internationally to visit with other girls. again, a lot of them have -- bronze, silver or gold award project. again, to help other people. and then ultimately it gives them the self-confidence. i mean, how many of you have done the calling business? how hard is it to knock on a door? what the girls have also told us, come on, eagle one, bring it up. we want a technology side to the cookie business. because they're online, right, they have a technology background so they want us to

integrate our traditional cookie program which is iconic with the future of business and the future of business has an e-commerce platform. just to preview, you may see something in the future around some of these technology advances that girls are going to help design around their cookie program. >> what percentage of girl scouts cookie sells do the girl scouts retain after deducting expenses? >> again, it depends on the sort of where you live. little trivia question here. actually, there are two companies that make girl scouts cookies in this country. depending on where you live you may buy from a particular company. thin mints are iconic. they are sold by both companies mfment some states samoa is called a samoa. in some states called a carmel delight. the money, it could be $3.50 per box. 08 cents goes directly to the cookie baker to pay for the product.

and then a girl gets a percentage. and then the other piece goes to either the troop or it goes, again, to the local council to fund their camps, their programming during the year, after school, and it really provides support network. what's most important and what i want to say to you today is, thank you. thank you for supporting the girls and the cookie program because it's funding their leadership development program and all of the money that they raise stays local. it does not come to headquarters. it is actually investing back in your local communities so thank you for supporting them. >> i was a top cookie seller with a mother that was a cookie mom and dad that hauled them around. so my family appreciates that. on the other hand, with the level of childhood obesity, do the girl scouts have any other ideas other than cookies? >> what i say, everything in moderation. you know, but i have to admit, our cookies, because they are only sold once a year, people

get very excited. so, you know, i also like to tell the story -- and i'll get to your piece about healthy living. very important. but, again, the cookie program, you know, first girl scouts troop started making girl scouts cookies in 1917 in oklahoma and that's how it started. and over the years, actually, a lot of the cookie revenue is donated to the troops, meaning, so a cookie can walk up to a cookie booth site but i will donate those cookies back and our girls will ship these cookies overseas. and so one of the amazing pieces that i get in the mail are letters and emails from men and women serving overseas who are hunkered down in a bunker in the middle of battle and then the mail comes after two months of waiting and what they get is a care package and in that care package are girl scout cookies and all of a sudden they're transported back to being 12, sitting in their grandma's kitchen eating girl

scouts cookies and milk and for them it's a respite. it's a piece and a time where they're connected back to this great country to say, we're there to support you. so our girls, again, are doing that they're supporting military families. and then we think about healthy living and all our girls know it's all about moderation. because, again, we're about the holistic view of girls. we want them to ensure they're living, physically active. we're very involved in creating programming around exercise and so that is a critical part of our work with girls. >> one girl scout here today said that what she's enjoyed most about being a girl scout is many opportunities and experiences she's gained from that and is wondering if girl scouts from around the world is getting those same opportunities? >> yes, we are very honored, actually, to have girl scouts in 92 countries because, again, the girls are living with their families and their family may be in the military serving overseas, stationed overseas,

or they may be living abroad working for an american country -- excuse me -- company. so the girls are, you know, girl scouts. they are part of our girl scouts family and they are learning other things. journey books. they are working on the same badges. what we're doing out of our national headquarter offices is we make sure we connect those living here in the united states with the counterparts. we were in houston and we saw girl scouts from all over the world coming together and it's a great sight because, again, they're girl scouts and part of the same family and having fun together. >> what is the organization doing to recruit leaders who are actually willing to go camping, even if it rains, hails or snows? [laughter] >> well, you know, a lot of people ask me, anna, come on, eagle one, i want to help but i'm not a camper. and so i get that. but here's the thing.

we have tons of volunteer opportunities. just talk to girls. talk to the table of girls here today. i bet if you ask them, every one of them has a different era of expertise. one of them may be an artist, a scientist, one of them in drama. if you're not a camper, we can, you know, based on your expertise, maybe if you're a judge, and i rently recruited a judge actually in southwest texas who said, come on now, anna, how can i be a girl scout? and i said, sir, this is how you're going to help me. first of all, first of all, you have the juvenile justice bench, yes, i do. and he goes, but how can i help? if you volunteer with me and you sign up more girl scouts, we're going to divert girls from your bench. did you ever have a girl scout before your juvenile justice bench? no, you're right, eagle one. i never had a girl scout in front of my juvenile justice beverly. and so you know what he -- juvenile justice bench.

he wrote a check to become a member that day. we penned him and since then he sponsored a series, a legal series where he's working with local lawyers and there's a rural community and they are literally teaching girls about the law, the professions in the law from prosecutor to defense attorney to being a judge. really showing them that process. again, if you're over the age of 18, male or female, and you want to volunteer to support these girls, we will find a way even if you're not a camper. [laughter] >> as children become increasingly more connected through devices like tablets and smartphones, how does the organization like girl scouts adjust not only to keep pace but attract new members and interest girls on those interactive team and personality building activities that makes scouting a developmental tool that it is? >> long question. well, again, speaking from a mother's perspective, a 10-year-old who has every

device manageable, i understand that connection. what i also realize interestingly enough that i think this is the first generation that spend most of their time growing up inside. right? when i was a girl scouts, my mother said, ok, go play and we would go walk and playing in the cotton fields and we'd be running around. so it is this balance. of making sure they're technologically savvy, that they're interested in all those things that come online and through computers so they can, again, compete in school and in their careers. but also understand it's about the environment. i think, again, one of the benefits of being a girl scouts is it is about the environment for us. you know, for us, green was cool way before it was cool for the rest of the country. we owned green. ask julia. we own green. so girls have always in their girl scouts experiences been connected back to the environment. they're out there. we're taking them camping, horse back riding. we have camps where they can go and sort of understand, you know, about earth and sort of

where that stands and other stars and galaxies, and so we're constantly bringing them out into the nature but connecting it back to science and math and technology so that, again, in context of their lives, girl scouting makes sense for them. >> with your new project to get her there, how do you plan on not only getting younger girls to get inspired to work towards their future but make sure they stay on the right path to get there as they get older? >> for us it's very, very clear. and i will tell you a lot of people are like, well, anna, that's an audacious goal. you know, changing the leadership landscape of this country in one generation of girls. but i said, you know, it's time. how can we wait for another generation to pass by without getting those opportunities? you know, when my mother was growing up, her opportunities were limited compared to mine but she did everything in her power to kick down those doors and those barriers. so i think it's our obligation

as adults, again, to engage more girls and to make other people aware. so i'm hoping all of you here, and now that you know to get her there, you'll educate your colleagues at work. have you heard about this campaign? it's powered by girl scouts but actually everybody's involved. and did you know that, you know, we need to invest more in girls? did you know girls need mentors around science, math and technology? so, again, our goal is to engage adults, one, to becoming aware, right, advocating on behalf of girls saying this is what girls need and then donating to the cause. again, to a girl scout organization or to an organization that empowers girls because as i said again, it's not just about girl scouts. it's about every single community organization coming together to support their leadership path. >> the girl scouts have a long history of being inclusive to gays, lesbians and those who don't believe in god.

the boy scouts are a different organization. how has that inclusiveness shaped what the girl scout organization is today? >> you know, our organization, girl scouts, is a very inclusive organization, has always been. you know, i was very fortunate. i recently was able to go to savannah, georgia. march 2, 2012, we turned 100 years old as a movement and so i was there actually in juliette gordon lowe's house and i was sitting there reflecting. as i was reading her diaries, very personal diaries around the challenges of creating an organization around girls. imagine this is before women had the right to vote. this is -- she created scandal throughout savannah because she had the girls marching through the streets in bloomers because they were going to play basketball in her back yard. she was going to empower all girls. when i was there i got to meet to leaders in the rabbi in the

local synagogue. and they showed me in their historical archives, letters from juliette gordon lowe thanking them for the support from the synagogue because they were members of the first girl scouts. you look, our troops were diverse. all girls of all faiths, of all racial backgrounds, of all geographic locations, and so i believe that is our true strength because, again, we are creating opportunity for girls to know that we all matter. >> the u.s. conference of catholic bishops recently filed an official inquiry concerning that the girl scouts have problematic relationships with groups like planned parenthood. what is the girl scouts relationship with planned parenthood? >> well, thank you for this opportunity, actually, to set the record straight. i think, you know, with social media and opportunities to post

things, there are certain myths and misconceptions about our organization. again, i think because we are an inclusive organization, we stand in a place where, again, we serve a broad demographic of girls in this country. imagine, we have girls in every zip code in this country. from all backgrounds, all faiths. and so, you know, we are looking forward. we're working with the conference of bishops to answer some questions they have, that they've received from some of their members, and so we look forward to answering some of those questions. obviously bringing the facts. but we've been very clear. you know, again, we do not take positions on some of these issues that we're being allege to take positions on. those issues are clearly within the family decisionmaking. you know, again, we are leadership development program. that's what we've been founded to do. that's our mission, to create girls of courage, constant and and character to make the world

a better place. so we look forward to working with the conference of bishops to clarify any questions they may have. and, again, at the end of the day, to clarify any myths and misconceptions about our organization to set the record straight. >> so do the girl scouts have a relationship with planned parenthood? >> as we've said before, girl scouts u.s.a. does not have a relationship. we, again, are focused on what's important to girls and that's what we've been doing for almost 1 -- over 100 years. >> there are many media representatives here today. what role should the media play in promoting empowerment for girls and women and what is your view of how girls and women are portrayed in the media today? >> well, you know, we have a lot of studies that have come out through our research institute that talk about the issues impacting girls. you know, we've actually hosted media panels throughout the country, and i was stunned recently to talk to some ladies, actually, of the media

who were girl scouts and they came up to me and said, we need help to say it's ok to be themselves and you don't have to do computer generation to change the way you look. and so one particular female newscaster actually did something live on television with no makeup and it created havoc. can you imagine? but it was her way of telling the girls, it's ok. we don't need all of this to be the professional person standing up, telling them what we need to do. this is our job. we've had some great media partners. i want to thank them for working with us, actually, during our 100th anniversary to spread the good message of girl scouting and they have. we've gotten over 70 million media impressions in the last six months. and it's because, again, our media partners understand that at the end of the day we are

one community and they can help. they have a powerful voice. they get to the girls through tv, through magazines, through radio. and they can help us spread some really great messages and encourage the girls to stay on their path. >> the boy scouts have been talking publicly about struggling with membership numbers. how is the girl scout enrollment doing and what are you doing to keep it up and boosted? >> well, i'm very pleased to say that the first time in 10 years we were actually up in membership. we're very proud of that. thank you. i've spoken actually to other c.e.o.'s of national nonprofits about youth. when a family sits back and says, wow, we just got to make rent, or a parent loses a job and so they come back to the basics. what do we really need? so a lot of us do lose that membership. i will tell you part of that, too, girl scouts, we are i

think the best kept secret in the united states. if you talk to any woman, they were touched by our organization. they had a positive opportunity. but we don't tell our story and part of that, again, is telling the story so more girls will join. they don't -- they can't buy something they can't see. so, again, that's why we're out there. you will see and i think you've probably seen in the last six months more stories about girl scouts than ever. talking about the great work they're doing. changing lives. and so for us it's about going external, showing that external story so people will invest in girls, people will advocate for them and people will sponsor girls. >> how realistic is it that you can expect gender equality in leadership in one generation since it's taken generations to get women to where they are today? >> i think it's an economic imperative. it is. i used to work for the s.b.a.

great organization. and i learned there that one in four people are employed by a small business, and so i always think about economy and sort of really where the jobs are being generated, and they are going to need employees. they are going to need skilled, trained employees, and so from a business perspective you got to invest in girls to get them on that path. and so if we sit back and say, let's do two generation of girls or three, we are going to pass a whole lot of opportunity that these girls are going to give back to their communities and to tchun and so it makes -- and to economy and so it makes sense for them to step up and make sense for government to develop leadership roles for girls. and i also think, again, with 59 million living alumni of girl scouts, by spreading the message they are going to come back and they are going to say, how can i help? i can't camp but, you know, i am a business owner, you know, or i can camp and i am going to

take the girls repeling so i think everybody is going to get involved. >> how do the girl scouts work to build girls up on their own terms and their own rights rather than simply get them to the same benchmark as their male counterparts? >> i think you're right. it's always a discussion that men are in these roles, you know, we recently looked april cross the top 10 job sectors across the country to the military, to nonprofit, to academia. we found that only 70% of those positions were meld by women. so why is that? i think it completely goes back to, and this is my personal opinion, being a leader of the national organization, that, again, it's about what you see in front of you. you know, for my mother, she was -- she wouldn't tell me what to do. she would lay me out the issue. anna maria, what are you going to do about that? how are you going to make a difference? in my mind as a 10-year-old i

figured out how to get there. i think girls need the same opportunity. they need sort of adults to stand up and say, well, so you found out there's no recycling program in your school. so what are you going to do about that? let the girls dream about that. so i think as we engage more girls in this opportunity, as we engauge more adults in this -- engage more adults in this opportunity we will start seeing that. again, the balance of leadership was created over many decades so we can't do it today. we can't do it tomorrow, but in one year we can create awareness around these issues and we can get on our way to make a difference for girls. >> so get her there appears to address getting younger girls involved in scouting. does it include graduating girls and to help get her a job and connections? >> sure. well, we serve girls all the way to the age of 17, actually, so a lot of girls think they can't join because they're in high school. actually, the girls i've spoken to love being in girl scouts

even as they grow older because they can then see the connection between what they want to do as an adult. and so for girls working toward their gold award, they're being involved in issues impacting their community and figure out, oh, wow. maybe that's what i want to go to school to study. maybe i want to be a lawyer or i want to be an engineer, and then they get in the core field and say, there was' a lot of girl scouts alum working in this company. maybe i can sit down with them and they can help me. and what i've learned, theresa, honestly, i've asked them questions. as a national c.e.o., i sit down with a lot of them, and when i was a local c.e.o. in san antonio, i had a team kitchen cabinet of girls, and i literally -- i mean, the adults would say, you got to do this, gout to do that because that's the way -- we got to do that because that's the way we've done it. i'd sit down with the girls. i say, ok, girls, there were 10

of them. ok, what do you want to know, anna? ok, girls, how are we recruiting? is that working for you? they noticed the door was shut and we were alone. eagle one, it's not working. first of all, if you think you can go into high school, put out a little table with a little green, you know, little thick on it with a box of -- little thing on it with a box of cookies, that's not going to work. tell me how i can get back to my community? so sitting with them literally we created a program called gamma sigma girls. told girls are not interested in becoming a girl scout when they get older. i don't know. a whole group of girl scouts that they like being a girl scout so they did. we thought we'd get one high school in san antonio and so we sent out a message. 25 girls at one high school. literally almost overnight we got every single high school in

