the globe. >> there's a lot of talk about the keystone pipeline. there is another pipeline that is important to the industry and that is the alaska pipeline. given the declining throughput of the pipeline, what is your vision of its future as it is related to the american energy policy? >> alaska is key in a vast energy resource for us that has gone in many ways underutilized for many years. we need to continue to focus on alaska. the role of federal and state government is key in alaska. the vast majority of the state is controlled by, primarily, the federal government as well of the state. when we look at the transatlantic pipeline, it is a resource that is now underutilized because we are not producing enough to keep it at

full capacity. we should look to those existing infrastructures to expand and achieve our potential but we should also look at the new infrastructure debate. as i mentioned earlier, in your packet today we shared the new report that shows we can create close to one million new jobs by building the pipeline networks not only alaska and elsewhere but clear across this country to safely move product to allow it to be refined, to allow it to be consumed, to allow it to be affordable and reliable for all americans. alaska is key to this equation. it should not be overlooked. the transatlantic pipeline is currently underutilized. we should look for opportunity there. it also brings us back to the question of crude export. >> you mentioned the investment in infrastructure in the report going out today. it seems harder to get local infrastructure projects built. what policy changes are needed to ensure that investments can

actually translate to projects? >> there is a lot of policy that needs to be looked at. most of this is managed at the local level. what we need to do in the country is to escape what is taking place today and that is those who would seek to stop the development of the oil and natural gas and use the permeating processes as proxies for surrogates to begin to stop this economic activity. we need to review all statutes, regulatory activity, and focus on their primary purpose. to safely protect our workforce, to safely protect our environment, and also to come to a point of decision to approve these opportunities. i hate to keep talking about the keystone xl pipeline, but it is the wrong model. if it takes is five years, if it takes this extended. of time because of political considerations, we will limit our ability to achieve our potential as a nation and frankly, discourage the investment that is lining the

shores of this country to come here to develop these vast resources, to put our people to work. it could not happen at a better time the. how's the time to do it. you need to look at all regulations and laws to bring about an affirmative final decision on these processes and on these permits. >> on the renewable -- fuel standard, we had a couple of questions. the epa recently lowered the volumes to avoid the ethanol blend wall. do believe that ethanol is playing a role in our increasing energy security and if so, why is the oil industry urging the epa to go lower than 10%? >> a couple of answers. very quickly. the reason the api and others are encouraging the epa to go below 10% is because the vast majority of all automobiles were built to consume up to 10% ethanol and only up to 10% ethanol.

when they survey the auto manufacturers said that if we allow a blend beyond 10%, would you warranty those millions of automobiles in the country today? every auto manufacturer said no, we will not. we will not honor the warranties if you go beyond 10%. the standard is an issue that is focused on consumers. this is a consumer issue. we're are the ones that are put in the crosshair, the refiners and processes, to produce the gas and diesel fuel we consume every day. but it impacts consumers. that is why you see opposition from small business owners, from marine individuals, from farmers, only turkey farmers, chicken producers, chain restaurants, and others. it was supposed to be a fuel policy, all of the foundation that it was sent on to reduce greenhouse, that reality has

changed in the last five years. the renewable fuel standards needs to be repealed. i give credit to the administration to have the courage to step forward in this most recent role making and recognize what we call the blend wall that would have pushed us through this 10% blend. to say, enough is enough. this is harmful to the american public. we should not allow this to continue. >> on taxes, do you think the tax reform can move forward in 2014 and if so, what would you like to see as part of the discussion? >> i do not believe tax reform will occur in 2014. how is that, linda? [laughter] i'm sure no one in this room believes what i said in this room.

tax reform is important in the country to make a globally competitive. from an oil and gas perspective, the worst thing we could do today is to select, to treat the oil and gas industry in a punitive way. if you look at the report, the oil and natural gas industry pays a 44.6% tax rate on a global scale. we pay not only our fair share, we pay more than our fair share. we pay $85 million a day to the federal government. we are making a contribution. we can continue to create well- paying jobs and allow others to make additional contributions. a tax policy that singles out an individual industry is wrongheaded and it is going in the wrong direction. the likelihood in my view, humble, but correct my opinion is that it is unlikely that anything will happen in 2014 in a comprehensive way. tom agrees with me.

