we have no pretense about solving these problems alone. nor is is a as president obama made clear last fall at the united nations, the united states of america will continue to invest significant effort in the middle east. we have enduring interests in the region. friendshipsring with countries that rely on us for their security in a volatile neighborhood. we will defend our partners and our allies as necessary. we will continue to ensure the free flow of energy, dismantle networks, and we will

not tolerate the proliferation of nuclear weapons. challengesf these and the relationships that surround them and accomplishing forof these goals requires the united states to be engaged in the region for the long haul. cooperation with our golf partners, like saudi arabia and united arab emirates gulf partners, and helping libya, egypt, yemen. for insuring stability for the world's shipping lanes and energy supply. there is no shortage of places where we are engaged in the middle east. the question is not whether we are leaving, the question is how we are leading.

today, we believe there are initiatives that taken together have the potential to reshape the middle east and could even help create the foundations of a new order. first, the agreement that we reached with iran. as of this week, iran's nuclear weapons program is being rolled back in important ways. on monday, iran took a series of steps that the world has long demanded, including reducing its enriched of 20% uranium, dismantling the infrastructure for its production, and allowing unprecedented transparency and monitoring to guarantee iran is complying with the agreement. they will have to reduce their , and theyo percent

will not have the capacity for reconversion. they will have to reduce it to forms that are not suitable for making weapons. enrichmentlso hold about five percent and it will not be able to grow the current stockpile of 3.5% enriched uranium. they cannot increase the number of centrifuges that are in operation and they cannot install or use any next-generation centrifuges to enrich uranium. thee we negotiate final agreement, iran will not be permitted to take any steps to commission the iraq to tony him reactor -- plutonium reactor. there is reason to ask tough questions of them going forward. we will. and good reasons to require that the promises iran made are promises kept.

we certainly have not forgotten. there is a reason that the world has placed sanctions on iran. there is a reason why they exist in the first place. there is a reason why the core architecture of the sanctions remains in place. that is why this effort is grounded -- not in trusting, not in words, but in testing. are is why now, inspectors there everyday. that is not the case before the agreement we struck. at newors can now be places thanks to the agreement we struck. will visit the iraq he plutonium plant every month plutonium plant

every month. it will increase the amount of time it will take for iran to break out and build a bomb. the breakout time, as we call it. we will increase our ability to be able to detect it and to prevent it. make israelwill safer than it was the day before we added this agreement, make the region safer than it was the day before we entered this agreement, and make the world safer than it was. yesterday, president rouhani iran isre and said that eager to engage with world. what it must do to make that happen. he told you that iran has no intention of building a nuclear weapon. welcomed,message is my friends, the words themselves are meaningless unless actions

are taken to give the meaning. starting now, iran has the opportunity to prove these words beyond all doubt to the world. let's be clear -- if you are programabout a peaceful , it is not hard to prove to the world that your program is peaceful. for sure, a country with peaceful nuclear programs does not need to build enrichment facilities in the cover of darkness, in the depth of a mountain. it is not need a heavy water reactor design to produce welcome -- weapons grade plutonium like the one in iraq. it has no reason to fear intrusive monitoring and verification, and it should have no problem resolving outstanding issues with the international atomic energy agency. this is true for every country peacefulrld within

nuclear programs. it is a tough, but reasonable standard to which iran must also be held. week'swelcome this historic step. now the hard part begins. six months of intensive negotiations with the goal of resolving all the international community's concerns about iran's nuclear program. -- theyo say to the p5 have acted in unity, with great cooperation, and we international -- welcome the international communities -- community's initiative. if they meet the test, it'll be a safer place, free from the nuclear arms race. diplomatic engagement, backed by willions and other options have proven their worth. the second challenge is syria.

and enormous, almost on a manageable human tragedy is unfolding before our very eyes. just this week, we've seen new evidence of torture at the hands of a side. humanginable tragedy. for the first time, since the , they were joined by more than 40 countries and institutions who have assented to the geneva communiqué, which outlines how this conflict will conclude. creation of a transitional government with full executive authority by mutual consent. let me tell you, in simple means assadhat

cannot be part of that future. because of the extraordinary havoc that he is redone his own people. a man who was killed university students and doctors with stunt missiles. a man who has gassed his own people in the dead of night -- family sleeping, women, children, grandparents. a man who was unleashed extraordinary force of artillery and aerial bombs against civilians, again. assad will never have or be able to earn back the legitimacy to bring the country back together. that is number one. of thoseo, because things he has done, because of 130,000 people who have been killed, the opposition will never stop fighting while he is there. so, if your objective is to have peace, this one man must step

aside in favor of peace and of his nation. you can never achieve peace until he is gone. finally, any transitional government of mutual consent, by definition, will not include assad because they will not permit him to be there. the united states is engaged in this difficult endeavor because we know that the longer the fighting continues, the greater divisionshat syria's will spiral out of control. we know that there are people who wish that american men and women were on the ground fighting for them. there are people who would love to see america fight their war for them. but that is not the choice. the choice is first diplomacy. to avoid the devastating results that could result in the disintegration of the syrian the instability that

could spread across the entire region. we are engaged because the number of refugees pouring into turkey is lebanon and destabilizing. it is unsustainable. you are engaged because while we are proud to be the largest contributor to the humanitarian assistance to deal with those refugees, the ultimate solution can only come when we stop the supply of refugees. when we stop the fighting. that can't happen soon enough. to kill andues displace innocent syrians and in doing so has become the world's greatest single individual magnet for jihad and terror. solution, wetical know where this leads. more if you jesus, more --rorists, more extremism,

more refugees. we do not believe that we or anyone should tolerate one man's brutal effort to cling to power we must empower all of the syrian people. that is why the united states and our partners who sat around the table this week will continue to fight for a pluralistic, inclusive syria, where all minorities are protected, where all rights are protected, and we're syria can come together to become a secular and unified state that it once was. represented by a government of the people's choice, where all minorities are protected. we believe this mission is achievable. we will continue to work closely with our partners for a new syria that can exist peacefully as a sovereign, independent, and democratic state we are syrians

will be able to have their voices heard without the fear of retribution, imprisonment, or even death. this will notknow be easy. it is obviously very, very hard. it is already hard. what already seen in syria forceful diplomacy is able to achieve. speak, a man who the day before he agreed to do it denied even had the weapons, is now removing all of the chemical weapons from that country. as we speak, the international community is on its way to completely removing all of and -- -- syria opossum: an unprecedented undertaking. syria's chemical weapons. we are convinced if the people

are going to have the chance to rebuild the country and if million of syrian refugees are going to have the chance to return home, it is ultimately diplomacy that will make it possible. yhere is no military solution. that brings me to the most intractable of all conflicts. the struggle to make peace between the israelis and palestinians. every time i meet my foreign counterparts, anywhere in the world, when they visit me in washington or when i travel to their countries, i am not kidding you when i tell you that invariably, the first issue they ask me about, is the challenge of middle east peace. it may seem improbable to you, but i'm telling you, is absolutely true. from asia to latin america to , this, all through europe