san antonio independent school district to become girl scouts. so 10 schools, 25 girls in each school became girl scouts. we actually blew the cap in one school. had to let extra girls in. you know what happened? it was amazing. they started getting involved. and what turned out is they then ran for student government. i met a girl recently actually through that girl through gamma sigma girl in san antonio. she told me girl scouts had changed her life because, again, a lot of people told her, you shouldn't be involved in this. girl scouts not that. she joined and all of a sudden she had girl scouts friends and sisters and they started doing community service projects and started joining student government. what i found out was this young girl named irene had been homeless all her life. she had been in like 10 schools. and she immediately was grounded in girl scouting with her sisters in girl scouting. she went on actually to speak

nationally on the issues impacting teens and homelessness and she's now gone on to college on a full ride and she speaks eloquently about how just in one year as a junior in high school girl scouting completely changed her opportunities. so it is never too late, girls. it is never too late, parents, to join girl scouts. >> when do you think we will see a female president and will she be a girl scout? [laughter] >> well, theresa, the odds are she's going to be a girl scout. the odds are there. i mean, you look at the current cabinet, president obama, you know, again, hillary clinton, secretary of state, a girl scout. kathleen sebelius, a girl scout. the supreme court. so they are in these leadership positions already. for us as a community, of course, we would love an opportunity for our women to serve. she will serve as a leader. she will serve as somebody who

wants to make a difference. the fact she's a woman, an added bonus. people say, how can you do that? we are making our way. we are in schools. we are making the ways. we are doing the internships. we are taking the hard jobs. we are taking the hard assignments. we are taking the sacrifices so give them a chance to fill that critical need in this world and in the white house. >> before i get to the last question here, just a couple of announcements to make. first of all, i'd like to remind all of you about our upcoming luncheon speakers. on june 4 we have the gerald r. ford, chris matthews, host of msnbc "hardball with chris matthews." before you head down to the mall, we have our 15th be aual beat the deadline f-k race that beats the benefits the national press club journalism institute and tony horton, founder of

p-90-x. you can eat pan cakes, run and head to the mall. and our traditional n.p.c. coffee mug. [applause] >> cool. >> and a couple last questions here. have you learned the flash mob dance for the rock the mall? >> i am a little stressed about that. but you know, i've been told, i have a beat, so i am going to pick it up, you know. little scared. i may break out on stage but i'm ready for the challenge. do you want to try any of it? i hear you're a good dancer. >> what's your favorite cookie? >> oh, man. oooh. wow. you saved the toughest question until the end. all right. i will tell you what my answer used to be. after i gave the answer -- ok. come on. it was political.

as c.e.o. i love all cookies. in the day my husband, rob, happened to be listening to the interview. he said, anna, you got a cookie. say the cookie. yes, in front of everybody, my favorite cookie is the samoa. i embrace it. here's the thing. girls get to choose their favorite cookie. and we actually have an iphone app that will tell you based on your cookie we can tell you a little bit about your personality. [laughter] >> how about a round of applause for our speaker today? thank you for coming. thank you to the national press club staff. >> you can watch this again later in our video library at c-span.org. we will leave here as the u.s. house is about to combaffle in after a week and a half break for memorial day. they'll begin the day with one-minute speeches. legislative work starts at 3:30

eastern. a dozen bills are scheduled for debate today, including a measure to continue the national flood insurance program for another two weeks while negotiators work out a longer measure. also, a measure passed by the senate last week to continue food and drug administration user fees and create new ones and a bill making abortions based on illegal. any votes requested will be held at 6:30 eastern. the senate not in session this week. it's their memorial daybreak. their memorial day break. now here to the live -- here to the house live here on c-span.

in their various capacities here in the united states capitol. bless all those who visit the capitol this very day, be they american citizens or visitors or guests of our nation. may though be inspired by this monument to the noble idea of human freedom and its guarantee by the democratic experiment that is the united states. god, bless america, and may all that is done this day be for your greater honor and glory. amen.

the speaker: the chair has examined the journal of the last day's proceedings and announces to the house his approval thereof. pursuant to clause 1 of rule 1, the journal stands approved. the pledge of allegiance today will be led by the gentlelady from minnesota, ms. mccollum. ms. mccollum: i pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. the speaker: the chair will entertain requests for one-minute speeches. for what purpose does the gentleman from texas rise? mr. poe: mr. speaker, request permission to address the house for one minute, rerned my remarks and ask unanimous consent to do so. the speaker: without objection. mr. poe: mr. speaker, recently i met with some people in texas in the trucking industry. we discussed the administration's domestic energy policy. how the administration is against using more american coal, how the administration is

against drilling in anwr, how the administration is stonewalling the drilling on federal lands. and how the administration has delayed offshore drilling permits, and how the administration uses the e.p.a. to block domestic energy production. since the administration is against so much, what is it in favor of? then daulton handed me this, yes, a tire gauge. and reminded me that the president touted his energy plan when he said this, we could save all the oil they are talking about getting off drilling if somebody would just -- if everybody would just inflate their tires and get tune-ups. really? that's it? more air in our tires? now, you know, mr. speaker, more hot air will save us all. now there's an energy plan we can all be proud of. and that's just the way it is. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentlelady from minnesota is recognized. for what purpose does does she

rise? ms. mccollum: to address the house for one minute. revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. ms. mccollum: mr. speaker, today i rise to honor my dear friend and outstanding tribal leader, chief executive marge anderson. after 30 years of service to her community, marge is retiring. and i know i'm not alone in saying she will be missed. ms. anderson first saw me when i was in the minnesota statehouse. the education she provided on indian treaty rights and the u.s. constitution's guarantee of tribal sovereignty are lessons i still carry with me. the first woman elected to serve as chief executive of the malax band, she promoted tribal self-governance, education, health care, and infrastructure. chief anderson has also been redskin kneesed for her dedication -- been recognized for her dedication to families, communities, and regional

tribal organizations all around this country. i thank her for inspired leadership, her protection of tribal sovereignty, for her guidance and friendship. marge, thank you. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from illinois rise? >> request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: so recognized. >> mr. speaker, i rise today in support of the 2013 military construction and veterans' affairs appropriation bill. most of the time when budgets are cut and cuts are made, someone somewhere is upset about them. as a wise governor once said you'll be amazed 40u67 government you will never miss. they found programs to trim billions in spending while still providing for our war fighters and veterans in a most

nective and efficient ways. the fact that funding for so many of our vital programs were increased is a testament to the significant savings made in other areas of the bill. for example, it will provide disability compensation for almost four million veterans and their survivors and will provide post 9/11 guy guy bill education benefits for almost 600,000 veterans. i ask my colleagues to join me in voting in favor of this important bill later this week. i yield back.

they have their status extended and work toward achieving the residency. this can be a reality through daniellea. they realize their full potential in this land of opportunity. i ask you to join in this opportunity who simply needed a chance to continue being productive americans. thank you, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from pennsylvania. >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: so recognized. mr. pitts: mr. speaker, today the house of representatives will consider the prenatal nondiscrimination act, a bill

to ban the practice of sex selection abortions. if you talked to most expectant couples, you'll hear common refrain. we don't care whether it's a boy or girl. we just want a healthy baby. in fact, even with advanced ultrasound technology, many parents choose to wait until birth until the sex of their child. unfortunately, there are exceptions. some couples will do anything to choose the sex of their child. and the majority of these cases, boys are favored and girls are aborted. i know most americans think this is something that happens overseas in places like china and india. however, a columbia university study found out that sex selection at the prenatal level is happening right here in the united states. just yesterday a group, live action, released undercover video of a planned parenthood clinic in austin, texas, counseling a woman on how to choose the sex of a child. we shouldn't wait any longer to ban this bare baric and socially unhealthy practice. it's time to -- barbaric and

socially unhealthy practice. it's time to approve the bill. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from tennessee rise? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: so recognized. mr. cohen: yesterday there was an historic program at the white house where 13 great people of the world were recognized with presidential medals of freedom. . they range the from former supreme court justice john paul stevens to bob dylan to john glenn and others but nobody stood out more than pat head summit, the great athletic coach for the university of tennessee lady vols. greatest basketball coach of all time. now facing her greatest battle, alzheimer's, she stands as a public statement that this disease must be -- a cure must be found and the caregivers must be recognized and taken care of. she's raising money for alzheimer's. she's raising money for those that face this problem like she does, but she's faging with courage and trying to help others. this is her greatest battle, she's a great american, i thank the world for pat head summit,

not for her coaching ability but courage as a human being. thank you, mr. speaker. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to clause 12-a of rule 1, the chair declares the house in recess until approximately 3:30 p

you we are eager to hear your thoughts on the challenges we must face and address together. we are honored to give you this freedom award. [applause] >> thank you so very much. eric, this is a really fine award. i'll split it with you if you would like me to. would that be all right? good.

distinguished religious leaders, governor levity, brian walsh, and old dear friends, it's now been just over a week since i became archbishop of baltimore and i find myself surrounded by history there. i live near the basilica of the assumption which is the oldest cathedral of the united states, the cornerstone of which was laid in 1808. the nation's first bishop, john carroll, is buried beneath the basilica, as are many of my predecessors. john carroll was the cousin of charles carol rol, a signer of the declaration of independence. charles carroll's story, inneed maryland's early -- indeed maryland's early history,

teaches us of the fra gillity of religious liberty and the importance of exercising vigilance and protecting it. maryland was founded in the mid 17th century by the english, by the catholic lord baltimore. and it was founded to be a society where people of different faiths could live together peacefully. this was soon codified in maryland's 1649 act concerning religion, also called the toleration act, which was the first flaw in our -- first law in our nice's history to protect an individual's right to freedom of conscience. maryland's experiment in religious toleration, however, ended within a few decades. around the turn of the 18th century, the colony was placed

under royal control and the church of england became the established religion. discriminatory laws including the loss of political rights were enacted against those who refused to conform. catholic chapels were closed. and catholics were restricted to practicing their faith in their homes. the catholic community lived under those conditions until the american revolution. both charles carroll and his father, although wealthy landowners, were barred from active participation in politics because of their roman catholic faith. despite this legal restriction, in the early 1770's, charles carroll became a powerful voice for independence from british

rule. eventually he was elected to represent the colony of maryland and in various committees and was selected as a delegate to the continental congress in 1776. then carroll signed the declaration of independence and he was the only catholic to do so. just a few years later, our founding fathers included the protection of the free exercise of religion in the first amendment of our constitution. in reflecting on his time in the constitutional convention, george washington stated in 1789, these words, he said, if i could have entertained the slightest apprehension that the constitution framed in the convention where i had the

honor to preside might possibly endanger the religious rights of any ecclesiastical society, certainly i would never have placed my signature to it. washington went on to state, in i could now conceive that the general government might ever be so administered as to render the liberty of conscience insecure, i beg you will be persuaded that no one would be more zealous than myself to establish effectual barriers against the horrors of spiritual tyranny and every species of religious persecution. and some 20 years later in 1809 another of our founding fathers, thomas jefferson,

emphasized the value of freedom of conscience when he stated this, he said, no provision in our constitution ought be -- ought to be near dearer to man than that which protects the rights of conscience against the enterprises of the civil authority. so we can be confident that our founding fathers understood the foundational value of religious liberty and freedom of conscience. but today we are reminded that the lesson of maryland's early history and the story of charles carroll, we are reminded that religious liberty is fragile. that value is now under attack. and it will require our active vigilance to protect it, not

just for ourselves but for future generations. pope benedict 16th recognized and highlighted this threat in his address to a group of catholic bishops from this mid-atlantic region earlier this year. the pope spoke force fully -- forcefully about the need to defend religious liberty in the united states. he said, with her long tradition of respect for the right relationship between faith and reason, the church has a critical role to play in countering cultural currents which seek to promote notions of freedom attached for moral truth. pope benedict went on to say that the legitimate separation of church and state cannot be taken to mean that the church must be silent on certain

issues nor that the state may choose not to engage or be engaged by the voices of committed believers in determining the values which will shape the fuhr of the nation. -- future of the nation. that was on january 19 of this year. on january 20 as if on cue the department of health and human services announced that it had no intention of changing the mandate it had proposed in august. a mandate which would force virtually all employers, even those with consciencious objections, to provide health care coverage for abortion inducing drugs, sterilization, and contraceptives. the mandate would be subject to

an extremely narrow exception, one that covers houses of worship, but leaves out the manifold ministries of charity and education that flow directly from that worship. this has now become the motion critical religious liberty challenge that we face in the united states today. this is the first time that the federal government has compelled religious institutions to facilitate and to fund a product contrary to their moral teaching. compounding the problem the exemption has the federal government defining which religious institutions are religious enough to merit the protection of their religious

liberty. so for these reasons a great number of catholic dioceses, charities, universities, and other catholic institutions around the country, they found it necessary to file lawsuits this week against the federal government. challenging the mandate as a violation of the first amendment and the religious freedom restoration act. it is unfortunate -- [applause] it's unfortunate, it's even tragic that catholic institutions and other religious groups as well have been forced by the federal government into this situation. part of the tragedy is how

easily and on how many different occasions this conflict could have been avoided entirely. despite the best efforts of our bishop's conference, the executive and legislative branches have failed to head off the problem. for example, back in 2010 before the health care reform law was even passed, scath lick bishops -- catholic bishops warned the congress about the need for clear conscience protection in the face of the new health coverage mandates in the law. soon after the bill became law, the bishops conference supported the passage of the respect for rights of conscience act, an act which offered a complete solution to the conscience problem, drawing

on language used in federal statutes repeatedly since 1973. once the administration began hinting that the so-called preventive services mandate would include things that the church institutions could not morally facilitate or fund, the conference staff began filing comments, began appearing at hearings as early as the fall of 2010. once the regulations finally came out in august of 2011 we filed more comments. when the decision was announced that those august regulations would not change, we protested again. despite these numerous opportunities to avoid this train wreck, on february 10

h.h.s. finalized the august regulations and i quote, without change. thus they closed the door on any chance of removing the offending items from the mandate or expanding the exemption. all that remains is the so-called accommodation which is constrained by the final rule that precedes it and which addresses itself only to a small part of the overall problem and does so inadequately. catholic institutions and other groups have thus been forced to take action by litigation. of course -- a course that no one desires, but a course that appears to be the only alternative left in order to seek relief from this unjust

federal government mandate. friends, this is not about the catholic church wanting to force anybody to do anything. instead this is about the federal government forcing the church consisting of its faithful and all of its institutions to act against church teachings. this is not a fight we want. not a fight we ask for. but one forced upon us by the government on its own timing. this is not a republican or democratic or conservative or liberal issue. it is an american issue. [applause]

the church forms its positions based on principles. and here the principles in question are religious liberty for all and the life and dignity of every human person, our views, our position here is based not on polls, not on personalities, and not on political parties. now that i have said what this litigation is not about, what is is it about? well, for starters it's about opposing an unwarranted government definition of religion. the mandate includes an extremely narrow definition of what h.h.s. deems a religious employer deserving exemption.