>> regarding your report and the america's choice campaign, is this going to create ratings of congressional candidates for office? >> we support all political candidates who support oil and natural gas and understand the vision and the potential for this country. to date, we currently do not rate and we will not use this opportunity to rate current members. i will tell you that as we look at contributions, as we look at support for members, we look at one thing -- the voting record. elections matter. elections translates to votes. votes matter. i believe the congress and administration are lagging indicators. i believe the american public sets the agenda in our country and it happens at the polling booth. america's energy, america's choice is designed to continue to educate the american people and to encourage them to

participate in the democratic processes that alecto's officials that come here to represent those interests. when you see over 70% of the american public saying we should produce more of the nation's oil and natural gas industry, there is clearly a disconnect in policy formulation and the will of the american public. we believe by purging the will of the american public, a create sound policy. it is where our primary focus will be on the america's energy, america's choice campaign. >> the last question. you spoke a lot about the need for more natural gas and oil in our energy supply to address the future and opportunities. with increased emetic production, what is the role of energy efficiency in contributing to our energy security? >> energy efficiency is key to our entire equation. it should be a component part, just like all forms of energy

should be a component part. today we produce twice as much gdp activity for the same amount of energy that we did in 1980. we, as a nation, are more energy-efficient today that we have ever been. that does not mean we stop. we need to continue to become more and more energy-efficient over time. however, we have to be realistic. it does require energy to fuel our economy, to heat our homes. all the added products that the business community provides. energy is essential to our economy, to our well-being, and energy efficiency is a key component of that broader equation. it is one component and we should not overlook the others, including oil and gas which provides over 60% of that energy.

thank you very much, linda. let me conclude by thank you all for your participation. i hope you enjoyed your lunch. i hope that some of what we said today will not only resume, but perhaps all think a little more about the energy reality, the opportunity we have that we can engage together as americans -- not as democrats and republicans, but as americans seeking to put our nation on a sure footing for the benefit of all of our citizens. thank you very much for your time. i appreciate it. [applause]

>> tomorrow we will take a look at income inequality and social mobility with social -- senator kirsten gillibrand. live coverage on c-span two. also monday at the parking institutions, house budget to the chair paul ryan. you can watch his remarks live on c-span three. coming up next on c-span, newsmakers, with mailing congressmen and house minority whip steny hoyer.

politicalat the strategies that the republicans and democrats might use with the approaching 2014 midterm elections. and then at 8:00 p.m., q&a. >> "newsmakers" is pleased to welcome steny hoyer. he is the democratic leadership whip. michael lillis covers congress or the hill. >> hi. >> like to be with you. >> moderates are fleeing both parties fairly quickly. congress mcintyre and else's retirement this week. there are 15 blue dogs. two are retiring. what does this mean for the possibilities of taking the house in 2014? are these just gone?

>> i do not think they are just gone. i think they were very strong candidates in their districts. they were very republican districts. redistricting has hurt both of them. i think we will certainly be recruiting candidates in those two districts. both parties are confronting folks who have retired in districts. in districts where the other party will have a good chance of winning, the philadelphia suburbs are particularly a good example, but we think we have two great opportunities in arkansas where we have a retirement. both parties are experiencing i think the result of the

frustration that has come from the gridlock that we have seen over the last 2.5 years under republican leadership where we have not acted in a positive way to work together, to reach compromise, to move this country forward. i think the frustration is affecting not only the american people overwhelmingly but also members. >> i wanted to shift to unemployment insurance that seems to be the story of the week. you and the democrats would like to see a three-month extension not paid for. now we're hearing the senate is very close to abandoning the three-month option and looking at a one year fix. i am wondering if the houston accredits would support that plan or do you want to push for the three-month fix? >> i do not know if the offsets ould be.