question lingers. this intractable conflict has confounded administration after administration, prime minister after prime minister, leaders and peacemakers. always ask me this about the middle east, even before they complain about what we are doing or not doing, ironically. despite this global interest, my me,nds, people still ask and i'm astonished by it. why, with all the troubles in why is the obama administration so focused on trying to forge israeli and palestinian peace? i have had that question directed at me, personally and in other ways. the reason we are so devoted to try to find a solution is really simple. because the benefits of success

and the dangers of failure are enormous. for the united states, for the world, for the region, and most importantly, for the israeli and palestinian people. after all the years expended on this, the last thing we need is a failure that will make certain additional conflict. there are some people who are certain this may be the last shot. i don't want to find that out the hard way. i want you to consider what happens if talks fail. demographicthe dynamic will make it impossible to preserve its future as a democratic jewish state. israel's current relative security and prosperity does not change the fact that the status quo cannot be sustained if

israel's democratic future is in fact to be secured. today status quo, my friends, i promise you, will not last forever. president abbas is committed to negotiations and nonviolence. emboldenre will only extremists and power hardliners at the expense of the moderates who have been committed to a nonviolent track to find peace. what will happen in the west bank without that commitment to nonviolence? the israeli and palestinian members of breaking the initiative, who i hear today know well what is at stake -- israel's economic juggernaut is a wonder to behold. netanyahu was able to talk to you about it today. securityrating environment and the growing

isolation that could come with it could put that prosperity at risk. meanwhile, if this fails, palestinian's would be no closer to the sovereignty that they seek. no closer to their ability to be the masters of their own fate. no closer to their ability to grow their own economy. no closer to solving the refugee problem that has been allowed to fester for decades. if they fail to achieve statehood now, there is no guarantee another opportunity will follow anytime soon. resolved atannot be the united nations. it can only be resolved between the parties. fails, the region risks and other destabilizing crisis. one unilateral act from one side ,r the other will beget another

and another, and another, until we are fallen yet again into a dangerous downward spiral at a time when there is already too much danger. you know what's interesting? we often spend so much time talking about what both parties stand to lose without peace. we often forget to talk enough about what they stand to gain from peace. believe that the fact that peace is possible, especially in a region with so much tension turmoil ought to motivate people. palestinian stand to gain their own place among the community of nations. imagine this guide next year here in davos if palestinian government leaders are able to pitch the world's largest investors a host of project from the palestinian economic

initiative. imagine if they could be participated -- invited to participate in building a new state with new jobs, new infrastructure, and a new life, free from occupation. for israel, the benefits of peace are enormous as well. perhaps even more significant. for starters, no nation on earth stands to gain so many new economic partners so quickly as israel does. of thetional members arab league and 35 muslim countries stand ready under the arab peace initiative to all recognize israel and normalize relations the moment a peace agreement is reached. the sheik had said at a meeting of the foreign ministers at the arab league which we held in paris two months ago -- he said to his minister colleagues,

completely spontaneously, he said am a you know what, after peace, israel will er economic lf thanns within the gu with europe. imagine what that could mean for trade. a peace agreement with the palestinians could boost by as much as 6% a year. the jewish state of israel and the arab state of palestine could develop into an international hub for technology , for trade, tourism -- unbelievable to were as him. the holiest sites of the world. .his will invigorate a region

it is long past time that the people of this great and ancient part of the world became known for what they can create, not conflicts they can perpetuate. is long past time -- it is long past time that jerusalem becomes the object of constant struggle, but as the unity,city of peace and embodying the aspirations of israelis and palestinians alike. the truth is, after decades of struggling with this conflict, we all know what the endgame looks like. state fordent palestinians wherever they may be. security arrangements for israel that leave it more secure, not less. phase, final with drawl of the israeli army.

a just and agreed solution for the palestinian refugee problem. an end to the conflict and all claims and mutual recognition of the nationstate of the palestinian people and the nationstate of the jewish people. that is our destination. the real challenge is not what is it -- it is just how to get there. how to get the leaders places politics of both to make the courageous decisions necessary to embrace what would be fair and what would work. that is why i working with president abbas and not in netanyahuachieve -- to define the endgame and provide guidelines for negotiators in their efforts to a final peace

agreement. i've watched for over 30 years in the united states senate. i saw when the great handshake took place. andtched a annapolis oslo and all these efforts. people of had to wonder, when or if the real peace can be achieved. one of the biggest challenges in reaching this agreement is security. the palestinians need to know that at the end of the day, their territories going to be free of israeli troops. occupation ends. rightfully will not with drawl unless they know that the west bank will not become a new gaza. nobody can blame any leader of israel for being concerned about that reality.

we have been working hard on addressing this challenge. president obama's approach begins with america's steadfast commitment to israel's security. that thered i know cannot be peace unless israel's security and needs are met. we have put the full range of resources of the u.s. government behind this effort. way. unprecedented for the past nine months, a team led by john allen, a four-star general and one of the most respected minds in the u.s. military, has been engaged in a comprehensive security dialogue with our is really and palestinian -- israeli and palestinian counterparts. we are confident that together with israel, working with jordan, working with the palestinians, working with us, all of us together can create a

security structure that meets the highest standards anywhere in the world. by developing a layered defense that includes significantly strengthening the fences on both sides by employing state-of-the-art technology and rigorous testing, we can make the borders safe for any type of conventional or unconventional threat from individual terrorists or an armed force. they're well aware -- we are well aware that technology alone is not the answer. we also know it can play a key role in helping to secure the jordanian border, just like iron dome has played a key role in securing israel's southern communities. security is a priority. we understand that israel has to be strong to make peace. we also believe that peace will make israel stronger.

we are convinced that the greatest security of all will actually come from a two state solution. that brings israel the lasting peace and secure borders that they deserve and brings palestinians the freedom and the dignity that they deserve. as committed as we are, it is ultimately up to the israelis and the palestinians to reach an agreement on how to end this conflict. make no mistake, this will politicalfficult decisions and painful compromises on both sides. these are emotional issues. many embedded in age-old narrative. at the end of the day, it is up to prime minister netanyahu and president us to recognize what the world has recognized -- peace is in the best interest of their people. -- president abbas. that makes it no less true that

at every level, everybody has a role to play. the arab league and the european union have already shown how they can pave the way for peace and they have been unbelievably cooperative and we are grateful for their help. think the leader of , then, the arab league leader of the follow-on committee that is working month-to-month to be engaged in this. many states have made contributions to the palestinian microy, including a infrastructure initiative. many companies have invested in both israel and the palestinian territories. you're shown the difference that the private sector can make in this endeavor. all of you can make a positive contribution by dismissing the

all too easy skepticism. by seeing the possibilities, and by building the momentum for peace. , like the diplomacy conversations here at davos, the man's a kind of cooperation that has to come from many stakeholders. in an interconnected world, all challenges must be addressed on the basis of togetherness. that is true whether you are talking about this peace effort, or about what we must achieve in syria. or about what we must ensure in iran. intensive, creative, strong diplomacy. it requires strong cooperation. that is exactly why the united states is so engaged in the middle east and around the world. and why we will stay so. as our friends and partners take courageous steps forward, they can be assured that president

obama and his administration will remain engaged for the long haul. we will also confront these challenges with the urgency they deserve. missre not and we will not this moment. thank you. [applause] >> the two sides will meet for the first time tomorrow. the mediator from delegation saying that the western opposition in the searing government will be in the same room tomorrow for the first time ever. the mediator trying to find a path to peace, or at least a measure of common ground after civil war. coming up in about half an hour or so here on c-span, will take you live to the pentagon for a briefing with defense secretary chuck hagel and his french counterpart.