employers who, among other things, must hire and serve primarily those of their own faith. this exemption attacks religious freedom by defining it away, by limiting protections essentially to houses of worship. the exemption reduces the freedom of religion to freedom of worship. but more importantly the purpose of the litigation is to block government coercion to act against conscience. those deemed by h.h.s. not to be religious employers will be forced by the government to violate their own teachings within their very own institutions. this is not only an injustice in itself, but it also

undermines the effective progress la mation of those teachings to the faithful and to the world. i emphasize the fact of government coercion because it is one of the key differences between a mere dispute over reproductive health policy and a dispute over religious freedom. those who would try to conceal that religious freedom aspect have done all in their power to conceal the key fact that the church is being forced by the government to violate its own beliefs. in a bizarre turn, those same advocates abuse the church of somehow forcing its beliefs on others to the law when the exact opposite is true. to be sure the mandate entails

a breach in the separation of church and state, but it is an incursion by the state into the church's territory not the other way around. [applause] and this is not the only strange inversion that we have seen in the public discourse since the mandate. in the name of protecting choice the government is depriving the church of its choice in how to run its own institutions. in the name of protecting a diversity of views within catholic institutions, the government is imposing uniformity on employers. all but eliminating workplaces ordered to catholic values.

worse still, these radical distortions seem to be having some sway in our culture when they should be laughed out of the court of public opinion. >> all of this event is available in our video library at c-span.org. we'll leave this here and take you live to the white house. jay carney's briefing come up. and the upcoming hurricaneson. this is the house today gets set to consider their measure that would continue national flood insurance after the house passed, the senate passed their version last week. house coverage this afternoon at 3:30 here on c-span. and live coverage from the white house now. >> disasters range interesting hurricane andrew which made landfall in the southeast in the united states 20 years ago this sum earn remains the second costliest hurricane in u.s. history, as well as more recent events including responses to the joplin extraordinary and hurricane irene last year.

there were also -- there was also a discussion of steps taken to incorporate lessons learned from major power outages caused by severe cl weather. the president asked his team to keep him updated on any unmet needs and thank them all for their efforts. i was able to attend the meeting. it was fascinating. but i brought along with me today a person far more capable of answering your questions as the hurricane season begins. with me is fema administrator craig hugate. what i'd like to do as we do traditionally, if you have questions for him, address them to him at the top. and then when you are done and finished with those questions we'll let him leave and i'll be here for other issues. with that i give you mr. hugate. >> good afternoon, everybody. just real quickly some of the things the president was asking about, lessons learned, particularly we saw earlier couple weeks ago as he attended the graduation at joplin,

lessons from hurricane andrew and katrina, if you don't get debris picked up quickly, not able to restore public infrastructure, particularly get schools opened, it's very difficult for communities to come back. so again applying those lessons, realizing that joplin was a city but hurricanes can be much larger, the need to get in quickly, to support and stabilize the governor and local officials, but really key things we learned reinforced with joplin. get the debris out so people can rebuild. get schools opened so children can get back to their routines and we need to look at this from the standpoint of what the entire team brings together, not just what government does. private sector is a key component. without jobs, without services it's very difficult for communities to re-establish and be able to recover. so again we continue work on those efforts and encourage people to get ready for hurricanes. with that -- >> can you tell us what you have learned about the intensity of this hurricane

season? and then also what has been learned in terms of all the different agencies communicating with the flow of information between all the agencies? >> well, the seasonal outlook i believe national weather service and noaa put out there is calling for an average season. of course hurricane season starts june 1 and we still have a tropical depression. the second named storm of the season. unless you are in the reinsurance business, this seasonal forecast has very little meaning for any actions you are going to take because what the seasonal forecast doesn't tell us is where or how we'll landfall hurricane. 2010 was one of the most agor active seasons, no major hurricanes hit the united states. irene last year impacted -- was one of the few landfall hurricanes the last couple years. the real message about that is if are you getting a seasonal forecast, must be time for hurricane season, get ready. but for individuals and most businesses, the seasonal

forecast shouldn't change anything because there is never a forecast that says there will be no hurricanes. and there is no forecast yet that says where they are going to hit or not. if you live along the gulf coast, atlantic, and as far inland as the folks in vermont found out, be prepared for the hurricane season. >> two major gatherings this summer, tamm parks the republican convention, charlotte for democrats. what special contingencies and plans are you looking at for those two gatherings? >> as far as us we are looking at this as we would any other event that would lead to the state response. the states themselves have done work and planning. these are national security events. there is a lot of planning that goes into them. it's the all hazard approach. i would reference to the state of florida specifically doing their statewide hurricane exercise focused on hurricane occurring during the r.n.c. we support this as a national security event. we support the all hazards approach. the governors and their teams have done specific planning. >> when hundreds or thousands

of people are gathered in one place, are there any precautions or is this unprecedented? >> are you familiar with miami, tampa, and tourism? they always have large numbers of people. so again not to be flip, but the fact you have the conventions there, there are decisions the conventions have to deal with. as far as having additional people visiting during hurricane season, it's part of all planning to allow for, if you got special events, if you got large gatherings, if you have conventions, to build these in your local and state evacuation plans. so it's a numerical increase, but it is something that you plan for irregardless what the function is, you plan for what happens if you have larger numbers of people, how does that afact your evacuation lead times. that does not get into any of the details the actual conventions have as far as their decisionmaking and i'll defer to them. for evacuation purposes, you merely add the population increases like you would for any other event that would

occur during your evacuation time frames. >> is there some type of national interface on housing for those who are displaced from major storm systems? >> yes. probably one of the lessons we learned from andrew and then most recently katrina, that in a large-scale catastrophic disaster we have lots of housing loss. many people have to leave the area in the immediate short-term to get better long-term housing. we have been working much better at coming up with and working with both our partners at h.u.d. but also in the private sector on available rental properties and other facilities that may be available outside the area of impact. make these available to disaster survivors as potential options they wish to relocate out of that. >> as far as the timeline, since we are not so far away from 2010, you say that was one of the worst seasons -- >> no. just a lot of activity not

landfalls. >> since it was a lots of activity, what would you say to americans this season, especially now that you are saying we have had two storms already and june 1 hasn't even come yet, what would you say to the average american right now as we are seeing activity before the hurricane season has begun. >> have a plan. what i hate to have people do go through hurricane season worrying all year about hurricanes. what i want them to do find out about their risk, take the appropriate steps to get ready. if a hurricane threatens, know what to do. for some folks, that means they'll have to evacuate away from the most dangerous areas. for other people they need to be prepared for the impacts of the hurricane. one of the big ones besides flooding is power outages. i think we always worry about the storms. i don't want them to worry. i want them to be prepared. i want them to have a plan. and know what to do if the storm threatens. that's our message every year going into hurricane season. >> i know this sounds

elementary, but when you say be prepared, some people don't think about, i guess, electricity component in phones, cell phones with electricity, power vs. landline or old landline, dial up. could you talk to us about that? >> sure. we have learned this -- i remember when we had the earthquake here last year and everybody got on the cell phones at the same time and nobody could get through, right? so we went with the f.c.c. and put together something you can go to ready.gov. it's called tech ready. what it did, it incorporated all the lessons we learned about how we need to make sure that when there is a big crisis, don't try to call people on your phone. text message is faster and gets through. use social media to update people so you can let a lot of people know than try to call everybody. also be prepared when power outages occur how will you keep your electronic devices charged. we have seen this where oftentimes the wireless community can get up and be

operational, you forget your chargers and phone dies or if are you without power, not knowing how to charge things. we went and put together a lot of information just focused on your mobile devices, wireless communications, things you need to do. the fact that many people no longer have a lan line, they only have wireless communication, they need to make sure that they take the steps to make sure they are ready. also realize that you are going to have a lot of congestion and difficulties getting through. have backup plans. if you did one thing this hurricane season, make sure you got a good family communication plan and what your backup will be. when you get on that cell phone and get that busy signal, you are not stuck. you know the next step. >> early morning measures, after irene last year came out that some of the budgetary plans that were considered might eliminate funding for early warning measures like saving lives in kansas a. month and a half ago, and hurricane

last year, are there any budgetary plans in place or is there any concern by fema at this point that we might eliminate early warning measures? >> specifically what early warning measure? we have a whole lot of new stuff that's rolling out this year as we speak. >> i guess my question is more about budgetary plans are being considered by congress and proposed by the white house. what are you looking at in terms of funding for the early warning measures you have and the new ones you are excited about? >> i'm not excited about it, it's happened. i'm excited it's happened. we have been working on the emergency alert system, trying to move past just broadcast media. and although we still heavily leverage broadcast radio and television and the noaa weather alert radios, this year in partnership with the wireless industry, through the rule making authorities of the f.c.c., we are rolling out the cellular access program where we are now able to broadcast to cell phones being upgrated to

upgraded to the system. that has been a huge evolution that as your cell phones are upgraded, they'll be able to get warnings in a push system that will come out as part of the emergency alert system what, we call the integrated public warning system. so for the first time we have actually now are rolling out -- have implemented the technology nationwide to begin pushing alerts to cell phones. a my question was about funding, though. >> that's it. what specifically? we are funded to do these programs and continue rolling out and improving these systems. there may be local systems that aren't being funded. i couldn't know about that. i know from our standpoint the funding we are putting into the integrate public warning alert system and those programs are funded and we are moving forward with the systems. >> it seems there is a lot more tornado activity and a lot more places. do you see increased activity looking historically to

hurricanes to date and do you attribute any of that to global warming? >> i'm not a meteorologist or climate scientist. hurricanes are cyclic. i do know history. and if you look at history and look at hurricane activity, there are periods of increased and decreased activity that occurs over decades. throughout the 1960's, 1970's, early 1980's, until 199 a 5, the atlantic was in below activity. beginning about 1995 we saw an uptick in activity that has been sustained. about the only variation is whether or not we have el ninos or la ninas. you look back for the amount of information we have going back about the 1850's, you'll see a cycle, it's over decades, of increased activity and decrease activity. so that cycle's been there. as far as anything driving that, i really defer to climate scientist, the reality s. the

history says we have had this period of activity and period of quiet, period of activity, period of quiet. and so what we have seen is not what -- we have seen this in history before. thanks, everybody. >> get l.a.n. lines again? >> no, economic sure you have a charger for your cell phones and make sure you got something you can charge it with a battery. battery charger just in case you don't have power. and add to your evacuation kits your cell phone chargers. we are seeing, this is again time and time again, oftentimes wireless communication is coming up as farce as the wired line communications. -- as fast as the wired line communications. it's good to have a phone system. since most people a. lot of people now are going totally wireless, they don't have a l.a.n. line, make sure you have the emergency power and the ability to charge it.

>> thank you. with that i will go to questions on other matters. jim? >> thanks, jay. on syria, the russians, how upset is moscow to the president's argument that it hurts russia's reputation, the world community that they are perceived as friendly to the assad regime? could potentially the russians play a similar role in syria as the u.s. played in yemen and negotiate? >> we are certainly speaking with the russians as well as other members of the united nations security council about syria. we were very clear about our disappointment of the veto exercised by both russia and china. on the resolution regarding

syria. calling on assad to cease and decease from his brutal campaign against his own people. as i said many times and others have, we are in regular consultations with russians -- with the russians and others about what we are seeing happening in syria. and the need to put further pressure on the assad regime, the need to isolate the assad regime further. and to bring about the political transition that syrians so desperately deserve and desire. i won't speak for any other government. i would simply say that it is our belief and it's the belief that we express in these conversations that supporting the assad regime is placing

oneself or one's nation on the wrong side of history. assad will be remembered forever for what he did this past weekend and what he has done for the past 15 months. he squandered and opportunity to preside over a political transition that would improve the position of syria in the international community and most importantly improve the lives of his citizens. and that will not change. so it is certainly our belief that as event progress in syria and as we continue to consult with members of the security council and other nations, including of course nations who are part of the friends of syria, that we will make the argument that more action needs to be taken to isolate the

assad regime, to hold it responsible for what it has done. as you have probably seen there has been further action taken today in terms of sanctions against another bank. this is a process that involves a number of steps towards an end. steps like the ones taken yesterday in coordination with other nations that resulted in the expulsion of syrian diplomats from a number of countries. steps that have for many months now increased the isolation and pressure on the assad regime. >> how much of an obstacle does the administration view the russians and the chinese, too? the russians in particular? on achieving anything? >> well, the annan plan is broadly supported by the united states and other members of the security council. the issue here is assad's refusal to comply with the

annan plan despite the fact that he promised he would. the question i think what if the annan plan does not ultimately succeed, if asad does not abide by it, does not cease firing and withdraw his forces, what then are the next steps and what kinds of consult ailingses will we have and are we having with other countries regarding possible next steps? clearly those consultations are with many countries, including russia. but i can't preview for you or speculate for you what might be included in next steps. we are continuing to work with a number of nations on this issue and continuing to china, spotlight on the aspalling

---appalling, depraved behavior of the assad regime. >> the polish prime minister said he's not completely satisfied with the white house explanation of the president's reference to pollish -- does the president have any plans to call the prime minister and offer an explanation? >> the president misspoke. he was referring to nazi death camps in german occupied poland. as we made clear we regret the misstatements and that simple misstatement should not at all detract from the clear intention to honor mr. karski and beyond that all those brave polish citizens who stood on the side of human dignity in the face of tyranny. on several occasions including his visit last year to the warsaw ghetto memorial, his remarks at the holocaust museum just last month, and his video message at the 65th anniversary of the liberation of auschwitz, president obama has paid tribute to the terrible loss of innocent poles in nazi death

camps during the holocaust. again we regret the misstatement but that's what it was. it's a misstatement and i think it's important to see this in the context of awarding this medal in honor of the remarkable bravery of mr. karski and other brave polish citizens who stood on the side as i said of human dignity in the face of the 20th century's most terrible tyranny. yes. >> two questions. starting with syria. how did the president's new atrocities prevention board met to consider a response to the syrian crisis? >> i'm sorry? >> the president's new atrocities prevention board, which he actually announced -- >> i don't have the answer to that. >> the second thing the speed, crisis which seems to be gathering speed, could you talk

about how the president is monitoring the situation there? if he has spoken with any european leaders in the last few days? >> i don't have any specific conversations involving the president to read out to you, but as we said in the past and continues to be true, he is in frequent contact with his european counterparts. he, as you know, recently hosted european leaders and others of the g-8 at camp david as well as of course at the nato summit in chicago. the eurozone crisis was very much a topic of conversation, especially at the g-8, and those conversations twin. -- continue. both at the highest levels as well as at the level of the secretary of treasury and other officials. as i think the president has made clear, we view this as a matter of concern. that is why we have spent so

much time consulting with and advising our european friends on it. we bring to those consultations a certain amount of wisdom through experience that we hope our european allies and friends find helpful as they chart their course. we made clear that the europeans have it within their own capacity to solve this, resolve this crisis. they have taken some important steps. they have embraced some important reforms. but much more needs to be done. >> governor romney today said that the administration does, quote, sitting on the back burner and lead interesting behind while the situation in syria becomes unacceptable. your reaction? >> i would simply make clear that the president and the united states have led on syria as he and we have led throughout the upheaval known

as the arab spring. i think perhaps not this critic but others of the same ilk use that phrase to criticize the president with regards to libya. i think history will demonstrate that the course of action the president took in that specific instance was the right one. and i think that every one of these situations that have arisen within the arab spring demands a different response because of the different circumstances that surround them. we have been through this on a number of occasions when i'm asked and we discuss the comparisons and the distinctions between libya and syria. i would simply say that the president has made clear where he stands on syria, on assad's behavior. he has made clear the efforts

that we are making to isolate and pressure assad, to bring about the political transition the combination of the political transition already under way in syria. and we made clear that while we are taking steps every day and every week in pursuit of this eventuality, that we are constantly evaluating what next steps need to be taken. as others have said, the president has said, i have said we don't rule options out. but right now we believe that, for example, on the issue of providing lethal aid that that's not the course of action that's the right one to take for this country. we are providing nonlethal assistance and humanitarian assistance and coordinating other nations with other nations and providing support for the opposition as it forms itself.