i just spoke on the floor of the house. it is moving on a three-month unpaid for extension of the unemployment insurance. pointed out under george w. bush week extended long-term unemployment five times without paying for it. there is a precedent for doing that. there is a need for it. i would not want to prejudge. i am not seem like the offsets are and whether they do an extension or a one-year extension. i would be supportive of a one-year extension even it was unpaid for, except it means we have to pay for it over a longer term. want to see the product first

before i say i would support it r not supported. would not pick someone that was acceptable. if that was the only way we could pass it, i would except that. >> again, you have said you do not want to pay for it. bayer has said he does want to pay for her but he has not said how. how have you interpreted that? do you think he is being supportive? >> i do not want to question his speakers motives. if you have an alternative, then offer again. we want to help the 1.3 million people who on december 28 lost their safety net to keep food on their table and their family intact.

then offer it. when you say i do not want to pay for it, historically we have not paid for it. one of the reasons is it is perceived to be an emergency. the economy is getting better. the bad news is not getting good enough to have enough jobs available for job seekers. we have three job seekers for every job that is available. there are a lot of people that are working hard to find jobs as they are required to do. they have been unable to get them. we ought not to drop them hrough the floorboards so to speak. i want to see it pay for but over a longer term. the speaker boehner has offsets and he wants to offer a bill, i will serve and i will consider

that. i am sure mr. reagan our side of the i will -- i'll will consider that. we believe it is critically important to extend this long-term unemployment safety net for 1.3 million people that grows by 72,000 people a week. >> i want to switch briefly to marilyn politics. it looks like they will introduce a couple of bills to egalize marijuana. the governor said he is not supportive of that. where are you on the issue? >> a long time ago there was a mayor of baltimore, a very extraordinarily able guy who have been a state prosecutor and suggested the legalization of marijuana.

my initial reaction was a positive one. as i talked to people with drug issues i became convinced that it is a threshold drug and it would lead to the use of very harmful drugs. i am not a proponent of the legalization of marijuana. >> shifting one more time. we're going to bounce. > i will try to balance with you. >> senate negotiators are close to reaching a deal on a farm ill. it would cut -- include a 900,000 cut to the budget. as this is something you can get behind? >> i talked to collin peterson who is the ranking member of the ad committee. i talked to him last night for some length of time. they have gone from the one dollars to $20 for state contributions.

that is scored at about a $9 billion savings or cut. i think in a word of alternatives, the conference will have come down from that number. it is important to note that food stamps have already been cut back from the recovery act and the depth of the recession. we enhanced the payments for food stamps. they have arty been cut as of a couple of months ago. they have arty cj reduction. i think it that is the figure nd other matters that are at issue can be resolved, i think the bill will probably pass with some democratic support. not certainly universal support. the majority of democrats feel they cannot support it because of the snap cuts and the nutritional assistant cut. i think it will pass.

>> with your support? >> i think i will be inclined to upport it. i do not like the fact that we would further on the cuts. that is over 10 years. it is not as bad as it could've been. it is much better than we could have expected. >> did you catch any of chris christie's press conference and the controversy about this bridge? what do you make of this? >> when he asked if i had caught some of it, i caught much more of it than i thought there was going to be. i caught all of it. i came in some time into it and then i had to go to the floor. it was not over but i have the -- had to be one of the longest press conferences i have seen. how long did it last? >> it was lengthy. > a few hours i think.

>> my experience was, first of all, christie was pretty angry at the people who do this without his knowledge i am sure. he fired them as i understand it. he thinks they lie to him. he thought that was worthy of iring. he apologized as i understand it to the mayor. i do not see all of the press conference. it was unusually lengthy and i thought repetitive. at some point in time hits of what he had to say and then he kept repeating it. nevertheless, it was clear that it was a huge embarrassment for the governor. totally inappropriate behavior by his staff. the people who were waiting in line as a result of this effort to close down a couple of lanes i am sure are damned angry. i take him at his word that he knew nothing about this. if that is the case, the firing of the employees was the thing to do. >> does congress have any role in investigating what happened?