secretary hagel ordered a 60 day review of the nations nuclear following a cheating scandal. we expect to hear more about that during today's briefing. that is coming up live at 3:00. >> i did most americans are thinking the same thing right about now. nothing will get done in washington this year, or next year, or maybe even the year after that. washington is broken. can you blame them for feeling a little cynical? the greatest blow to our confidence and our economy last year did not come from events beyond our control. it came from a debate in washington over whether the united states would pay its bills were not. who benefited from that fiasco?

have talked tonight about the deficit of trust between main street and wall street. but the divide between the city and the rest of the country is at least as bad. it seems to get worse every year. >> president obama delivers this year's address. it starts live tuesday night at 8:00, with the president at 9:00. followed by the response from cathy mcmorris rodgers. the state of the union, tuesday night, live on c-span, c-span radio, and c-span.org. >> fbi director james coming to talked aboutomey the relationship between law enforcement and local agencies. he was speaking to the national sheriff's association winter conference. [applause]

>> thank you so much for that introduction. thank you for giving me a chance to visit with you. you are stuck with me. i'm beginning a 10 year term, so you have nine more of these talks. i will try to keep them fresh each time. i thought it would make sense for me to talk about three things this morning. to introduce myself a bit to you and share with you what i expect from the fbi, what the fbi should expect from me, and lastly, what you should expect from the fbi. let me start by telling you how exciting it is to be back among law enforcement. the most rewarding parts of my career have always been when i am working cases with federal, state, and local enforcers. i grew up in a law enforcement family. one of my heroes was my grandfather. kid in sixth

grade when his dad was killed in new york. he was the oldest and his family , so he dropped out of school in sixth grade to support his family. when he was old enough, he became a patrolmen and rose over 40 years to lead the department. i have on my wall and old himpaper photo of escorting a guy to jail who'd been in a shootout with the police. i leave it there is a reminder of the legacy that i have inherited. my grandfather was the strong, silent type. , dignified, and passionate about the rule of law. one of the stories i grew up with was from him and my dad telling me about the time that his officers discovered ring

prohibition that bootleggers were running gear and fire hoses through the sewers of yonkers and into the bronx. enjoyed ther occasional beer. he ordered his men to cut those firehoses with axes because it was the law. that led to a protective detail being around his home when my father was a kid because the bootleggers were shocked that someone in law enforcement would do that. you're not shocked by that. i'm not shocked by that. that is the kind of people we want and law enforcement. that is the kind of person i grew up admiring. that is the person that stares down at me everyday at my desk at the fbi headquarters. it is great to be back among you. what does the fbi -- what are my expectations for the fbi western mark i spoke to all the employees.

it when a new boss said, here what my expectations are. so i spoke to everybody and said i have five expectations for you and i want to be clear about them. the first is, i expect that you will find joy in your work. you do good for a living. the matter what you do in this organization, protecting the innocent, rescuing the most vulnerable, making sure predators do not continue to harm -- that is good. in that,n't find joy there is something wrong. you need to find a way to get to a place where you can get joy in something for a living. do notomething we talk about enough. secondly, i told them the next pick you wor will work hard. the citizens paid taxes for you

to protect them. up,hat does not fire you nothing will. i expect you to work hard as you do that good. third, i said, because you are enjoying your work and you want to work really hard, i need you to do a third thing. my expectation is that you will keep a life -- that balance, that distance that keeps you healthy in both body and spirit. one of the challenges of law enforcement is, we laugh off or even don't talk about stress and what seeing so much pain does to us and what working so hard does to us and to our relationships. i don't want you to neglect that. i need you to look after your body, look after your relationships -- for a couple of reasons. it is the right thing to do and because i need you. i need you for the fight that we are in. it is a long, unending fight. i need you healthy in mind, body, and spirit to help us protect the innocent.

i said, look, there are people in your lives called "loved ones" because some of you has to love them. that is you. there is a tendency, especially for those of us who are passionate about the work we do, to think, i have to do this case. myill get back to my mom, dad, my girlfriend, my boyfriend, my children. i will find time for them later. there is no later. everybody in this room knows that life is short and often very cruel. bad things happen to good people. there's no getting back. i have five children. the joy of feeling, hearing, and watching a two-year-old roddick lost the floor when you come home. i told people, don't miss that. find a way to achieve that balance. love somebody.

work, distance and your life, find some way to stay healthy and balanced. fourth, i said i expect every human being in this organization from the intern to the director will be treated with the exact same amount of dignity and respect. there is no difference. i will not tolerate people being treated differently by virtue of some perception of their station in life. it drives me crazy. that does not mean you accord respect to position. please don't ask me to go out for coffee. to the intern to dip lloyd the hostage rescue team. -- deployed the hostage rescue team. a knowledge of that should be reflected in how you deal with every human being in this organization. that is nonnegotiable. it is one of the reasons i love

the organization because that is part of our culture. i insisted continue. -- insist that it continue. last is perhaps the hardest expectation. when you stand up for the first time and show your credentials and speak -- whether it is in a courtroom or conference room or at a cookout, when you identify yourself as part of this organization and speak, total strangers will believe what you say next. i don't want to burst your bubble, but that is not because of you. those are total strangers to you. that is because of what went before you. it is because of people who over generations build this culture so that you would be believed. they built it by telling the y makinghey built it b mistakes and fixing them, they built it by listening to the

voice inside of themselves when they felt something was not quite right, they belted by honoring the reputation of this great organization. i think of that as a reservoir. a reservoir of trust and credibility. they take forever to fill and build, but one hole in the dam is going to drain the whole thing. you are a custodian at that reservoir. don't ever do anything to jeopardize that gift. you must patrol that reservoir, you must watch that dam, you must constantly ask yourself, am i honoring the gift i've been given? i have a son who wants to be in a cia agent. an fbi agent. i would love it if one of my children or their children joins this organization and with a standup and identify themselves, they are believed. you protected the gift.