>> the president still refers to the mess he inherited from time to time, how does he feel about meeting president george w. bush here tomorrow. is that going to be awk ward? >> not at all. i know the president looks forward to it. a what about the mess? >> there are differences -- without question between his approach and the approach and policies of his predecessor. that was certainly the case when i believe president george w. bush had president clinton to the white house for his portrait unveiling. i think it is well established that those two now former presidents have a good relationship as did president bill clinton with president george h.w. bush. i think there is a community here with very few members that transcends political and policy differences. i think you could even write a book about it a couple of my former colleagues have written a book about it and i'll give

them a plug for the president's club. i think the spirit represented by that book is what will be here in the white house tomorrow. i believe president george w. bush as well as his father, president george h.w. push will be here for the unveiling. and president obama looks forward to that occasion. >> you don't think they'll be talking politics? >> i don't think so. i think what has been the case and will be the case is that there is so much shared experience between so far the men and one day the men and women who hold this office that there is much to talk about that they hold in common. so there are not a lot of need to talk about where they differ. . >> what option might be consider?

do you have a broader indication of what lies on the other end, military action? >> i can't because i don't want to speculate and rule out what actions might be taking. should the plan fail. should assad continue to refuse to abide by his commitments. should assad continue to murder his own people. there are -- as i said earlier, options that we do not pursue now but that we do not rule out simply because it would be unwise to do so. i think others in the administration and in the national security leadership have spoken to that, and it is -- it would be unwise to speculate about where this would go because we are pursuing a policy now with a

host of other nations that is aimed at driving the assad regime so deep within isolation and distress that it would bring about the peaceful political transition that is clearly the most desired ultimate result of this -- of this situation. >> you have multiple options before you would look at military actions? >> well, i think there are a number of things that we have done that go beyond some of the things that you mentioned and there are obviously other actions that could be taken, both by us and by the international community or by individual nations in concert with us or independently that will address this problem, but i don't want to list them because decisions have to be made and these are -- these are -- this is a step-by-step

process. >> i don't know if you were watching cnn yesterday but donald trump was going at the issue. i wonder if there is reaction if this continues to be an issue in this campaign? >> i think it's up to -- as i mentioned yesterday, those who seek the office decide how they will run their campaigns and what views they associate themselves with. as the president made clear in this briefing room when it became a ridiculous distraction last year, you know, the american people are concerned about real issues that confronts this nation. they are concerned principally with the fact that we are still not down the road to the final destination of full recovery from the worst recession since the great depression. those are those things. jobs, the economy, the security of the nation, the security of the american people that i think voters overwhelmingly care about.

i think one man's attempt to draw attention to himself by engaging in, you know, this kind of ridiculousness doesn't really change what most americans care about. >> do you think it's a ridiculous distraction? >> well, i think so. do you not? >> i'm asking you. >> i think it is. yes. >> two questions. first, europe, again in crisis. overnight a spanish bank in crisis. >> you're speaking like a piece, almost. [laughter] >> i remember my marital affiliation, you remove the verb and you -- where was i?

>> there is something that threatens the united states. europe needs to work out this among itself. why is that, why can't the u.s. government be more forceful, encouraging the europeans on a certain path or helping them financial low? >> well, two things. one, we are being quite forth right in our consultations with our european friends in suggesting to them the directions that we think might be best, the decisions that we recognize are hard to take, especially in a system like the euro is in that would help resolve this crisis. obviously it is a sovereign issue with the european nations and broadly for the european union, the euro zone, and it is

for them to resolve it. it is also the case that we are the greatest, most powerful nation on earth, but we are not all-powerful, andes that why we must focus -- and that is why we must focus our efforts first and foremost on the things we can directly control which is the actions we can take to help our economy grow here at home, to help our economy create jobs here at home in part to insulate ourselves from the impacts of events we cannot fully control, whether they are economic crises in parts of the world or natural disasters in other parts of the world or even here at home. to bring it back to the beginning of this briefing. and thatess why the president continues to push congress, as he did when he signed the re-authorization of the export-import bank today to

take action in a bipartisan way to help the economy grow. despite all the understandable doubt about whether there is the capacity within congress to do that, you know, we continue to establish that there is that capacity and that was true today with the bill the president signed. it had been true with a number of other bills that the president signed. it represented bipartisan efforts by those in congress and the other items on the to-do list, on his to-do list, he hopes on the surface transportation bill as well as the need to take action to ensure that seven million students in america don't see their -- the rates on their loans double that congress will do the right thing and act in the interest of the american people and the american economy.

>> getting back to bill's question on 41, 43, president bush. this was all homemade, there won't be hashing out of the issues? >> i don't know what the specific schedule is. i think the opportunities to speak with formers are not limited to occasions like this, pu i'm -- i know that president obama is looking forward to it. i know he has always enjoyed his conversations with all former presidents that he had the opportunity to meet and talk with and that will be the case tomorrow. >> the speaker next week wants to put a tax bill on the floor that would repeal the medical devices tax in the affordable care act. does the president support or oppose that? >> i haven't looked into that.

i would venture that my suspicion is there may be a difference of opinion, but i will have to get back to you. i think i said yes to somebody. >> tell us about the tone of the phone call between president obama and mitt romney today. >> look, it was very collegial and friendly. it was not, of course, particularly long. i think the campaign put out a statement about it. the president discussed how he or mentioned how he looks forward to what he believes is a very important debate that will be engaged during this campaign. and i think that distractions notwithstanding in the end, that is what this will election will be about. it will be about each candidate's vision for

america's future. economic future principally but also its national security future. you know where the president stans. i think one of the notable things about this cycle to my mind as a former journalist is again speaking of the past, i personally am surprised by a process that has led to a debate where the president has his vision and some agree with it and some don't and the other side has a vision that is not unique or distinct or its own new vision. it is the very same vision, the very same substantive policy proposals except exaggerated that led to a situation where we were in the worst economic crisis of our lifetimes and that will be the debate. i expected a little more

honestly. that is what we have. and, you know, if i could take the privilege here, there's been some discussion started up by my citation of a market watch article last week. no matter how you slice the numbers, at least if you are being at all honest about it, there is a simple fact as bernstein wrote today. even if you apply the tarp bill to the president's spending in 2009, even if you make all of the adjustments, it is simply a fact that president obama has presided over slower average growth in federal spending than almost all of his predecessors, dedepending how you slice it, maybe close to president clinton. i know they contest it and they

cited the size of the budget deficit, 2009, 2010, 2011, and the fact that they were among the largest in history, well, of course they were. because what they never tell you is that president obama was handed on january 20, 2009, the single largest budget deficit in history. and what they never tell you is that unlike what will happen when president obama leaves office in 4 1/2 years the deficit that was handed to him in january of 2009, began as a surplus eight years earlier. that is not something you hear the r.n.c. talk about. and so when it comes to responsible stewardship of our budget and fiscal issues, i think we have a strong case. >> where was the president when he made the call, and during the campaign, will president obama make sure that governor romney gets some kind of briefings or kept update of

some international crises? sometimes i think that was done in the past for -- >> i'm sure we will keep in touch with tradition. i'm not sure. i think that is simply always the case that, you know, the -- on national security matters in particular that there is something of a gap of what an incumbent president has access to and needs to have access to versus a can indicate. but i just don't know how that process works. i think it was here in the white house in the west wing. >> is that from the olve office? >> i'll -- in the oval office? >> i'll double check. i think it was before or after the hurricane briefing, we'll check, but it was here in the west wing. most likely in the oval. yes, donna. >> i want to follow-up.

is the president -- has the president called the polish prime minister or does he have plans to? >> i don't have any calls to read out to you or preview for you. i made clear, the statement makes clear this was a simple misstatement and we regret it. if you look at the context here, it is absolutely obvious the purpose here was to honor with this incredibly significant medal the remarkable bravery of him and those polish citizens that fought against the terrible tyranny of the nazis and it was the nazi death camps that the president was referring to. >> i only ask because the polish prime minister -- >> no, i understand. >> statement this morning. >> i don't have anything new for you on it. i just said -- >> [inaudible] >> i just don't have anything for you on that.

we obviously consult regularly with all of our alo's, including poland. -- all of our allies, including poland. >> yes, jake. >> ban gender selection as a sector for abortions in this country. i wonder the statement of administration policy -- >> i will have to take that as well. been focused on other things but i'll get back to you. bill -- sorry, leslie and then bill. >> last week, the state department issued -- [inaudible] do you know if the president had any talks with any of the democratic critics? >> i don't know. i don't know that he did. you know, i think -- i don't have any additional comment

beyond what others said on that. i think the state department took those questions because it's a visa issue. >> [inaudible] >> again, i wasn't even aware of that. bill. >> thanks. next tuesday is the recall election in wisconsin. the democratic candidate and the governor, scott walker. has the president endorsed barrett? does he plan to? >> not that i am aware of. i'll take the question. >> the d.n.c. chair, debbie wasserman schultz, felt a loss by tom barrett would not have any impact of the democrat loss there. do you know if the president shares that view? >> i think there are issues obviously unique to that state and issues unique to the spending that's happened in that particular matter that would suggest that she's right but i haven't discussed it with the president.

>> prior to the call this morning, when was the last time the president spoke directly to mitt romney? >> i believe it was when he was a senator. >> he never was a senator. >> oh, i mean the president. actually, the president was a senator. yes, in the back. >> fauble knuckleball >> just that he had -- [inaudible] >> just that he had a good conversation. he mentioned he knows what -- how difficult a process that is having gone through it in 2008. also a fairly prolonged primary season and looks forward to the debate in the fall. >> sorry. what did -- >> i don't speak for former governor romney so i can tell you what the president said. thank you.

yes. >> thank you, sir. the point with regard to the spending. it's not just in the -- [inaudible] fact check. called that out. >> disagree between the politifact and all the other fact checkers. it was the columnist which worked with me in the president's office. he allowed where there was some issues that you could disagree "encore booknotes" the numbers, but even if you did that, the fact is that average growth in federal spending was greater under george w. bush, greater under president george h.w. bush, greater under president reagan. that is a fact. it's hard to accept, i know, the conventional wisdom about profligacy and irresponsible budget management turns out to

be wrong, but it is, and that's why i think it is clarifying to see these assessments made. it is clarifying to remember and exercise that i've undertaken to look at the size of the federal government under different presidents, look at the soys of the increase of the public work force under different presidents and how they compare over the years. i think all of these are verietteifying, instead of just retreat -- very he hadifies, instead of retreating to conventional wisdom. >> the president -- in the previous primaries, arkansas, kentucky, west virginia, is there anything you would have to say -- even in texas -- >> because it would be challenging for the president in the general election.

