from a safe house overseas, an al qaeda safe house to san diego. and they said operation is a go and we missed it because we didn't want to have those kind of communications from a foreign country and a foreigner into the united states. so think about the debate we've had in the last year. well, we've got to get out of afghanistan, they're gaining ground, so the table is gaining ground and with that comes al qaeda. we're saying let's dismantle our ability for the n.s.a. to track foreigners overseas and even watch a phone call from a foreigner overseas into the united states. we have thousands of individuals who have western passports who

are coming home. somebody overseas is going to pick up the phone and call them. do we really want to be blind in that circumstance? do we? america, the political debate is ours. i'm not sure i'm going to take the time to understand that problem but it sounds kind of hard and maybe they might call me. this notion is ridiculous. what we worry about, i know i worry about is this threat is as real as it's ever been. how far the 20, now 21 al qaeda affiliates, half of them have pledged in affiliation to isis because they believe they have to get on this notion of a caliphate. which now you have an organization big and strong and well financed. you have a dabbling of the al

qaeda affiliates around the world saying maybe they're the ones, i still pledge allegiance to al qaeda but want to express my support which means you plug into their logistical nodes and their ability to plug in operations and now you worry, saxby is only 25 years old and look what this job has done to him. [laughter] now you know what happens when we sit in those dark rooms and go through -- pour over all this intelligence. this threat is as serious as i've ever seen it. and i really don't think america is ready -- in the place to debate the real threat so we can meet this threat with reasonable expectations and using america's diplomatic and soft power and military power to bring these things to a conclusion and disrupt their activities enough we can keep america safe. it is to me a critical time and i just want to tell this last quick story because on that trip to afghanistan, i asked to go down, there was a children's hospital in kabul and i went down to that hospital and it was in -- you can imagine pretty rough shape. the indian government had run it

when the taliban took over, they pulled out and took everything with them. and so this hospital had no air conditioning, no a.c. at all, candidly, and for their infectious diseases ward, what they'd do is close the window and close the door to stop the spread to the rest of the hospital. when they opened the door to give us the tour, you can imagine it was a, overcrowded, b, they had no nurses because they wouldn't allow their women to be nurses, you can't have take, so they sent them home when the table took over so they had parents, mothers who were there trying to take care of their kids in a closed room about half this size with about 45 people in it, all of them sick. it was the most god-awful thing i had ever seen. and the woman who met me at the door was running it, was a doctor, trained in the united states. when the fighting started, she had been -- let me back up.

when the taliban got there, they sent her home. she is a trained orthopedic surgeon. they sent her home and said you can't do that here in afghanistan under the taliban. she goes home. six years later she hears the bombings starting and she walks out, she takes off her burqa and walks nine miles through some pretty tough territory without her burqa, gets to the hospital and she said, i knew i to be here because this is where i could do the most good. she was the one giving me the tour in this hospital. we get up. and by the way, each hospital bed had more than one child in it because they didn't have enough hospital beds. you can imagine, they don't have any way to clean the sheets, this is not a place that was, you might make it there, you might not make it out. i asked her at the end of it after she gay me this tour and we were in the ward where the children had just had surgery so amputations and other things. and i asked her, i said is this important for the united states to be here? and i'll never forget it because she turned and put her hand on my shoulder and said yesterday i had to amputate the arm and a leg of a young boy that stepped on a soviet mine.

their parents threw him in a cart with a donkey, it took them two days to get him to the hospital. they kept him alive. i didn't have the right anesthetic or didn't even have the right medical tools but if it isn't for the united states, none of us will have a chance at life. neither will he. and you can still hear the bombing in the mountain ranges in the distance. so think about what america is getting ready to do today. the president even announced it last night. i liked a lot of what he said except that he's going to end the war in afghanistan. we have asked these women to come out of the back of their houses, to take their burqas off and join society so that they could temper this problem of the taliban and al qaeda coming back. and we are going to pull out like we just pulled out of iraq. and the difference between iraq and afghanistan is afghanistan will happen in about 1/100th of the time.

and we will slaughter thousands of women who had the courage to stand up for something bigger than themselves, democracy, engagement, temperament, i hope that america stops for a minute and shakes themselves out of this notion that we are war weary. less than 3% of the population has ever even been asked to do anything in the war. you didn't have to give up sugar, you didn't have to give up your tires. you didn't have to stop eating eggs. you didn't have to stop -- we didn't ration flour. we did all that in this country at one time. those people were war weary and had to give up a lot of their lives in order to win the fight. we have to give up a little kardashian tv. if that's who we have become, then we will suffer the problem of terrorism for generations to come. i hope this is our moment. i hope this is the president's moment. i know saxby and i and dianne feinstein and dutch are going