being believed is at the core of everything we do in law-enforcement. where weat we saw, found something, what we heard -- we must be believed by people of all stripes. or else we cannot accomplish the good that we have signed up to do. i say to these people, look, i know that seems easy, but that is the most important expectation i have for you. it is all gone unless you protect that reservoir. those are my expectations for all 37,000 employees of the fbi. what you expect of me? you should expect the humility to listen. i have known the fbi my whole adult life. i've done a ton of work with the fbi. but i don't know it well enough, and i especially don't know the weight is changed in the eight years i've been out of government to be effective is your director. lot to see me a whole ask you what i should make for

my priorities. the best teaching for leaders is , don't roll into an organization asking the question, what why want to do? you'll end up doing the things that are fun for you or that you get a kick out of or that are consistent with your past experience. you may not do what the organization need you to do. so the question you should ask is, what does this place need from me? one of the things the fbi needed for me the moment i walked in the door was for me to focus on the budget. i had no plan to focus on the budget, i get no joy from focusing on the budget, what i'd heard from my folks the moment i walked in, you'll not believe the impact that this is having on us. we are rationing gas, we are trying to decide whether to do a interview because we may need to do an interview on thursday and i don't need to spend the gas , and that is crazy.

so i focused on the budget right away. we got to the place where congress has adequately funded the fbi for this year and hopefully for next year. so you should see me coming around with my mouth closed and my ears open, asking you, what would you tell a brand-new whattor of the fbi -- should he worry about? so i have been doing that. i've been traveling a ton and going andound and seeing my folks and talking to them. i am starting to develop a picture of what things i should focus on. i believe as a leader, i only slice ofall discretionary time -- i have to take that and focus on a few priorities and revisit them every six months to make sure i'm using my time, not for what i want to do, but what folks need me to do.

you should expect that i will hold myself accountable to those same five expectations. so that is what you should expect from the fbi. that is what you should expect for me. you should expect the humility to listen from the fbi. you should expect conversations where you are asked questions of what you need from the guy. fbi -- i'mion of the a bit of a basketball person -- my football career lasted three weeks. i got injured three times in three weeks. the one day i come home from school, my mother drove me home from the doctor and then she disappeared and then came back and said, you quit football. i said, no i didn't. i'm going back in there, mom. no, you just quit. i just went and saw the coach.

my mother quit for me. so don't say i'm a quitter. my mother is a quitter. [applause] [laughter] --football career was brief my vision of the fbi is like a free safety in football. we have certain assigned coverages -- assigned responsibilities. most of what we do is trying to look forward to the line and see where the primary defense needs us. if you need us to come up or need?ack, what do they because we only have a few assigned coverages, we have the freedom to run that field. sometimes we can actually see plays developing that are hard for the line to see.

you may see it from our position and help respond to that. vision for the fbi. i want you to have conversations and say, youocal, have the primary defensive response ability. where do you need us? that may be different in new york city and omaha. that is the conversation next fact that you will be having. our assigned coverages should be obvious to you. he made a promise to the american people that we will do everything in our power to prevent another terrorist attack in the united states. that is the number one priority. i wake up every morning worrying about it. that is where you want us. that is an assigned coverage of this free safety. nothing is going to change that. we are responsible for detecting the nations secrets. counterintelligence is an assigned coverage of ours.

we have other priorities that we want to adjust according to what you need. these expect those conversations. if you're not getting them, ask for them. you now know that the director has told everybody that i want you to have this conversation. we can't be everything, but we can give you the respect every conversation and explaining what we can and can't do and the why associated with those. in everything we do, we need your help. to task force is that we use respond to terrorism, to violent crimes, to protect children, all the things we do, we do best together. one thing i've learned from traveling around the country is, some thing i've not expected, you sent people to our task --ces, but you spend us your you send us your stars. that is an amazing thing. when a cynic would look from the outside, they would say, yeah, they will dump some bomb on the

task force. you send us your best. that adds to the cost of the investment, and we aren't readily grateful -- we are incredibly grateful. the joint terrorist task force has remained incredibly important west. folks askmetimes that themselves, i'm not new york, i'm not in washington, i'm not is al qaeday, to the a something we should be devoting local resources to? yes. the threat remains with al qaeda trying to get in and attack primary targets. ofalso take the challenge our citizens traveling overseas, especially in conflict areas. learning new things, making new

friends, and then coming back to with thed states wherewithal and the inclination to do harm. those people aren't coming from one particular place. they're coming from and returning to all over the nine states. everywhere in the united states. you have read about homegrown violent extremists. the folks that some call lone wolves. dignity that it does not deserve. rats is probably better. these homegrown violent extremists are people who are not directed by al qaeda, but were inspired and by virtue of axis of the internet, are able to train themselves in their basement and then do harm to others. to the internet. soul whohe disturbed might be inspired by this kind of thing is, that is where the problem is. yesterday at the terrace

spring center. they told me that 40%-50% of the calls they receive are from your folks. they are encountering somebody, hearing about somebody -- that nationwide focus is essential. i thank you for continuing to focus on it. i thank you for the terrorist task force is. they will remain necessary. unfortunately, they will be necessary for the foreseeable future. i thank you for that. other than that, you should expect those conversations. whether the issue you are focused on his child exploitation, sex trafficking, violent crime, or some mix of all the things that keep us awake at night, we want to have conversations about how we can help. let me stop by saying, now you know the expectations i have for fbi. let me finish by telling you how lucky i feel to be back.

every time i left government come up twice, i discovered the difference between the job you love. governmentn my left was when i moved from new york to richmond, va. there was a hiring freeze in 1993. i cannot get into the u.s. attorney's office. i went to law firm and they made me a partner, they paid me good money, and i had matching furniture, which was new to me. [laughter] greata parking space and colleagues and interesting legal issues and a job i liked. but i missed something. it out. whoas my amazing spouse first said, "what is wrong with ? we live in this great community. everything is great at home. you're making great money. " at is wrong?"

i said, i miss trying to do something good. i don't love this. i know what it's like to have a job you love. .t has left a hole in me three years later, when an opening came up, i left the law firm and went back to the government. they thought i needed a psychiatric evaluation. i had to get a job that i loved. i lost that one other time. i say that to remind you that you are surely not in it for the money, to remind you of how lucky you are -- some of you have left and come back, to be able to do work that you love because it involves doing good. i, like you, speak to a lot of kids, high school and college-age kids, and have given advice that is maybe a little

depressing to them. i say, look, i, like you, have seen a lot of pain and a lot of bad things. i know life is cruel and short and bad things happen to good people. so i say to these on people, look, you have to do the things you're doing which is think of what's next. sometimes you need to turn the telescope around and come in your mind, look at your life from the end. you are an old man or old woman and look back and ask yourself this question. who do i want to have been? what do you want to have been question mark i think the answer will be, this is what you want to have been. you don't want to be somebody with a great boat or great house or a fancy car. you want to be somebody that's been part of protecting the innocent, rescuing children, doing all the things that you do. turn that around to try to guide those choices you're making to the end of your life. i know you made the choice. i want to honor you for that

choice and tell you how thrilled i am to be back among the people who have made that choice. i look forward to have nine mo conversations with you. i'm thrilled and honored to be the director of the fbi and to be your colleague. thank you very much. [applause] >> thank you for your remarks. we appreciate the relationship we share. it has been a strong relationship. we know that will continue to get better. thanks for being here. we know you have other things to do and you have to leave us, but we would like to give you this history book. the history of the armistice share. >> thank you so much.