>> [inaudible] >> you can address those questions fought campaign. yes, sir. all the way back. >> the campaign started not too long ago focusing on unemployment in the area. many have argued that the obama administration has not done quite enough for african-americans. what is he doing to make sure that those people come back to the polls once again? >> there are two difference questions. i'll refer you to the campaign about questions about voter turnout. i think the president's record on the economy and economic recovery and how the initiatives he put into place took us into areas where we can wed significant economic decline where we had a situation with steady growth, where we were experiencing catastrophic job loss at the rate of 800,000 jobs per month. it's a situation where we experienced 26 straight months

of job growth. the one that will be very much the focus of this campaign and one that is i think affected communities that were hardest hit by job loss as well as other communities. i think that our efforts on surface transportation and other areas, there are a number of measures going back to the recovery act and others that had, because of the nature of the assistance and the nature of where job losses most keenly felt had a disproportionate affect on certain communities, including the african-american community. but as for the political side of the question i think the campaign ought to take that. >> about the to-do list and whether -- on the to-do list -- >> yes. >> the house, eric cantor released last week on friday their schedule for the summer.

hairy -- harry reid mentioned the tax code. [inaudible] wondering what you have to say as far as whether you are going to get any votes in the house, where you see this going in the next couple weeks. >> i think as i said in response to an earlier question, the president will continue to push congress, both the senate and the house, to take action on these kinds of measures that have traditionally enjoyed bipartisan support. whether they make a specific agenda for the next few weeks or not and act on them because they can pass, they can be signed into law and they can help the economy grow and create jobs. i think that whether you're a republican leader in the house or a democratic leader in the senate, you are for cutting red tape. so responsible homeowners can refinance or investing in a new higher tax credit for small businesses, you invest in clean

energy and you are putting veterans to work using skilled developed in the military. and i assume you are for rewarding american jobs and eliminating tax incentives that ship jobs overseas. excuse me. these are things that i think have all the hallmarks of the potential for bipartisan cooperation. we expect that congress will act on them. we certainly will continue to press congress to act on them. thank you, jim. take care, everybody. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2012] >> the house gavels in in less than 10 minutes from now at 3:30 eastern to debate a dozen

bills. a bill to -- for the flood insurance program. a measure passed by the senate last week to continue food and drug administration user fees and to create new ones. longtime house member silvestre reyes lost yesterday. he was defeated by el paso representative ward. congressman reyes was in his eighth term representing el paso. he's the third house member to lose his seat this way. three others after redistricting forced incumbents tories against each other. a complete guide to the 112th congress. inside you'll find each member of the house and senate, including district maps and committee assignments. pick up a copy for $12.95 plus shipping and handling at c-span.org/shop.

mitt romney has won the republican presidential nomination as primary voters in texas yesterday pushed him past the 1,144 delegate threshhold he needed to win the nod. president obama called mr. romney today to congratulate him on securing the republican nomination. a white house news release says president obama said he looked forward to an important and healthy debate about america's future and wish governor romney and his family well throughout the upcoming campaign. >> sunday on "q&a" -- >> i think the problem with walter cronkite, people even him as the friendly man which he was to everybody but there is another side of him that wants to be the best. he was obsessed with ratings and beating brinkly report every night. he's probably the fearest competitor i've ever written about and i've written about presidents and generals and

cronkite's desire to be the best was very pronounced. >> best selling author douglas brinkly on his new biography on walter cronkite sunday at 8:00 eastern and pacific right here on c-span. >> while we wait for the house to come in in about five minutes, we'll hear from "new york daily news" columnist from "washington journal." >> we continue spotlight on columnist. here's how the week's gone so far. we kicked things off with mona. on sunday we had colby king of "the washington post." monday we had matt louis. tuesday clarence page. and today, s.e. cupp, thank you

for joining us. guest: thank you for having me. host: diplomacy has only led to more slaughter. what do you think the u.s. should do? guest: well, the military analysts that i've spoken to and heard from have enumerated a number of different possibilities from arming the rebels to working more diplomatically with turkey and jordan, our allies in the area, and a number of other avenues we can take but clearly what we're doing right now, allowing kofi annan in the u.n. with this quote-unquote peace plan simply isn't working and that's because they don't want peace. he wants to remain in power above all else and will do it at the expense of innocent women and children. and for the snurments, it's clear they don't want peace either. they want him -- and for the insurgents, it's clear they don't want peace either. they want him gone.

it's not going to make everyone happy ousting him. we have to look at our interests in the region and they are humanitarian. i feel we have a moral obligation to put an end to upwards of 13,000 deaths and growing, the most recent example of violence over the weekend. and they are also political. al qaeda is moving in and that's a national security interest, of course. it would also be nice to cut off iran's proxy and make israel feel a little safer by removing assad. so we have a lot of interests in making the syria problem better, and clearly allowing the u.n. to posture as peace makers just isn't getting the jobs done. host: obama's art of political war. what mitt romney can learn from the president. and you write some tips for mitt romney what you call the elbow throwing style that president obama employs and you offer advice like, don't

complain about the press. intimidate it. don't question authority. so-called it. tell us more about -- scald it. tell us more about what you think mitt romney should do. >> well, mitt romney is a nice guy. we've all seen he's had difficulty playing the bully. now he's officially the nominee and this business is dirty. i don't think nice guy politicks will work. if you look at the president as a campaigner and while in office and his political style, and it has not been -- he's not been a wallflower. he's been something of a bully. and i mean this almost in a positive sense that he's been aggressive and it's been very effective. if you remember back to his campaigning days when he didn't like some of the things that some conservative journalists were saying about him, he removed them from his plane. when in office he tried to have

fox news cut out of the press pool. luckily the other networks objected fearing one day they too would be next. scolding the supreme court to their face during the state of the union was a bullying tactic and a warning shot to future decisions. health care included. to say, probably don't do that again unless you want more of my wrath. he even scolds his friends at a meeting with the congressional black cauk at a dinner, he told them to essentially stop whining. i don't think the president takes kindly to pushback and mitt romney is going to get a lot of pushback over the next few months and i think he needs to take the gloves off. host: in addition to being a "new york daily news" columnist she's a contributor of town hall and co-host of glen beck tv. how do you get inspiration to

your columns and how do you pick a flavor and direction that makes you stand out from the pact? guest: that's a good question because part of the job is to say something new or interesting or provocative or fresh about things that everyone's talking about. and there is a lot of noise and a lot of competition out there, but honestly i consider myself fairly mainstream, and i don't mean that ideologically. i just mean that what i'm watching on television, what i'm listening to, i imagine most people are as well. i don't think i have very unique interests, so i have to imagine that whatever is piquing my interest that day or that week is probably going to be interesting to other people too. and it is to take that interesting story and say something interesting about it. and if i feel like i don't have anything new or fresh to add, i simply don't talk about it.

i really don't feel t need to be prolific for the sake of number, for the sake of quantity. >> "washington journal" airs live every morning at 7:00 eastern. the u.s. house is -- the prenat nondiscrimination act of 2012, as amended. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 3541, a bill to prohibit discrimination against the unborn on the basis of sex or race and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from arizona, mr. franks, and the gentleman from michigan, mr. conyers, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the

gentleman from arizona. mr. franks: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on h.r. 3541 as amended. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. franks: thank you, mr. speaker. and i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. franks: mr. speaker, the prenatal nondiscrimination act we are debating at this moment says that an unborn child cannot be discriminated against by subjecting them to an abortion based on the sex of the child. because between 40% and 50% of african-american babies, nearly one in two, are killed by abortion, that's five times, mr. chairman, the rate of white children, i believe with all my heart that this bill should also prohibit race-targeted abortion as it did when the bill was first introduced. it is my hope that by protecting unborn children from being aborted based to on their sex, that one day very soon we will also recognize the humanity and justice of preblingting unborn children regardless of their

race or color as well and simply because we recognize them as fellow human beings. with that said, mr. speaker, worldwide sex selection abortion has now left the human family on earth with approximately 200 million missing baby girls. various united nationses organizations have battled sex selection abortion for years. these agencies routinely refer to sex selection abortion as, quote, an extreme form of violence against women, closed quote. in the new magazine, political economist nicholas of the american enterprise institute said in terms of its sheer total in numbers, human numbers, sex selective abortion has assumed a scale tantamount to a global war against baby girls, closed quote. in 2007 the united states spear headed a u.n. resolution to condemn sex selection abortion worldwide. yet here in the land of the free

and the home of the brave we are the only advanced country left in the world that still doesn't restrict sex selection abortion in any way. mr. speaker, a number of academic papers have now published evidence that the practice of sex selection abortion is demonstrably increasing here in the united states, especially but not exclusively in the asian immigrant community. a study by researchers at the university of kentucky -- connecticut published in prenatal diagnosis of 2011 found that male to female live birth sex ratio for chinese, asian indians and koreans clearly succeeded third births and beyond. meeks, deliberate prenatal sex selection is the only plausible explanation. a doctor and three other researchers at the university of california interviewed 65 immigrant indian women in the united states who had sought or were seeking sex selection

abortion. they found that 40% of the women interviewed had deliberately aborted unborn baby girls previously and nearly 90% of the women who were currently carrying an unborn baby girl were also currently seeking to abort them. this was an incredibly powerful study, mr. speaker, and it discussed in detail the multiple forms of pressure and outright coercion to which these women are often subjected. 6 % of the women described verbal abuse from their husbands or female in-laws and fully 1/3 of women described past physical abuse and neglect all related specifically to their failing to produce a male child. as a result these women reported multiple -- aborting multiple baby girls in a row because of the pressure that was put on them to have a male child. mr. speaker, sex selection abortion is extreme violence against both unborn baby girls and their mothers.

it's been a primary enforcement mechanism for china's forced abortion and one-child policy for many years. it has dramatically increased sex trafficking and violence against women due to the inbalance sex ratios left in its wake across the world. and we now know that it is a tragic circumstance into which many women are also being coerced. this evil practice has now allowed thousands of little girls in america and millions of little girls across the world to be brutally dismembered, most of them in their second or third trimester, when they are capable of feeling extreme pain simply because they were little girls instead of little boys, mr. speaker. sex selection is violence against women and it is the truest kind of war against women. and it has now brought humanity to a place where the three deadliest words on this earth are, it's a girl. what in god's name have we come to, mr. speaker?

i've often asked myself what finally enlightened and changed the hearts of those across history who have either perpetrated or supported or ignored the atrocities in human genocides of their day. and while i probably will never fully understand, i caught a glimpse of the answer from my 3-year-old little girl gracey. as i was holding her we were watching her favorite laughing baby videos on youtube. i clicked on a video showing a young man from china playing beautiful music on the piano with his feet because both of his arms had been amputated when he was a child. trying to seize on a teaching moment, mr. speaker, i said, look at that, gracie. he's playing the piano with his feet, isn't that amazing? but with a stricken little look on her face, gracie said, but, daddy, he doesn't have any arms? i said, i know, baby. and that's very sad, isn't it? and she said, oh, daddy, it is very sad. we got to help him. we just got to. we got to get some arms and give

it to him. i said, but, baby, there aren't any extra arms, they're all hooked on to other people. and she thought for a moment and looked at me with wet little eyes and pulled up her sleeve and held up her little arm and said, but, daddy, can i give him one of my arms if it will fit on him? across human history the greatest and most loving voices among us have always emphasized the critical responsibility each of us has to recognize and cherish the light of divine eternal humanity shining in the soul of every last one of our fellow human beings. and i believe the answer to some of these seemingly unanswerable questions, mr. speaker, that face the human families and how we see each other, on that youtube video, i saw an amazing young man who played heart-stirring music with his feet. but my little girl saw a child of god who had no arms and wanted to give him one of hers. how very thankful i am that my little gracie was not one of the hundreds of millions of little girls whose lives and hearts were torn from this world before they ever saw the light of sun

rise, simply because they were little girls instead of little boys. and i know that this congress deals with many controversial issues where it's sometimes difficult for republicans and democrats to find common ground. but i refuse to believe that we cannot find enough humanity in this body to conclude together that it is wrong to knowingly kill unborn children because they are baby girls instead of baby boys. and with that, mr. speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from michigan. mr. conyers: mr. speaker, i would yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: so recognized. mr. conyers: members of the house, i want to thank the leadership on the other side for requiring that the chairman of the constitution subcommittee, the gentleman from arizona, drop

race from this tre natal nondiscrimination act, so-called, and so it's now just sex selection. it's the latest in a long series of measures intended to chip away at a woman's right to say -- to seek safe, legal medical care. it tramples the rights of women under the guise of nondiscrimination. while there's absolutely nothing to provide women with the needed resources so that their babies, female and male, can come into the world healthy and so that both mother and child can thrive. and i am grateful that the proponents of this bill have stopped making the ridiculous charge that i used to hear, that reproductive freedom is worse than slavery and invoking at the

same time the name of the great abolitionist leader frederick douglass. in the service of their cause, it was deeply offensive and i'm glad that we won't have to listen to that anymore. and i will at this point reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from arizona. mr. franks: mr. speaker, i would now yield 1 1/2 minutes to the gentlewoman from florida, mrs. adams. she's a member of the judiciary committee, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized. damsdams i rise today in support -- mrs. adams: i rise today in support of the prenatal nondiscrimination act, prenda. as a mother of a daughter, i am disturbed by what i am hearing about sex selection occurring in the united states. a 2008 columbia university report found that there is

strong son bias and that there is clear evidence of sex selection, most likely at the prenatal stage. the victims of sex selection are predominantly female and most are later term which means these gruesome abortions are occurring after the child becomes pain-capable. in 2007 the united states spear headed an international resolution to condemn sex selection. yet however there are no laws preventing or prohibiting the practice in the united states. and while i stand here, i think about just yesterday, as i watched as my little granddaughter inside her mother's womb turned towards that ultrasound. this issue of life is a divisive one in politics but i think all americans can agree, aborting babies because they are the wrong sex is just plain wrong. let's put a stop to this egregious practice and let's pass this legislation. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan. mr. conyers: mr. speaker, i'm pleased now to recognize the ranking member of the constitution subcommittee, the distinguished gentleman from new york, jerry nadler, for as much time as he may consume.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new york is recognized. mr. nadler: thank you. mr. speaker, i rise in opposition to the so-called prenatal nondiscrimination act. today the republican majority continues its war on women in a new and creative way. by attempting to capps late legislation that would destroy women's fundamental constitutional rights as the women's rights law. it is cynical but creative. trying to destroy women's constitutional rights and pretending that it is somehow being pro-women plays well to the far right wing base but does nothing to help american families get on their feet and put people back to work. this bill criminalizes abortion, prior to viability. it makes previability abortions a crime under certain circumstances, a flagrantly unconstitutional provision under roe v. wade. under this bill, the relative who disagreed with the woman's choice would be able to sue the doctor. the doctor would face years of litigation at great expense.

a relative could even obtain an injunction blocking an abortion from going forward, merely by alleging that the abortion is being done for the purposes of sex selection. while the matter is being litigated, the pregnancy would go forward so that regardless of the merits, a woman would be compelled by a court injunction to proceed with the pregnancy against her will, perhaps to have an abortion at a much later stage with a much more mature fetus. any clinic employee who merely suspected that a woman's, they have would report that suspicion to law enforcement. how would this affect the basis -- basic practice of medicine? h.r. 3541 would force health care providers to inquire into women's reasons for seeking abortion services. fogs physicians would have to consider whether women seeking routine nonabortion services such as determining the sex of the fetus might then use that information in deciding whether to continue a pregnancy. given is the veer civil and criminal penalties in this bill, doctors would be forced to police their patients, read their minds an conceal

information from them. the failure to do so would put medical professionals at risk of prosecution and lawsuits. this bill is unconstitutional. the supreme court has held beginning with roe v. wade and in subsequent cases that the decision whether to have a child or whether to end a pregnancy is a private one. the government may not make that decision for a woman. following viability, the government may regulate an abortion except when the abortion is necessary to protect the life or health of the woman. the preference for male children is a real phenomenon in the united states. some women face familial and community preference to have male children and that pressure can be with each subsequent birth. this bill cites the united nations commission on the status of women as urging governments to prevent sex selective abortions but ignore those working for the u.n.