>> the governor himself that he was going to investigate. apparently some state senator whose name i forget right now indicated this was in fact a legitimate activity. certainly these were interstate travelers i am sure. we ought to find out and get to the bottom of this. i imagine secretary fox is going to try to do that. they were playing political ames with the closing of our interstate highway system. >> another controversy is the release of experts of bob gates book. he was critical of certain

things in the obama administration and even more critical of congress. he said it is just a show when he testifies and there's nothing serious. i am wondering if you could talk about your personal dealings ith mr. gates and if you think e is accurate in his criticism. >> i have very positive dealings with secretary gates. i was pleased that president obama asked him to stay on as secretary of defense. i think he was a good, well-informed, con chicken -- conscientious secretary of defense. i still have a very good relationship with secretary gates. i thought some of his comments

are somewhat contradictory in the sense that he was positive in his convictions about his abilities and his openness to listen. he had alluded to a number of things that were not as positive. they could have waited too written this biography until the administration is over. i do not think it probably was political in nature. secretary gates was very positive about the president to me and to others in private and n public when he was secretary of defense as i think is probably appropriate. i was disappointed that he would make some of the observations he would make.

he was very negative on vice president biden. i thought that was incorrect on the facts and unfortunate. i think he has been a very positive partner with the obama administration. >> you plan to read the book? >> i plan to read it. i am sure he has a lot of worthwhile things to do. much of not be covered by the press. it would be the somewhat sensational observations. i am going to take a look at it and see what his observations are. >> he had long been interested in foreign policy. americans learned this week that falluja and her mighty have fallen to the hands of al qaeda. 1400 american service people gave their lives to capture the cities initially. what should the public think? how should they process this? >> i think they will be very disappointed. i am disappointed. we have spent billions of dollars to not only secure

falluja but it rocks itself. the rack lost precious american lives. they have spent more billions of dollars to train the iraqi forces. i think if we can look at this as not having worked as he wanted it to work. the iraqi forces for what ever reasons have been unable to maintain the peace and order to the country as they -- as we hope they can do. i am critical of the government. one of the underlying problems as he is reaching out to the sunni community and include the sunni community in a way they feel a part of the administration as opposed to feeling a strange -- estranged by the government. the sunni community does not

feel the malachi government is sympathetic to their conclusion in the process. the shia population in iraq i am sure still remembers how badly they were treated by saddam hussein. there was a lot of healing to be done. they have not pursued that healing process as vigorously as they ought to and should ave. we find ourselves now in a position where they are divided. al qaeda has taken advantage of that division. >> we have nine minutes eft.

>> john boehner said this week that the republicans are planning on releasing some information on what they want to do with immigration reform. what do you think the chances are this actually get done? >> it is a positive sign. this has been a positive sign. as you know, comprehensive mmigration reform is very high up on the democrat agenda. it ought to be done this year in this congress and it would make a tremendous moral difference in

our country. it would help the economy. t is the right thing for us to do, which is why there is such a broader-based coalition supporting that. speaker boehner sees that. i think he sees that his party needs to avoid being perceived by the immigrant community whether they be asian or any other immigrant population not be perceived as hostile to hem. i think he thinks there is a political reason for them to act. there are also moral reasons to act. we have introduced a bill with democrats that has been upported on a bipartisan basis.

we introduce the senate bill. we dropped the border security part of that and included the republican committee passed in the house of representatives security provisions. we try to appeal to the republicans in the house into he republican led homeland security committee to include their component. we think that is a bipartisan bill that could enjoy the majority of the house. i also urge republicans if they do not agree with that, i urge mr. eric cantor to put one of the four bills on the floor. we would probably vote against them. if that is their alternative, that we think they ought to move forward on them. or for that matter put the house homeland security bill on the floor. most of us would be and can -- inclined to support that bill. what he has indicated is that he