[applause] >> some of you have been marching for over 40 years. setbacks,ndured many including the recent expansion of abortion coverage in obamacare. boos] it is important now, more than ever, that we are made strong and stand together. we cannot allow the opponents of life to continue to weaken the moral fabric of our country. they need to know and they need to understand that we will continue to march, we will continue to educate, we will continue to advocate, and we will continue to fight for the unborn. [applause]

>> despite the fact that president obama is using stealth deception and a chorus of power of the state to promote abortion -- the pro-life movement is alive and well and making serious, significant, and sustained progress. >> this weekend on c-span, the annual march for life rally from the mall in d.c. on c-span two and book tv, what is the secret to life -- to a life with happiness? three, from 1964 to 2000 an [inaudible] 4, the state of the union speeches. >> millions came down in nationwide protest.

>> edifies any definition. -- it defies any definition. >> the military has come down to the streets. i am stopped at one of the checkpoints and they searched the car. they found my previous book, which is not good to find by military intelligence when the country's exploding. they said, come with us. we want to talk with you for a while. i went to a place, i don't know where the location was -- i was taken by people in plainclothes. point,ze that a certain this is the cbg and i have to get rid of it. i excused myself to the bathroom and tried to destroy the dvd by breaking it apart. i don't know if you've ever tried to break apart a dvd, but ard.s h i shoved it down the drain, went back to the interrogation room

feeling confident that i had gotten rid of evidence that could possibly keep me there for a lot longer than i wanted to be , and about five minutes later, the guy cleaning the bathroom comes in with a piece of the dvd in his hand. >> more with the director of the academy award nominated documentary "the square." >> pentagon reporters gathered to hear from chuck hagel and from the french minister of defense. secretary hagel ordered a 60 day review of the nation's nuclear a recentollowing cheating scandal and allegations of drug abuse among air force missile personnel. expect questions on that, as well as other issues at the news conference, which is set to get underway momentarily. the washington post writes that the guardianship of nuclear arms has been a consistent concern

for the air force. in 2008, howard gates fired the after ae's top general series of nuclear related gaps occurred on their watch, including an episode in which a b-52 bomber flew across the country without realizing that six cruise missiles were on board, armed with nuclear warheads. that is from the washington post. secretary hagel and the french defense minister live on c-span momentarily. >> this is the chief policy officer, formally the iraq and afghanistan veterans of america. remind us of what happened to some military pensions and benefits from the agreement that was passed by congress.

>> thank you for having me on. thing they did was cut the retirement benefit. what they did was largely in secret. they reduce the amount of increased to retirement which is the average cost of living increase. take that from what everyone country andthe reduce that by 1%. the working age of people who spent 30 years in the military they get a each year in the amof retirement benefits. for an officer, it could be up to $120,000. $83,000 might not sound like a lot to the millionaire serving in congress but to the men and

women who served as meant a career in the military, that is a lot of money, and that is a huge difference. that is one or two kids college tuition right there. host: doesn't affect current retirees? guest: absolutely. everybody who is a working age retiree, meaning they retired under the military at 38, 40, 50 from the time they're 65. guest: once you turn 65, you get regular cola adjustment like before. this is highly disturbing. not only is it an unnecessary cut the retirement but a huge slap in the face for those who spent a career in the military, and it is going to severely impact retention. it is going to severely impact people's ability or desire to stay in the career military. we tried something like this before. in fact, the last time they tried this it was nowhere near

this severe and the dotted the active-duty force so much that not only did they repeal of that they will actively -- retroactively repealed. host: "usa today" had in editorial about this issue. "veterans, they protest too much, way too much. the military pension system is not only extremely generous but counterproductive. it defends that it drains money from weapons. while -- in an and in a host: after 20 years, regardless of age, and military retiree can expect a pension equal to 50% of an final pay with an additional 2.5% for each year of service eons and 20.

the cuts, that they put in quotes, comes in the form of a reduction in cola by one percentage point each year until age 62. at 62, the full cola would come back and pensions would shoot up to where it had been had the full role of been in effect. finally, "usa today" writes that the approach in the budget would save taxpayer money and help reach a budget targets and also discourage people from leaving early after the government has invested so much in them. guest: i love it when people who don't understand the veterans community like to speak authoritatively. this editorial is based on multiple false assumptions and frankly faxed -- things they assume are facts don't really

exist. first of all, the military pension system is the way it is to encourage people to spend a career in the military. two thirds of the american population are not eligible for military service. that means the military is competing with the top third of the country with everyone else, with every corporation, education institution. so, encouraging someone to stay for 20 years, it is why this benefit is structured the way it is. and it is an effective benefit. roughly 17% of people stay in the military until retirement. that is an incredibly small number. and it is not an easy decision. i got out after 10 years because the military is tough on your body, tough on your mind, tough on your family. when you come out at 38 or 40, within that middle working age time in your life, not only did

you have a much more difficult career than your civilian peers, but you are now starting over from scratch where you would have started in your mid-20's. now you are 42, 40 three years old and you have to completely restart your career. this is why the military retirement benefit is not only structure like that but it is effective. and in terms of saving money, there's a lot better ways within the dod budget, even in the personnel section, to be saving money. host: which is? guest: they talk about how the military health care system is going to bankrupt the dod. that is simply not true. and if it was true, why have there been over $700 million -- why have they been $700 million under budget, $3 billion dod has given back because they understand health care. even in that system they could find better efficiencies. the dod has a three separate health care systems, three separate sourcing and contracting system that could be unified. so there are a lot of

efficiencies that can be found that could save even more money than just slashing benefits. and at the end of the day what we are talking about is going to the group of people who sacrificed the most over the last 12 years and asking them to keep sacrificing. veterans, military families, retirees, we are not the government's piggy bank. we are the people who keep answering the call every single time and to come back and say, well, here, we are going to send you to war but we are sorry, we cannot afford to take care of the afterword, it is a slap in the face and frankly insulting. host: you served for 10 years. at the end of that, now that you are out, what benefits do you receive? guest: i don't receive retirement benefits. i received benefits from department of veterans affairs. that was a decision i made. if i wanted to get a pension and retirement, i would have to stay in for another 10 years. that is a motivating factor to keep someone in for that long. i made the decision personally that it was not the route i wanted to go.