commission of human rights, the u.n. children's fund, the world health organization that puts women's health in jeopardy. and violates their rights. where is it they are not subject to community and family pressures? we all have to watch the charade recently where republicans pretended they weren't going against the violence against women act with the me act. where is the commitment to maternal and child health programs? all this costs money. it won't do anything to undermine roe v. wade. i urge the house to object this cynical legislation. i yield back the balance of my

time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from arizona. mr. franks: i yield to the vice chairman of the immigration subcommittee, mr. king. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from iowa is recognized. mr. king: i thank the gentleman from arizona for his leadership on this issue and many other issues and i come to the floor here in strong support of this act that's before us, this prenda act. you know, the very idea of sex selection abortion, gender size, as it was so aptly named, brought back to mind for me a story that i heard from a man whom i admire. his name was gill copper. sadly we lost him back in 2010. gill copper was a world war ii veteran who volunteered with those who marched across asia. gill copper picked up -- was awarded one silver star, two bronze stars, one combat infantry badge and one purple heart and gill copper spent his time off in asia under the bridge in new delhi, india,

standing in the gangies river listening for the splash, standing there day or night, anytime he had off, listening for the splash of a little baby girl that would often and regularly be tossed off of the bridge into the river to drown because the culture in india cherished boys and doesn't cherish girls. and gil copper would swim out there and pick up those little girls that were floating then in the filthy river and swim back with them and dry them off and carry them to the catholic orphanage in new delhi and he saved scores of life in that period of time. that culture has arrived in this country and this bill would end that would select baby girls and end their life. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan. mr. conyers: i'm pleased to yield to hank johnson, a distinguish member of the house judiciary committee, three

minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from georgia is recognized for three minutes. mr. johnson: thank you, mr. speaker, this bill is not about civil rights, but it's simply another attempt to chip away a woman's right to choose. it's part of the republican war on women. also known as wow. i'm like, wow, why are we continuing to attack women like this? wow, it's men against women. see, what's happening is we are in a political year, ladies and gentlemen, and politicks has been good to the republicans as of late. they have pitted people who favor immigration -- excuse me -- imforeign relation against those -- immigration against those who support it.

they have divided people on affirmative action for african-americans. they have divided people on the issues of gays living in america. these are all diversionary issues. they have been attacking labor. saying it's because of labor that you don't have what you should have. it's a political season, and so this is what they're doing with this bill. it's pitting the men against the women. this bill seeks to prohibit discrimination against the unborn on the basis of gender, but it's really a part of the divide and conquer approach that has been hugely successful for these republicans. it would require doctors to become mind readers, ladies and gentlemen, and require them to determine what the sex of the

child is and whether or not that is a factor in a woman's determination to have an abortion. it's ridiculous. it's shameful. many of the supporters of this bill are the same ones who voted to eliminate funding for planned parenthood and the teen pregnancy prevention initiative. that's funding that would have helped prevent unintended pregnancies. they also voted, ladies and gentlemen, to repeal and repeatedly they voted to repeal the affordable care act which has improved the health of women and uninsured women. you see, this is part of the war on woman.

wow. the record is shameful and it's clear. instead of divisive attacks on a woman's right to choose, we should unite behind policies that prevent unintended pregnancies in the first place. i urge a no vote and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from arizona. mr. franks: mr. chairman, i would now yield one minute to the gentlewoman from new york, ms. buerkle. she's a member of the oversight and government reform committee. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from new york is recognized for one minute. ms. buerkle: thank you, mr. speaker, and i thank the gentleman from arizona for his excellent work on this important bill. i rise this afternoon in support of h.r. 3541, as a woman, as a mother of four daughters and as a grandmother of three granddaughters. mr. speaker, there can be no rights for women if we don't allow them the right to life. and what we're hearing from the other side this morning is d about money and about -- morning is about money and about political campaign and

about the rhetoric of the war on women. this is the ultimate war on women, mr. speaker. if we don't allow women to be born we cannot talk about any other right. so i stand here today. i urge all of my female colleagues in this house of representatives to stand together and support h.r. 3541. thank you, mr. speaker. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back. the gentleman from michigan. mr. conyers: mr. speaker, i'm pleased now to recognize the distinguished physician from washington state, the honorable dr. mcdermott, two minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from washington is recognized for two minutes. mr. mcdermott: i ask unanimous consent to revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, an extension is so ordered. mr. mcdermott: as i listen about this debate, i don't know what we are talking about, india or china. what are we talking about here? the republicans have set up another straw man. this bill is another republican attack on women's rights.

at the same tietime it's mass can raiding about -- masquerading. i ask proponents of this bill, if you care -- mr. speaker, if they care about discrimination against women, why didn't -- why did they vote against gender base pace discrimination? why did you allow health insurers to continue charging women higher premiums based on their sex? these votes are on the record. that's what you think of women. my friends, this bill is not what it claims to be. it is not about fighting discrimination against women. it is the opposite. it is another republican intrusion into a woman's right to choose. women should be able to make such sensitive and private decisions with their families, their doctors and their god. free from the fear of the police. what are you going to do, set up a registry every time they do a sonogram and decide what

the baby is, girl or boy, they are going to post it and they are going to follow and if that woman then decides to have an abortion, well, she's getting rid of a girl. so we're going to criminally charge her with making that decision on the basis of the sex of the child. that's what kind of nonsense you're setting up. for people who don't want government in people's lives who argue over and over and over about keeping the government -- we don't want obamacare. we don't want government in our lives at all. but in this one, you want them to go right into the personal mind of the woman and decide and criminally charge her. do you think that's going to do any good? you simple he are attacking women's rights. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. mr. franks: of course the gentleman knows there's no criminal thing in this bill for

the women. that's an unfortunate fall is i. i yield 1 -- fallacy. i yield 1 1/2 minutes to dr. fleming. the speaker pro tempore: speakers will remind members to speak in third person, not in second person, while they are addressing the floor. the gentleman from florida is recognized. from louisiana is recognized. mr. fleming: thank you, mr. speaker. and i want to thank the gentleman for authoring this fine bill, mr. franks from arizona. you know, i find that gender oriented abortion is problematic for two reasons. number one, it's very obvious. the taking of an innocent life merely because that child happens to be a boy or a girl certainly goes against all the values that we hold true in america. secondly, because of the technology requiring that you're well into the second trimuster, even to determine -- trimester, even to determine the gender of the fetus, we are

talking about a mid to late-term abortion, something that is so brutal. mr. speaker, as a family physician and as a father of four, two boys and two girls, i've delivered over 300 babies in my career. each and every child, regardless of his or her gender, is a unique individual, deserving of equal protection under the law. the american people agree with me on this. in fact, polls show that over 2/3 of americans are supportive of eliminating abortion practices tailered to destroy babies because of their gender. gender aside, which is really what this is, the deliberate annihilation of a particular sex often unborn female children, as we know, generally occurs midway through pregnancy. these late-term abortions are grizzly procedures, they are condemned to poison or often dismembered before being distracted from the womb, often in pieces.

medical evidence at a minimum they can experience pain at 20 weeks. so i do ask that my colleagues support this bill, h.r. 354 is. thank you and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the time has expired. the gentleman from michigan. mr. conyers: mr. speaker, i'm pleased now to turn to the former chair of the congressional black caucus from oakland, california, barbara lee, and recognize her for three minutes, please. the speaker pro tempore: three minutes. the gentlelady is recognized for three minutes. ms. lee: thank you, mr. speaker. first, let me thank congressman conyers for yielding the time, but also for your very bold and relentless leadership as our ranking member on the house judiciary committee. i rise today as a member of the congressional pro-choice caucus and also as the health care task force chair of the congressional asian pacific american caucus. i rise in strong opposition to this bill. supporters of this bill claim that the legislation would combat sex selection abortion and prevent the united states from becoming a safe haven for

women seeking an abortion based on the sex of the pregnancy. here we go again. this war on women continues, and this, quite frankly, is a shocking battle in this war. it really is shock and awe. don't get me wrong. of course we all are opposed to sex selection based on gender. that's not what this is about. this is about women's health care and gender discrimination. also, and let me just read a paragraph from a letter signed by the american congress of on stay trigses and gynecologist -- obstetricians and gynecologists, another group. this would require the medical and mental health professionals violate doctor-patient confidentiality and report known or suspected violations of the law to law enforcement authorities. the penalty for failure to report is a fine or

incarceration for up to one year. shalk and awe. let me tell you -- shock and awe. let me tell you, this is a continuation on the war on women. there are those who have been actively working to reverse much of the progress women have been -- made by declaring this war on women that includes, mind you, stripping reproductive rights from women, cutting critical title 10 funding and for the w.i.c. nutrition programs, for low income, infant -- low income infant and pregnant women, and this war continues with slashed funding for food stamps and daycare spending. let's call it what it is, mr. speaker. supporters of this bill, they really are exploiting serious issues like racism and sexism. and a backdoor attempt to make abortion illegal. it would also lead to further stigmatism of women, especially

asian-pacific american women who seek their constitutional rights to an abortion. and the ramifications of real, and they are very dangerous. attempts to restrict or deny access to safe abortions is harmful to women's health and would ultimately take us back to the days of back alley abortions. and if this bill passes it would forever change, forever change the doctor-patient relationship as we know it. by casting suspicion on doctors that serve communities facing -- mr. chairman, may i have an additional 30 seconds? the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. mr. conyers: i yield the gentlelady an additional minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from california is recognized for an additional minute. ms. lee: thank you very much. as i was saying, if this bill passes it would forever change the doctor-patient relationship as we know it. by casting suspicion on doctors that serve communities facing the greatest health disparities,

maybe of -- many of which are minority communities. as a woman of faith, i have always believed that decisions about whether to choose adoption , end the pregnancy or raise a child must be left to a woman, her family, had and her faith. with the counsel of her doctor or health professional. politics, government has no place preventing doctors and other health professionals from informing patients about all their health care options and doctors should not be criminalized for providing constitutionally protected care. and supporters are real serious about advancing the real interests of women, i urge them to vote no on this bill. we need to work together to ensure that all women have meaningful access to health care , that they need to stay healthy and to improve their own lives and their children's lives. we need to make sure the women get equal pay for equal jobs. the speaker pro tempore: the time has expired. mr. conyers: 15 seconds. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for an additional 15 seconds. ms. lee: thank you very much.

i want to conclude by saying if you really care about women and their children and their families, we need to work to end wage discrimination in this country, we need to work to end domestic violence that's tearing apart families across this country, and re-authorize a real violence against womens act. we need to reject this insidious attack on row v. wade -- roe v. wade. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from arizona. mr. franks: mr. chairman, i now yield 2 1/2 minutes to the gentleman from florida, mr. stearns. he's a member of the energy and commerce committee. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida is recognized for 2 1/2 minutes. mr. stearns: thank you, mr. speaker. i ask unanimous consent my entire speech be part of the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. stearsstears let me say to the gentlelady -- mr. stearns: letmy say to the gentlelady, this is a war on ethics. you talk about a war on women. this is a war on ethics. woe to you if you vote against

this bill. now, mr. nadler was down here talking about this bill and how he's going to vote against it. but let me ask you, is there anybody in this chamber that wants to vote against sex selection abortion? is that what you want to do? the coercion of sex selection abortion, that's what you want to do? the solicitation or acceptance of funds for sex selection abortion? you want to vote against that? and lastly the transportation of a woman into the country to obtain a sex selection abortion, you want to vote against that? woe to you. war on ethics, this is wrong for you to do that. and in a recent letter to planned parenthood has once again chosen to put profits before women's well-being and is encouraging members of congress to oppose this legislation, re-enforcing sex discrimination and positioning the united states of america as a safe haven for those who cannot legally acquire sex selection abortion in their own home countries. but this is not suppliesing -- surprising considering planned parenthood's record. as chairman of the energy and commerce committee on oversight

investigation, i've led an investigation, my colleagues noorks planned parenthood's use of the more than $1 million of federal funds, these are dollars they receive every day and their compliance with sexual assault and child abuse reporting laws. this was the first ever investigation in planned parenthood's history. planned parenthood has an extensive and well-documented record of improper medicaid billing practices, all of you know. that you can go to the state of california, new york and read about those titlements. violating state sexual assault and child abuse reporting laws and of encouraging young girls to lie, to simply lie about their ages to circumvent state reporting laws. these four things in this bill, woe to you, war on ethics if you vote against this. i am just amazed that people of some kind of strong religious belief would come on this floor and say that you're going to

believe that sex selection in abortion is ok. i can't even comprehend what you're doing. so let me just close and say, i encourage all of my deleegs, both democrats and republicans, to support this life-saving legislation and ban sex selection abortions and to send a clear message that each and every girl is valued in our society. the speaker pro tempore: the speak already again remind all members that you address the speaker, not one another, and to avoid second person in any of your receiptic. the gentleman from michigan. mr. conyers: i thank the speaker for reminding us all of the restrictions in terms of the debate. i thank you. and i reserve at this point. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan reserves. the gentleman from arizona. mr. franks: mr. speaker, can i inquire as to the remainder of the time?