it was not the career path i wanted to go. i had accomplished a lot in my military career. i was proud of everything i did. and i felt that i was done. and i know a lot of people who at that point say, you know, i was stuck it out to retirement. and that benefit is the reason you can keep such, -- high- quality people in for so long. host: the current situation would not affect the vietnam veterans because they are all over age 62 -- mostly over age 62. it would affect iraq and afghanistan veterans. what is your group? guest: iraq and afghanistan veterans of america is the first and largest nonpartisan, nonprofit group for veterans of current conflict. we advocate in washington for things like the g.i. bill, greater mental health. we bring awareness to the american public of these issues. one percent of american people have served in iraq and

afghanistan, so bringing these issues into the public eye or into the popular culture is absolutely critical, especially as we have a chemically shrinking military and veterans population in this country. and the last thing we do is providing assistance. we help veterans in need of resources, who need help. we just launched our rapid response referral program in california yesterday. so if you are in new york state or california, we have a bona fide network of services that you can call iava come and you can have a social worker connect you with a verified service who knows how to take care of veterans. you go to iava.org and we can hook you up with resources. we are hoping to push this nationally over the next five or 10 years. the reality is, when you have a shrinking veterans appellation, we have about 40,000 nonprofits across the country doing great things locally as well as the typical civilian services that want to help vets out there.

the only way we are going to maintain that care network with a population that is shrinking across the country is the we integrate those services into the veteran community. host: dee dee tweets in -- his military pension under veterans benefits or general budget? does the defense budget include veterans benefits and pensions? guest: know, and actually this is really important. this is something most people don't understand. in other countries they are lumped up all into defense. the department of defense, including military pension and military retirement, is under the defense budget. the veterans affairs budget is a separate pot of money which runs a health care system as well as a things like disability benefits, the g.i. bill, and home loans. this is actually one of the bigger problems we have in this country, because the department of defense and the department of veterans affairs really don't talk to each other really well. they have gotten a lot better in the last several years, like starting to share health records

and starting to communicate more when it comes to the benefits transition. but what we really need to have happen is the people who make the veterans and who care for the veterans for their live need to be totally in sync, something the veterans community has been trying to saw for a long time. host: tom tarantino, are there legislative efforts to restore these cola reductions? guest: so many. what is interesting is as soon as of this got announced -- and actually, if you notice, and the press conference that announced this budget deal that was a lot of talk about all the things that were not on the table between senator marie and congressman ryan. what i found interesting, i found out later that night because somebody sent me the actual text, is veterans and military families were on that table. i find that pretty shocking. i think immediately they realized they made a huge mistake. so there are right now 20 billion congress that are looking to repeal this. and so our staff and the entire veterans community are tryinto

sort through all the bills and figure out which ones are workable, which ones are doable and which ones have political poison pills and which ones we can actually move forward with. i think what you will see over the next few weeks as this will get repealed. host: first call for tom tarantino from the iraq and afghanistan veterans of america group comes from james in georgia. democrat. caller: good morning. how are you guys doing this morning? i was listening. i may be wrong, but this is my opinion. veterans -- war is a volunteer service. it is not a draft. i think that you have --i am not talking about those who go over there and lose a limb.

just like anything else. to me, this is only my opinion, the pensions -- the good thing, because we are already paying for the medical benefits. it is a stretch just like everyday people go to work also. it is not no competing job, it is just like a job. we volunteered to do. they volunteer to fight. and i think that is just the way it is,, that it should be cut. and that is my opinion. host: mr. tarantino? guest: this is part of a larger disconnect between the american people and military community. military is not a job, it is a lifestyle. not only is it an all- encompassing lifestyle but one that is necessary for the safety and security of this country. we need a strong military to keep this country safe and to keep this country moving forward. we talk a lot about how much we pay to keep the troops loaded with gear and the bullets, and

we talk a lot about how much the troops need to fight. but what we tend to miss is how much they need to live. and military lifestyle is incredibly difficult. it is a lifestyle of service and sacrifice. like pensions and all of the things that they get it. they are to keep and maintain that lifestyle. themis why we do not pay that well because the keep the cost of living relatively low. it is cheaper to do this upfront. if you do not, the difficulty of going to war in thing in the military tends to be hard on the body and family. ou will eventually pay for the ancillary problems if you do not take care of it up front. we saw this after the vietnam war. we were in danger of losing a generation. we had an opportunity to turn

the page after vietnam. >> good morning, riley. host: good morning, riley. caller: this is larry. i am 72 years of age and retired from the united states navy. my service was from 1960 until 1990. you know what went on during that period of time. mr. reagan cut the cola in half for those of us under 55 at the time. the same tricks again. we keep repeating history. it just amazes me of how this

country that so many have given so much for has no respect. thank you for taking my call. guest: thank you for your service. larry makes an outstanding point. it is critical to countering the dod argument. personnel costs right now are about 30% of the budget. in 1990 they were about 30% of the budget. personnel costs in the dod are typically cheaper than private industry. you have seen an increase in the personnel costs over the last 10 years. through the 1990's, we slashed health care, retirement, pay. the same positions that are crying about how much we have overblown personnel cost told congress in the 1990's if you do not restore pay to competitive levels, we're going to throw a war and no one is going to show up. the increases were resetting the pay and benefit system to get to where they were competitive. that was a one-time thing, that was a reset. dod says it is going to hit 60%.

that is not saying the pay and benefits will slowly increase to 60%. we are talking about fictional math. it does not exist. the talking point has been picked up and it is never going to die. we talk about the cost for

health care and pension, it is more efficient than the civilian system but fairly sustainable. host: this tweet. guest: it is a different job. a military job -- this is another point we tend to see coming out of congress. in the military, death, destruction and war are part of your regular job. you are not sitting behind a desk or processing paperwork. you are making decisions that deal with people's lives. it is not a lifestyle you can

sit in for 20 years or that is easy to do for 20 years. it is proven to be effective because it retains the highest quality people to lead our military forces. host: next call for tom tarantino comes from brenda. caller: yes. one thing i would like to get clear. i was raised by two registered democrats. their advice to us as children, do your homework, vote for who you think will do the best job. i have been an independent voter all of my life.

i was a kid during world war ii. what i missed in this country nowadays is the gratitude that the people had toward the military. we were a proud people. we built tanks, ships, planes. and a fighting force that could not be beat. i know that there are bills waiting in the senate. my favorite senator, jeff reed jeff sessions has two bills to correct this situation, taking money from the illegals and reinforcing the military. harry reid will not bring them to the floor. think about it. he is from nevada. >> good afternoon. i welcome the opportunity to

welcome the french master of defense. he is a friend. enjoyed hisy much and conversations and discussions that we have about all of the important .elationships we reinforce the deep and enduring relations between france and united states. france is america's oldest allies. our defense partnership continues to be one of great importance. it is important both in new york and around the world. in recent years, the troops has surged side-by-side around the globe from africa to afghanistan .

one area focus today was our continuing of cooperation and support of our international efforts in africa. including significant french contributions and molly. mali as well as other locations to displace that we are gaining a foothold there. providedd states has relation since 2013 including airlift, refueling for french aircraft and intelligence cooperation. it also committed the leadership in helping the international support mission to provide humanitarian assistance. the united states has been and remains committed to supporting efforts to protect civilians, prevent further atrocities and provide humanitarian assistance in the central african republic.

six weeks ago, the nation with began helicopter and transport to get some 850 peacekeeping troops from baroody to the central african republic and quell all the violence baird last week we extended the support to peacekeepers from her wanda. today we discussed ways we can continue working together in africa and other locations to adjust shared interests and challenges going forward. the support of terrorism efforts. the united states and our european allies has taken the threat of violent extremism very seriously since 9/11. find working together to new ways to combat this threat in europe, the middle east, and africa. we discussed a number of other critical issues including objectives for the nato summit in september. facilitate better

exchanges between our academies and her efforts to cooperate in areas like space cooperation. earlier this week, u.s. strategic command in the french signed aof defense situational awareness agreement. this will enhance information sharing between our two countries in this critical domain. this is an important step we have taken the some of our closest allies. now with france. it'll help bring the u.s./friend alliance further together into the 21st century. i'll will ask the minister for his comments. we'll be very happy to take questions. thank you. >> thank you.

thank you for the meeting here at the pentagon. it is always a great pleasure for me to meet chuck hagel. between us it is more like a friendship. we are very happy to meet. has to do withe the preparation of the state visit. this visit takes place at a y we areere we can sa in a situation where the defense cooperation but there's never sector.deep a strategic sharein reason is that we

proliferation. the same analysis regarding terrorism in the same determinism to fight against which put in question our threatened theso emphasizedlks and .uestions linked to africa i think chuck hagel for the importance and support of the united states. they give us airlift support, or

refueling support in the central in order toblic mobilize the african forces. mentioned this important transportation there are a certain number of african troops. that we needed to pursue cooperation and our dialogue on africa. it is both a question of a question and also of security. both at the same time. security in africa also mean security in europe and security on the international theatre, especially the saha red zone

where we both agreed to create a high level group with a representative of each of us with a team, not in order to discuss permanently -- president our analysis.tly we are going to set this up in order to better target terrorists threats in this huge area. together we mentioned the conclusion of the european council plans in december. inre are going to meet again february, the full meeting of

nato ministers. thank you. >> thank you. >> we have time for about two questions. had a chance to me with some of the problems about nuclear personnel. i'm wondering if he can tell us she has bit about what come away from her visit from some of the bases and what she has shared of you. moreands of this may be widespread than was initially thought. what have you come to learn about that? >> thank you. i spoke with secretary james last week before she left on her trip to the icbm locations. i spoke with her again yesterday for about an hour as she completed those inspections.

met with admiral haney who you know is our commanding general for our strategic forces. he was here to meet with me last back.nd then went we spent that hour talking about some of her observations. do. she thinks we need to some general thoughts about those recommendations that will meeting that i will be having soon here at the pentagon which i announced yesterday and the announcement of two different efforts going forward. one is to bring all of our strategic commanders, all those responsible for leadership in nuclear determined. .s well as an outside group

it will come back to me and the chairman with recommendations for how we can deal with these challenges that we are now seeing is a result of what is happening. this, ir thoughts on think she framed it this way. there is no one issue there. i believe that is true. this is cultural. i said when i was at the air force base in wyoming, over the years i do think we have taken some focus off of the responsibilities of these very dedicated, bright young officers

in a sense that their mission is important. you look at this country over the last 13 years, it has ,een committed to two large long landlords. there has been a sense of we take for granted the nuclear component of our national strategic baseline. that is the nuclear deterrent. i have said and i believe this and i asked specifically his question, do you believe that the effectiveness of our nuclear component or weapons are in jeopardy. she said no. the samedmiral haney

thing. i asked the chief the same question. asked commanders the same question. that does not dismiss the issues that we have in front of us. i think there is a testing issue here. we have a pretty significant regimen that i am not sure it needs to be explored and examined in some detail. our standards can never be compromised. think anyone who has responsibility feel strongly about that. after all these young people who we in trust with great responsibility. there cannot be any errors in this.

this was on the business of error-free management. the high standard expectation at every test you may, if you do not make 100% on every test, then eventually you are in a position where you probably minimize your chance for advancement. this is not the only place. we continue to train and test all these young people who have this great responsibility. standards must not be eroded. of course not. is there a better way to do this? can we be more attuned? if you put these people in these

where there's almost a ,ertain amount of isolation that is a dynamic of an environment that you have to factor in. question -- do they get bored? do we do enough? are we doing enough to incentivizing these men and women. we will be coming through from a number of recommendations. they will come from secretary trip. admiral haney has been very connected into this. obviously be briefing the press on where we are on

this. i think that is about as far as i want to go in responding to the question. we are not going to erode any standards in our ability to manage our nuclear stockpile. nor can we. our nuclear stockpile is safe, secure, and effective. we are looking at this. we are looking at this carefully. we have two different dimensions of behavior. deep going to go wide and in exploring every facet of our , ofning, of how we manage

our standards, everything. we will fix them. situation,ire [indiscernible] or to help them in the situation? >> yes, sir.

are we noticed is that they concentrated terrorist groups in libya. they're checking him all the way to the horn of africa. it is from human trafficking.

it seems to me that it is this tol to bring about a political condition in order to achieve anything. the libyan state is very fragile. that are many militias as well-equipped as the army or police. there is a question of security. the population is exasperated. they were taken by the united states.

we are faced with a situation that is extremely fragile. it is important for the international community to be thee of the risks and political stabilization. it is important to secure the borders. this should mobilize a common vigilance to avoid going back to a new cycle of terrorism in an area that is arty extremely fragile. i think the question is for the

secretary. >> thank you. question regarding sochi. you know general dempsey was in brussels this week. a very in-depth conversation with his russian counterpart. we discussed american assistance in any way we can help the russians. as of right now, the russians have not requested any specific assistance or technology. them to know if they need our help we want to help. we will have two ships in the black sea during that time.

whatever we can do, we want to do to help. right now there has been no request from the russian government. would they let the u.s. in? do you have any understanding with them? what is their plan to rescue the citizens of a came down to that? i will let the ministers speak. extract ouro citizens, we will have appropriate arrangements with the russians to do this. >> this is wondering if there's

any request for support. there is a protection from your citizens. >> thank you very much. >> thank you. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2014] >> in a few minutes, you can find that shortly online honor video library. up, day two of the forum examining the form -- findings

and report that aims to rank -- raise awareness of key issues facing women. they talk about men's awareness of the issues facing women. are desperate to talk about it. we're dying to talk about these kinds of things. at every single income level men say they want to be back on this and more involved and their families. they get no support for that. fromey get no support a the family or from other men. -- from the institution or other men. when guys say they want to be , as wer their families heard this morning from nancy pelosi, they want to be home with their older parents. they get no support. touess you are not committed your career. they get will put you on the daddy track but you'll never make partner. >> they get what a lot of women get.