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from arizona has five minutes remaining. the gentleman from michigan has 51 fourts minutes remaining -- 5 1/4 minutes remaining. mr. franks: i now yield two minutes to the gentlelady from tennessee, mrs. blackburn. she's a member of the energy and commerce committee. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from tennessee is recognized. mrs. blackburn: thank you, mr. speaker. i do rise in support of the prenatal nondiscrimination act and i thank the gentleman from arizona for his leadership on the issue. simply put, if what this bill does is to give baby girls the same chance at life as baby boys, mr. speaker, i think it's hypocrisy to say that one is pro-woman and that it's ok to end the life of an unborn child just because of its gender. since when did america subscribe to the idea that males are worth more than females? we know that sex selection abortions happen all over the world, as was evidenced and certainly brought to light by human rights activists like mr. chen who fled to america this month. but according to at least six academic studies published in the past four years, this tragic

reality is playing out in our own backyard. and just this week an undercover video showed a planned parenthood employee encouraging a woman to obtain a late-term abortion because she was purportedly carrying a girl and she wanted to have a boy instead. a vote against ending sex selection abortion is a vote in favor of gender--- gender bias and female gendercide. a vote against is a vote for subtraction of women in america against targeted abortions. it's sick, it's discriminatory, it's sexist and it is blatantly anti-woman and anti-human. it's no surprise that a poll conducted this month by the chore lot institute showed -- charlotte institute showed 80% of women in this country support a law banning abortion in cases where the sole reason for seeking an abortion is that the

developing baby is female. i support the legislation and i urge my colleagues to do the same. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. the gentlelady's time has expired. the gentleman from michigan. mr. conyers: mr. speaker, i yield myself as much time as i desire. and may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan is recognized. mr. conyers: i just like to remind my colleagues that from the leadership conference on civil and human rights, we have this warning. we oppose this bill because it does not in any way address discrimination on the basis of sex or race, rather it is a veiled attempt to restrict health care for women of color

under the guise of civil rights. this is the leadership conference on civil and human rights. this bill tramples the rights of women under the guise of nondiscrimination, while doing absolutely nothing to provide women with needed resources for their babies, female and male, so that they could come into this world healthy and so both the mother and the child can thrive. this measure before us does absolutely nothing to empower women to make important life choices, free from any family or community pressures they now face either to have an abortion or to carry the pregnancy to term. in fact, it fails to employ the tested solutions but reduce the pressures brought to women,

brought to bear on women to have sons. experience around the world has shown that supporting women providing -- women, providing them with tools to become independent and to be safe from violence, rather than from criminal prohibitions, helps them resist the pressures of son preference. international organizations, the united nationses population fund, for example, the office of the united nations high commissioner for human rights, the united nations children's fund, the united nations women and the world health organization have all said that abortion restrictions are not the solution because they put women's health and lives at risk and violate their human and reproductive rights.

please, join us and these organizations who are familiar with the phenomenon of son preference and oppose h.r. 3541. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from arizona. mr. franks: i would now yield 2 1/2 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from new jersey, mr. smith. he's a member of the foreign affairs committee where he is the chairman of africa global health and human rights subcommittee. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new jersey is recognized. mr. smith: i thank my good friend for yielding. mr. speaker, last year an undercover videotape sting operation by live action exposed several planned parenthood aphysical yates who were eager, ready and willing to facilitate seek abortions for underaged sex trafficking victims, some as young or younger than 14. as a prime sponsor of the trafficking victims protection act, i found the on the record willingness of planned parenthood personnel to exploit young girls in partner with sex traffickers to be absolutely

appalling. now live action has released another video sting operation video, part of a new series called gendercide sex selection in america. showing planned parenthood advising and undercover female investigator how to procure a sex selection abortion. caught on tape, planned parenthood tells the investigator to wait until the baby is five months along to get an ultrasound, that will reveal the sex of the child. then if it's a girl, kill it. yesterday the "huffington post" reported that, quote, no planned parenthood clinic will deny a woman an abortion based on her reasons for wanting one, except in states that explicitly prohibit sex selection abortions. in other words, planned parenthood is ok with exterminating a child in its huge network of clinics simply because she's a girl. what a dangerous place for little girls.

let's not forget that planned parenthood aborts approximately 330,000 children every year. this, mr. speaker, is the real war on women. for most of us, mr. speaker, it's a girl is cause for enormous joy, happiness and celebration. but in many countries, including our own, it can be a death sentence. today the three most dangerous words in china and india are, it's a girl. we can't let that happen here. in her book, "unnatural selection," marva traces the sworded history of sex selection abortion as a means of population control. she writes, by august of 1969, sex selection had become a pet scheme, fewer girls, fewer future mothers, fewer future children. at the conference, sex selection abortion was one of the 12 new strategies representing the future of population control. he by the way got the award 40

years later. sex selection abortion is cruel, it's discriminatory and it's illegal. it's legal. it is violence against women, most people in and out of government run aware that it is part of a delivered plan of population control. support the franks amendment. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from michigan. mr. conyers: mr. speaker, i yield myself the balance of the time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for 2 3/4 minutes. mr. conyers: ladies and gentlemen of the house, if this measure is passed into law, we will then require that medical and mental health professionals violate the doctor-patient confidentiality report, quote, knowing or suspect violations, end quotation, of the law to

law enforcement authorities. the penalty would be a fine or incarceration. now, it is not by accident, members of the house, that this measure is opposed by these outstanding organizations. the american congress of obstetricians and gynecologists, the american public health association, the association of reproductive health professionals, the american society for reproductive medicine, medical students for choice, national abortion federation, the national association of nurse practitioners and women's health, the national family planning and reproductive health association, physicians for reproductive health and

choice, planned parenthood federation of america. now, this is something that would tear communications between doctors and parents and doctors because this would put them at risk for criminal prosecution and patients because they will fear that their conversations with their doctors will not remain private. and so what we are doing here is taking the most drastic step that would cause these nine organizations to oppose this legislation. mr. speaker, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from arizona. mr. franks: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, i don't have time to correct all the misinformation that my friends on the other side of the aisle said here today. they talked everything but what

this bill does. if i thought that america really supported aborting little girls because they were little girls as a people then i would say the light of human compassion had gone out of human compassion and it was time to board this place up and go home. i know, mr. chairman, that 86% of the american people favor protecting little girls from sex selection abortion and that gives me great hope, mr. chairman. i wish i had the time to mention all of the groups that were in favor of it, but i know that this is going to be the first step and we were going to be on the right side of history and the right side of justice and i urge yes on this bill. the speaker pro tempore: all time has expired. the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 3541, as amended. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended -- mr. franks: mr. chairman. the speaker pro tempore: the bill is agreed to. mr. franks: mr. chairman.

mr. conyers: mr. speaker, i request -- mr. franks: i ask the yeas and nays, please. the speaker pro tempore: those in favors -- favor of taking this vote by the yeas and nays will rise and remain standing until counted. a sufficient number having arisen, the yeas and nays are ordered. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question will be postponed. for what purpose does the gentleman from north carolina rise?

>> mr. speaker, i move that the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 5512, the divisional realignment act of 2012, as amended. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 5512, a bill to amend title 28, united states code, to realign divisions within two judicial districts. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from north carolina, mr. coble, and the gentleman from georgia, mr. johnson, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from north carolina. mr. coble: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and tend their remarks and include extraneous materials on h.r. 5512, as amended, currently under consideration. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. coble: mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from north carolina is recognized. mr. coble: i support h.r. 5512, the divisional realignment act

of 2012, sponsored by representative bennie thompson. on march 13, 2012, the judicial conference of the united states adopted a draft bill that realigns divisions within the eastern district of missouri and the northern district of mississippi. the divisional realignment act of 2012 reflects the draft developed by the judicial conference which the judiciary committee marked up on may 16. the realignments equalized workloads among divisions, maximize the use of court facilities and shortens commutes for jurors and attorneys. the bill is supported by the judges and attorneys from the two judicial districts and affected members from missouri and mississippi. the congressional budget office states that h.r. 5512 will have only minimal administrative

costs and thus no significant impact on the federal budget. the only change to the bill subsequent to our markup is the effective date. the local judges and the judicial conference asked representative bennie thompson, the bill's sponsor, and the other members of the committee to include a 60-day delayed effective date. this provides the local judges in mississippi and missouri with more time to adjust their jury wheels to account for the realignments. this is a good commonsense change that helps with the administration of justice in the northern district of mississippi and the eastern district of missouri. i hope, mr. speaker, that the divisional realignment act of 2012 will be adopted by my colleagues, and i reserve the balance of my time.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from georgia. mr. johnson: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise in support of h.r. 5512, the divisional realignment act of 2012, as amended. this noncontroversial measure, which the judiciary committee ordered reported by voice vote, simply reorganizes divisions within the two federal judicial districts, namely the eastern district of missouri and the northern district of mississippi. i hope i pronounced missouri correctly. some say missorua. some say missouri. i'll stick with missorua. i feel like i'm down home. this is being requested by two districts to improve judicial

administration and access to court for jurors and litigants. these proposals were formally adopted by the judicial conference of the united states on march 13, 2012, and transmitted to the house judiciary committee. according to the judicial conference, these changes are supported by the judicial councils of the circuits in which these districts are located as well as the united states attorneys for the affected districts. under h.r. 5512, two counties in the eastern district of missouri will be shifted from its eastern division to its southeastern district. the bill also eliminates one of the four divisions within the northern district of

mississippi and reallocates the counties within the eliminated division among the remaining three divisions. the members whose districts would be affected by these divisional changes, that being representatives bennie thompson, gregg harper, allen nunnelee, jo ann emerson and russ carnahan, have all sponsored or co-sponsored this bill. in deference to the local commissions, therefore, we do not oppose these changes. we have made one revision to h.r. 5512 at the request of the judicial conference, to give the judges in the two affected districts some additional time to implement the bill's new divisional realignments, the version of the bill that we are considering today includes a 60-day delayed effective date. i thank chairman lamar smith and subcommittee chairman howard coble for their assistance in moving this

bipartisan legislation that should improve the administration of justice in these judicial districts. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from georgia reserves. the gentleman from north carolina. mr. coble: i thank the gentleman from georgia for his generous remarks. mr. speaker, i'm prepared to close and reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from georgia. mr. johnson: yes, i would yield to the gentleman from mississippi and the sponsor of this bill as much time as he may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from mississippi is recognized as much time as he shall consume. mr. thompson: thank you very much, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, today i rise in support of my bill, h.r. 5512, the divisional realignment act of 2012, which will improve court management for the united states district courts in the northern district of mississippi and the eastern district of missouri. i introduced this bill to help

re' line counties in those judicial districts which include a change that affects counties within my own congressional district. i'm pleased to have my colleagues in the mississippi delegation who represent impacted counties join me as original co-sponsors. congressman harper and nunnelee, in missouri, representative emerson and carnahan, whose congressional districts overlay the counties affected by the change there. also join as original co-sponsors. h.r. 5512 will primarily eliminate the delta division, one of the four existing statutory divisions in the northern district of mississippi, to accomplish this, the eight counties in the delta division will be absorbed into other divisions while some counties from others will be realigned. the proposed also renames the eastern division as the aberdeen division, and the

western division as the oxford division. the two place have authorized the court from the delta division will continue to exist under the realignment within the greenville division. the delta division, unlike those three divisions, is now serviced by a federal courthouse. this has created unnecessary issues regarding venue and jury selection. the re' linement will ensure that -- the realignment will ensure that all districts in the county will be with the courthouses. it will also be more economical for jury travel and will more fairly balance the caseload in the northern district. this realignment is supported by the judges of the northern district of mississippi, the fifth circuit judicial council and the judicial conference of the united states. in addition, the proposal is backed by the united states attorney for the northern district of mississippi.

regarding the eastern district of missouri, h.r. 5512 simply shifts two, from the eastern division of the southeastern division -- two counties from the eastern division of the southeastern division. this will have access to the courthouses for the public and judicial administration of the caseload. more specifically, the realignment will allow cases for those two counties to be held in cape girardeau, which has a new state-of-the-art federal courthouse. this location is also closer to citizens in those counties than in the st. louis location where the court is now held. as a result, the change will lessen the burden on jurors traveling as well as lessen the costs of mileage expenses. in addition, the shift will better align the places with the total population served today. this realignment is supported by the judges of the eastern

district of missouri, the eighth judicial circuit council, the judicial conference of the united states. in addition, it is supported by the united states attorney for the eastern district of missouri. lastly i note that the bill under consideration today has been amended by adding a section that establishes a 60-day delayed effective date. this will ensure that both courts have sufficient time to transition, quit operations through local orders and scheduling. mr. speaker, the house judiciary committee reported divisional realignment act favorably by a voice vote on may 16. i urge my colleagues to support this necessary, bipartisan and noncontroversial bill which would help constituents and improve better court operations in my home state of mississippi and in the state of missouri. mr. speaker, with that i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back.

the gentleman from georgia. mr. johnson: i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from georgia yields back. the gentleman from north carolina. mr. coble: i yield back, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: all time having been yielded back, the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 5512 as amended. those those -- those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. >> mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: one second. for what purpose does the gentleman from michigan seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i would move that suspend the ruse and pass the bill h.r. 5651 as amended. the speaker pro tempore: the

clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 5651, a bill to amend the federal food, drug and cosmetic act to revise and extend the user fee programs for prescription drugs and for medical devices, to establish user fee programs for generic drugs and biostimmlers and for what purpose does. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from michigan, mr. upton, and the gentleman from new jersey, mr. pallone, will each control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from michigan. mr. upton: mr. speaker, i would ask first unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous materials into the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. upton: mr. speaker, i would now yield myself two minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. upton: mr. speaker, i want to thank first of all chairman pitts, dr. burgess, mr. barton, mr. waxman, mr. pallone, mr. dingell and other committee members on both sides of the aisle for their bipartisanship through this process. h.r. 5651 is a reflection of their hard work, dedication and willingness to work together.

and because of that outstanding work, we have a bill today that will help american patients and innovators and it will support millions of jobs, believe it or not, millions of jobs in an important sector of our economy. as i said since the beginning of this congress we need to enact this user fee by the end of june. and i believe that we're on track to accomplish that goal. as we put this user fee package together, i wanted to ensure that it fostered american innovation, by improving the predictability, consistency, transparency and efficiency of f.d.a. regulation. fostering innovation is essential in getting new treatments to patients and creating american jobs. and this bill will foster american innovation because it includes significant accountability and reform measures designed to hold the f.d.a. responsibility for its performance. the measures include independent assessments of f.d.a.'s drug and device review process and it

also requires quarterly reporting from the device centers so that we don't have to wait a year to find out their progress. and i commit today that our committee will continue its vigorous oversight of the f.d.a. for example, we're going to use the independent assessments to determine where the review process can be improved and we will ensure f.d.a. fixes -- that it fixes the problems. also we'll use the quarterly data on device reviews and bring the f.d.a. before our committee to explain how it's doing. this bill will give us the information that we need to understand how the f.d.a.'s performing. it is up to us to ensure that we use that information to hold the f.d.a. accountable for their performance. together the committee members have produced a bill that will help american patients while supporting innovation and job creators and i thank the committee for their participation. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from new jersey.