>> they get it from men. breaking or interrupting or beginning to find ways men can support other men, taking these opportunities, this is what they say they want. both women and men say they want pretty much the same thing. withat's that entire event remarks from the lead organizer maria shriver. that is at 9:00 eastern on c- span. the i've been marching for over 40 years. setbacksendured many including the recent expansion of abortion coverage from obamacare. pouring, more now than never, that we remain strong and stand together. we cannot allow the opponents of

life to continually weaken the moral fabric of our country. they need to know and they need to understand that we will continue to march. we will continue to educate. we will continue to advocate. we will continue to fight for the unborn. despite the fact that president obama is using self perception and the coercive power of the state to promote abortion violence, the pro-life movement is alive and well and andng serious significance sustained progress. >> this weekend, the annual march for life rally from the national mall in washington, d.c.. saturday morning at 10 :00 eastern. what is the secret to a life of happiness? hugh hewitt on the possible answer saturday night at 8:00. the issues and

concerns of from five decades of state of the union speeches. sunday afternoon and 3:00. afternoon at 3:00. >> not or what party they belong to, i bet most americans are thinking the same thing right about now. nothing will get done in washington this year. or next year. or maybe even the year after that. washington is broken. you blame them for feeling a little cynical? the greatest blow to our lastdence in our economy year did not come from events beyond our control. it came from a debate in washington over whether the united states would pay its bills or not. who benefited from that fiasco? i talked tonight about the

deficit of trust between main street and wall street. the divide between the city and the rest of the country is at least as bad. worse everyget year. >> watch president obama deliver this year's address. our program starts live tuesday night at 8:00 eastern the president at 9:00 followed by the response from republican rogers.ce chair the state of the union tuesday night live on c-span, c-span radio, and c-span.org. >> 25 states have expanded medicaid coverage so far under the new health care law. a discussion earlier focus specifically on the experiences of texas and washington states. this is one hour and 15 minutes. i wanted to introduce the medicaid to rector of the state

of washington health-care authority. it is home to both the state the medicaid program and their public of poise benefit program. prior to the appointment to that position in 2012, she served as the assistant secretary for age ing and the administration for the department of services and before that as a director of health care services division of the medicaid program. us today with to a lot of experience for both the medicaid program and also clearly working with the medicaid expansion a great deal. among her many professional accomplishments, it is nice to know she is a registered nurse. it also provides a direct care experience i think is very useful in dealing with the issues she has to on a day-to- day basis. we have the executive director and founder of the texas organizing project.

the texas organizing project, which was founded in 2009, brings together communities to address critical problems facing low income communities of color in texas. founding, texas organizing has grown into an organization at a base of over 30,000 members and supporters. they have had been a legislative successes and are the leader -- leading voter turnout organization in the state. she works on moving texas to take out the medicaid expansion. our final panelist is the executive director of the national academy for state health policy which most of you nashp.s it provides a forum for work across branches of state government on critical health care issues. that includes obviously working on the medicaid expansion. alan rice will speak extensively

on health care issues. he is a member of the institute of medicine board. it gives them a chance to work with states across the spectrum and hear from directors that are in the place of this. i want to thank our guest for thanking us -- i want to thank our guests for joining us. we can get a sense of where different states are. of questionsle about washington state. can you give me a quick overview of where it is right now with the medicaid expansion and what you would say were the biggest challenges as well as successes and the last year and what you see a top priority? start, right from the passage of the affordable care act early on, we had support

from our legislature in terms of both the expansion and having a state-based exchange. i can tell you that maybe whole expansion process and discussions and how it would evolve much easier. the legislature saw that. our governor saw this as an opportunity for significant savings to the state from of the state only programs. an economic boom for jobs. i think we have been very pleased with our success. we were hoping to have 120,000 brand-new of the newly eligible groups. we have 120 1000. we made it. as of today, we are over 100 50,000. that is probably growing. we are seeing it grow every day. we are seeing the newly eligible coming on. they have the majority and rolled with one of our five

managed-care plans. care is being delivered. it is a very exciting time. not happen without challenges. there have certainly been some system glitches. there are applications that are airing at. -- airing out. a brand-new system that we are using. consuming to get the system up and running. not a lot a time to test it before it went live. there have been issues. folks are having difficulty getting through. thee is a full press on part of our staff to make sure folks that have applied are getting their applications through. we also have made a decision to go ahead for all of our individuals that were currently a medicaid that now would become eligible, having them go through finder forcare

recertification. we have about a hundred thousand people that need to reset or five -- that need to recertify through that system. people are not able to get in. these problems and made it difficult for folks to get recertified. withe working closely individuals who are having difficulty getting in, trying to fix this. it has been a little problematic. we also had a big issue with the state recovery. individuals between the ages of 55-64, there is a medicaid requirement that their expenditures during that time, the sticky come back and recover the costs. ae federal government has narrow policy that we have to follow on long term care expenses. washington made the choice to expand it several years ago.

not anticipating the kind of expansion. very quickly we had to make some changes and our state administrative code. we assured folks if they were in the age group enrolled in hence that weears would not be going after their estate. having to work through that issue. even with these glitches and problems, overall, things work relatively smoothly from our staffs perspective. over 450,000 individuals have made it through health science finder on the medicaid side. folks coming into medicaid eligible, recertify or folks that would have normally come into the program. folks are in rolling and getting care.

the challenges and things we want to address and are addressing are really first and foremost the customer experience. they come in and understand the program, have the materials that they need. monitoring and roman. they are continuing out reach to populations that we see are not being served. looking at access. making sure the provider network is adequate. working closely with our state insurance commissioner on network adequacy. how it looks so our medicaid plans are and better alignment. and for our managed-care program, the way our system works today.

individuals coming from the program who will be in managed care. they get assigned to managed- care plans. they can make a choice and choose but it comes after the assignment. we want our population to have the same shopping experience that folks coming into the exchange have in selecting a qualified health plan. we're working toward creating a shopping experience for them. of where weverview are. >> thank you very much. i think the enrollment numbers are great. i want to turn to jenny. you are confronting this. you are organizing to push this expansion forward. can you tell me a little bit about the coalition that is working on the expansion in

texas and what a couple of the challenges and priorities are in the upcoming year? >> i really want to thank you for having us here from texas. i see our state senator from san antonio is here. us as aa big issue for state. is refusingansion to accept the funds. our coalition is really brought. there is like the texas organizing project that is on the ground. he said he was going to eject money.ication bring families to the capital, having press conferences and really showing that people were not just going to sit back and allow this decision to go forward without a fight. then we have some very close allies and traditional partners

that we work with. have ad not really framework to work with in texas. we have planned parenthood, labor unions. some of our traditional partners. crisis,it is such a what happens when you have a crisis is partners come to the table. agreeo not traditionally on many issues. we are sitting at a table and talking about the economic this isabout not having affecting the state and our economy. texas hospital association. the section is very broad. they're coming together to beat that drum that we need. we're all in this together. challenges, ir

think there are two challenges. the names are ted cruz and rick perry. that is simple for us. i want to apologize that our biggest challenge has become america's his talent is shutting down government. senator ted cruz has really led the >> when you have 6 million people who are uninsured, one .5 million of whom cannot qualify for the exchange and have nothing to sign up for, that it could not be further from the truth. that is one of our biggest challenges. and then our governor is the bigger challenge for us. he actually has the ability to medicare00 billion in funding and is the largest