mr. pallone: thank you, mr. speaker. today marks the very exceptional day in this body, one that deserves great praise. the bill before us, h.r. 5651, the f.d.a. reform act of 2012, is the product of bipartisanship, collaboration and compromise that i'm very proud of. the bill is the result of more than a year of negotiations between industry, f.d.a. and congress. in the energy and commerce committee we held a number of hearings on the critical issues within the bill and earlier this month it passed unanimously in both subcommittee and full committee. the bill is slightly modified from the bill reported by committee as it now includes a bipartisan provision which results in the bill reducing the deficit by $370 million over the next 10 years. the f.d.a. reform act will ensure that americans have access to safe and effective new medicines and medical devices by re-authorizing the user fee programs for prescription drugs and medical devices. it will reduce drug costs for consumers by speeding the approval of lower cost generic

drugs with the establishment of new user fee programs for generic drugs and for lower cost versions of biotech drugs. the bill will also reform and revitalize many f.d.a. programs to improve its regulatory scheme to facilitate a more efficient and predictable review process. mr. speaker, the bill also makes permanent two complimentary programs, the best pharmaceuticals for children act, and the pediatric research equity act which both help to foster the development and safe use of prescription drugs for children. in addition, a significant improvement was made to the f.d.a.'s ability to police an ever-growing global drug supply chain to improve patient safety. and these provisions will give the f.d.a. critical tools it needs to keep our medicine safer. it also includes important provisions to help prevent and mitigate drug shortages, by requiring that drug makers notify the f.d.a. in advance of any expected disruption in the supply of certain critical drugs

and for the f.d.a. to inform health care providers of the potential drug shortage. i want to thank chairman upton and chairman pitts, our ranking member waxman, mr. dingell, and my other colleagues on the committee for their leadership and dedication to this important piece of legislation, a special thanks to the staffs, in particular my staff person, tiffany, who is to my right, but on both sides of the aisle, the staff worked hard and they should be very proud of what we've accomplished. re-authorizing and revitalizing the f.d.a. user fee system is a critical investment to our nation's public health and, mr. speaker, i urge all members of the house to vote aye. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new jersey reserves. the gentleman from michigan. mr. upton: mr. speaker, i would yield three minutes to the chairman of the health subcommittee on the energy and commerce committee, mr. pitts from pennsylvania. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from pennsylvania is recognized for three minutes. mr. pitts: mr. speaker, the food and drug administration reform act of 2012 is a product of nearly a year and a half of work in the energy and commerce

health subcommittee. h.r. 5651 is the result of bipartisan negotiations. the bill passed out of the health subcommittee by a unanimous voice vote and passed out of the full committee 46-0. i would especially like to thank clay, brian, paul and the other staffers for their dedication and hard work in making this bill possible. i know they've put in a lot of hours and because that have work we have brought this bill to the floor in a timely manner. the f.d.a. reform act is critical to saving lives and sustaining a dynamic american industry. american companies are the leading developers of new medical devices and drugs to save and sustain life. to ensure that products are both safe and effective, we've tasked the food and drug administration with reviewing products before they make their way into the market. this is a big job. the device and drug industries

are dynamic and innovative. companies spend tens of millions of dollars and years of work to develop products. the review stage is a critical time for any company. inconsistent reviews mean that the true cost of developing a new product is hidden, making it difficult to properly prepare. when we began considering this legislation last year, we heard from a number of individuals involved in the medical device industry about the increasing difficulty of working through the review process. american patients are waiting almost four years or longer for new devices that have already been approved in europe and despite the slow are see are -- review process, the safety outcomes were comparable. the f.d.a. reform act contains critical reforms to the user device fee act that will hold the f.d.a. accountable and keep reviews on schedule. under the fourth version of the prescription drug user fee act, the median time of approval was nine months, with the ru authorization we set the goal -- re-authorization we set the goal to eight months. currently generic drugs have an average review time of 32

months. including in this legislation is a program that will be able to gradually reduce the time to 10 months. a separate user fee program has the goal of 10-month approval times for most products. finally, we also include language to help patients, doctors and hospitals to deal with drug shortages. mr. speaker, i'm proud of the work we've done here. i would like especially to thank full committee chairman upton as well as health subcommittee ranking member frank pallone, full committee ranking member henry waxman and their staff for patiently working with us on the f.d.a. reform act. this is legislation to help save lives and create jobs, two goals that we can all agree on. it is a bipartisan effort and i urge all members to support the legislation. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from new jersey. mr. pallone: thank you, mr. speaker. i would want to mention that our ranking member of the full

committee, mr. waxman's, unable to be here, but i would ask unanimous consent to submit his statement for the record. and now at this time i'd like to yield three minutes to our chairman emeritus, mr. dingell, who has worked so hard and been so much a part of this legislation. the speaker pro tempore: should have mentioned that the gentleman's request is covered in general leave, it will be added to the record. the chair recognizes the gentleman from michigan. mr. dingell: i thank the gentleman from new jersey. mr. speaker, i rise in strong support of h.r. 5651. to re-authorize the prescription drug and medical device user fee the programs and to establish new user fee programs for generic drugs and biosims and also to give substantial new authorities to the food and drug administration with the support of the industry, to provide broad additional protections to american consumers. h.r. 5651 is an excellent

example of the great good that can be done when both parties come together in the spirit of bipartisanship, cooperation and compromise. and when they work with consumers and the industry to achieve the bill supported by all. this legislation will ensure timely access to safe and effective drugs and medical devices. encourage development of innovative drug treatments for our children, improve the food and drug administration's current authority to deal with drug shortages. more importantly this legislation will provide f.d.a. with much-needed new authorities to secure the safety of our drug supply. and to help prevent another incident like that unfortunate one involving hepburn where over 80 people died from a blood

thinner contaminated where it came from in china. and which also sickened over 100 people which we know. .r. 5651 drug supply chain provisions will improve information f.d.a. has about domestic and foreign drug manufacturers and the first time in history provide f.d.a. with information about importers and enable f.d.a. to control imported pharmaceuticals and devices. it will also allow f.d.a. to detain or to destroy counterfeit or adult rated drugs -- adulterated drugs. drugs that have been delayed or denied inspection by f.d.a. and to encourage parity in the inspections of domestic and foreign drug establishments. it will permit for the first time real inspection of foreign producers and it will treat all manufacturers alike. these provisions mirror those in drug legislation which i authored earlier and the new authorities provided to f.d.a. for our drug supply will enable the leveling of the playing

field for our domestic drug manufacturers and give american families peace of mind, that f.d.a. can and will and will have the authority to respond to unsafe, counterfeit or contaminated drugs. i want to thank my colleagues on the committee for the fine way this legislation was worked on. particularly congressman careman upton, ranking members waxman, subcommittee on health, chairman pitts, and ranking member pallone, and their staffs. ryan, rachel, eric, aaron, tiffany, as well -- the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. mr. dingell: thank you, mr. chairman. the gentleman from michigan. mr. upton: thank you, mr. speaker. i'd recognize myself for 1 1/2 minutes for purpose of a colloquy and i yield to the gentleman from florida, mr.

buchanan. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. buchanan: thank you, mr. chairman. i'd like to thank you for working with me to advance my crackdown legislation and for your commitment to curving prescription drug abuse. this crisis has created enormous pain and suffering on our families and communities. killing tens of thousands of americans every year, tens of thousands. i'm pleased that the senate f.d.a. bill contains the central component to represcribe hydrocould he doan, one of the most addictive and drug mixtures to reclassify these drugs from a schedule 3 to a scheduled 2 drug, will be making it much more difficult to obtain and abuse. this provision has the support in the medical and law enforcement community. i look forward to working with you, mr. chairman, to ensure that the final bill addresses this critical issue and contains the buchanan pill mill provision. i yield my remaining time to the gentleman. mr. upton: well, thank you. i appreciate your constant

leadership on the national problem of prescription drug abuse and i've appreciated your input, your phone call last week when the senate passed this amendment to me back in michigan. our committee has focused on this issue and you have been an outstanding partner with congressman ed whitfield and congresswoman bono mack on this. as used properly we know these medications provide needed therapy from those suffering from pain. however, the abuse of some of those products have devastated communities and destroyed families across the country. so as we move forward on this bill and our discussions with the senate, i hope that we can continue the partnership and be able to work this issue out. at this point, mr. speaker, i'd ask unanimous consent that the balance of my time be controlled by mr. pitts. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered, and the gentleman from pennsylvania will control the remainder of the time. the gentleman from new jersey.

mr. pallone: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield three minutes to the gentlewoman from california, mrs. capps. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from california is recognized for three minutes. mrs. capps: thank you, mr. speaker. i thank my colleague for yielding me time. i rise today in support of the f.d.a. reform act of 2012. it's good to associate myself with the remarks of the chairman emeritus, chairman dingell, who has worked on the food and drug administration and making it a good institution that can only become better. this bill represents a spirit of compromise. compromise across the aisle and also among the many stakeholders that work toward innovation to help our health. it overwhelm on straights at a time -- it demonstrates at a time when we can't pass a piece of legislation without a long and bitter fight, we can come together to improve health, to protect the safety of the

american people and at the same time support good jobs and innovation in our health care industry. i'm especially pleased that two of my provisions have been included in this legislation. for example, the safety devices act will improve postmarket surveillance of medical devices and the implementation of the unique device identifier program. this is an essential provision to know that our devices work and will allow us to identify potential problems early on, protecting patients and identifying issues when they are easier and less costly to address. the bill includes simplification of f.d.a.'s denobo process, an important step to helping medical device manufacturers and patients. i thank chairman upton and pitts, chairmans -- ranking members pallone and waxman. i thank the many advocates, patients and stakeholders who came together and contributed to this bill so that it would come to fruition today. of course, there is more work in front of us that remains to be done, but this bill before

us is an important step to ensuring that our drug and device pipelines continue to produce needed cures and treatment to keep us all healthy and that is why i urge my colleagues to support it and i'm -- i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from pennsylvania. mr. pitts: mr. chairman, at this time i would like to yield two minutes to gentleman who showed great leadership in the development of this legislation, in the negotiations, been a very integral part, the vice chairman of the health subcommittee, dr. burgess, for two minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas is recognized for two minutes. mr. burgess: i thank the gentleman for yielding. this is not a perfect bill but it's a good bill, it's a solid bill. it's worthy of the support of everyone on this floor. this bill re-authorizes the f.d.a. user fee programs for prescription drugs and medical devices and generic devices and

what is known as biosimilars. it provides powerful tools to prevent and alleviate human suffering. the food and drug administration must have the infrastructure and the resources to ensure patient safety and to approve new products in a straightforward and predictable fashion. delayed reviews increase costs, it costs jobs and deny patients potentially life-saving products. these agreements ensures that we have a strong and efficient f.d.a. and the committee responded appropriately and seized that opportunity. this bill will help the f.d.a. build on what's working, address what isn't and provides resources to meet future goals. the ranking member on the subcommittee, mr. pallone, we crafted new guidelines for how

the food and drug administration recruits, approaches and accesses relatively scientific and medical expertise. i'm also pleased that we required the food and drug administration to now notify congress before issuing guidance regarding the regulation of laboratory developed tests. we still need to strengthen and improve the oversight of laboratory developed tests instead of promoting regulation . additionally, the bill takes good steps, first steps to address critical drug shortages. no physician wants to tell a patient they can't receive the care that they need because the product is unavailable. the process was respectful, hundreds of hours of negotiation. certainly chairman pitts and ranking members waxman and pallone and chairman emeritus dingell and their staffs, i want to thank rien long and clay for the work they did on the majority staff. my own staff and my personal staff, j.p., who put in tremendous hours to get this product to the floor. this is about patients. we need to get it right for them and i think we're awfully close to getting this right.

mr. speaker, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new jersey. mr. pallone: thank you, mr. speaker. i wanted to make a special thanks to another staff person from the committee, rachel, who is on my right here. thank you, rachel. and now i'd like to yield three minutes to the gentleman from massachusetts, mr. markey. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from massachusetts is recognized for three minutes. mr. markey: i thank chairman upton and chairman pitts and i thank ranking member pallone and waxman for their work. for bringing to the floor a bipartisan legislation that provides f.d.a. additional resources to bring new drugs and medical devices to market. but today's bill is also a huge missed opportunity, and it would be a disservice to patient safety to ignore the bill's major shortfall. many americans, 90% of medical

devices are not required to undergo clinical testing of human beings prior to being sold. under current law, the f.d.a. is required to clear certain medical devices as long as they demonstrate their similarity to an earlier product even if the new device is modeled after a similar defective device that caused serious injury or even death. today's bill offered an important opportunity to address this device safety loophole, but it doesn't. the loophole remains in place and patients are still and will remain at grave risk. four years ago, jay neveres, a 53-year-old mother of three, was a healthy truck driver who earned a decent living, played in a band and paid her bills on

time. then, her doctor implanted a bladder mesh, a device that traces its origin back to a previous product that was recalled for causing serious injury and in some cases death. jay now -- jane now lives in constant pain. she cannot walk without a cane. she lost her insurance and faces a growing mountain of medical debt. the bank recently began foreclosure proceedings on her home which she lives with her 79-year-old mother. she isn't the first to be harmed by this loophole.

if we fail to fix it, she won't be the last. there will be tens of thousands of others that fall into this loophole who will suffer serious injury. i introduced the sound devices act providing the f.d.a. the ability to protect the public, but this was not included in the bill. the bill we are voting on today is critically important, however. it includes the expert act, a bill that i authored to improve communication between f.d.a. and experts and rare diseases and it includes bipartisan provisions that i'm proud to have worked with other members to promote in the peed attic device development. but -- pediatric device development. but this must not be the last word on safety. i hope my colleagues will join me to close this loophole so we can close the american public safe from harmful medical practices. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from pennsylvania. mr. pitts: mr. speaker, at this time i'm happy to yield to the subcommittee chairman, the gentleman from florida, mr. stearns, 1 1/2 minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida is recognized for 1 1/2 minutes. mr. stearns: thank you, mr. speaker. the authorization of the f.d.a. user fees will simply provide stability at f.d.a.'s new product review as companies

submit new and innovative devices and drugs for their approval. so i'm especially proud that in this bill i had a piece of legislation called the faster access to specialized treatments, fast act, which is h.r. 4132. it was included in the f.d.a. reform act, and this act modernizes the f.d.a. accelerated approval, pathways to reflect the 20 years of science developed since accelerated approval was first established in 1992. so think of that. now since 1992 with this bill that i included in our f.d.a. bill, it will accelerate approval through the f.d.a. it will simply allow new drugs get to market faster for people that are suffering from rare diseases. there are 30 million americans suffering from one of over 7,000 rare diseases but only 250 currently have any

treatment. this act will save lives. i'd like to enter, mr. speaker, this letter of support for fast signed by over 150 rare disease groups into the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. stearns: i'm also glad that the f.d.a. reform act includes the expanding and promoting expertise in review of rare treatments act, expert act, h.r. 4156. this will help f.d.a. consult with medical experts when evaluating drugs dealing with rare disease such as cystic fibrosis. as co-founder of the cystic fibrosis caucus, i'm glad we're giving this tool to the f.d.a. i support the f.d.a. reform act. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new jersey. mr. pallone: thank you, mr. speaker. i'd yield three minutes now to the gentleman from north carolina, mr. butterfield. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from north carolina is recognized for three minutes. mr. butterfield: i thank the gentleman for yielding and thank him for his leadership on this committee. mr. speaker, i rise today in support of h.r. 5651, the food and drug administration reform

act, and want to simply highlight section 865, the rare pediatric disease priority review voucher incentive program. i am so pleased this section was included in the base text of the bill. i want to thank my colleagues on the committee and my good friend, congressman mike mccaul of texas, for joining with me to see to its inclusion. actually we joined together in seeing to its inclusion. also, let me give a strong thank you to nancy goodman with cancer kids -- kids versus cancer, who was a strong advocate on this issue. the program will incentivize pharmaceutical programs to develop new drugs for children with chair pediatric diseases such as childhood cancer and sickle cell disease by expanding the cost neutral priority review voucher program. expanding the voucher program will allow pharmaceutical companies to expedite f.d.a. review of more profitable drugs in return for developing