through the details at least on our space on this plan to get this right. i hope america rallies around candidly the president, bucks him up a little bit. we do this together, republicans and democrats and say we won't tolerate the spread of radical jihadism around the world. and we will not tolerate them threatening the united states in any way wherever we find you. if we don't, you're going to have this conversation with two more members next year on the 9/11 date wondering why this is taking so long. anyway, with that uplifting note, let's go get some of that whiskey. [applause] >> yes, ma'am? >> i watched an interview with the islamist leader, and he said -- [inaudible]

and i mean, they hoped to sharia law. what are your observations and have they changed? >> i was in belgium on our first stop on the recent codell we took in visiting the generals and other leadership at nato, and this is a real problem all over europe. muslims are the fastest growing population in a number of countries like france, the u.k. and in belgium. and obviously the more of that population -- and i have to remember that 99% of muslims are the right thinking kind of people. but it doesn't take many of them to really wreak havoc in any country.

and in most european countries, there is the opportunity that we don't necessarily have in the united states, for jihadism to be created. there are a lot more radical imams in that part of the world than we see over here. there is a free flow in europe, in all the european union. there's no need for a visa or passport. you can go wherever you want to go. so there's a definite trend, not just an increase in muslim population but in that small percentage of jihaddist, there's also a very trend towards seeing that increase. now, i don't know about the projections on what the population in belgium, which is a very small country to start

with, may be. but let me tell you, there is an active group of jihaddist within that community, within that part of the world that is very capable today and they're just going to get stronger. so our european friend are now understanding that they've got to do a better job of monitoring those folks and trying to make sure that at least from a public standpoint, that jihaddists are not able to recruit and train right under the nose of their law enforcement agencies. i just hope it works for them because that's those folks who have the ability to come to the united states once they are radicalized. >> thank you very much. mr. chairman, thank you for your fine analysis. you said earlier today the president's plan requires some affirmative action on the part of congress. what does that mean and is that conceivable?

>> well, i think it's the congressional responsibility to be affirmative because it does go out beyond the bound of the authorization to use military force that was established in iraq. you're talking another country. and it is hard. i hope congress shows its strength here and shows america we can do hard things. we should affirm what the president talked about last night. we're going to have to do some language for the funding portion. i happen to believe we should also do an outright affirmative affirmation of what he's doing to give the congressional approval for him to do this. i think it does a couple things and shows america, yes, this is serious. it shows the rest of the world that yes, america is finally serious and shows the enemy we're taking it serious which means, you know, someone will knock on your door real soon. and i think without that we lose our coalition partner's commitment in a way that i think should be at the level it should be.

i love my nato partners but they need a little encouragement. and i think this can give that encouragement for them to help and participate in this. and they are likely to be the first receiving end of these westerners going home. it's likely to be easier to get that first strike in europe than it is to even the united states. and that's why this coalition building is going to mean something and this affirmation by congress shows it is serious and we can do hard things and we're together on it. i don't know if you may have a difference of opinion? >> i totally agree and i think there may be some requirements for participation and training under title 10 that requires congressional approval and we should give that to the administration and allow them to move forward on that and it's not going to be without some heavy debate but i think it should be done. >> i was just going to -- you

mentioned the visa waiver program and the fact that makes it easier that all these passports can come in the u.s. without a visa. is there com competition in approving that and the t.s.o. or people coming into it country can use nor vigilance. >> we do a very good job today putting the bad guys we know about on no fly lists and even if they hold american passports, if they're out of the country and get on a no fly list, they can't get back in the united states. but there's always the potential of somebody slipping through the crack. should we change visa waiver? i don't know. you i do think this is a time in our history of when we ought to review that policy. our european friend are very close associates and they truly are our friends for the most part but when somebody gets radicalized in europe and has the ability to come to the united states, you better believe those extremists are

recruiting them because they know they have the ability to come to the united states. so we've got to be evermore vigilant with respect to the no fly list and keeping bad guys out of the country. but at the same time, i think it presents that opportunity that we need to review that program and see if any kind of changes need to be made or additional tools given to t.s.a. to do a better job of enforcing it if they need it. >> one of the things we have done after 9/11 is we've done a better job in establishing our homeland security in a way to catch bad folks coming in. the problem with this particular case is even we'll tell you yeah, we know x number of folks with u.s. passports and will do everything we can to make sure when they come back, they'll get a welcome. the problem is they're using cutout countries to get into the country.

so you may fly somewhere in europe and end up in country x and from country x you get over land transported into syria. that part we wouldn't know. now, u.s. citizens have a higher legal standard for surveillance, rightly so. nobody is saying we should change that. but that creates a huge gap in our ability to know. if you're talking somewhere between 3,000 and 7,000 western passport holders, you can start getting nervous in a hurry knowing we probably don't know all 3,000 to 7,000 people and we're not sure if that's a light number or heavy number. many in the intelligence community believe it's a light number. we think that number is getting bigger which by the way, quick action has to happen. if you want to stop the pipeline of recruiting, you have to take a right now and make sure this does not look like disneyland to anybody who is sitting in cleveland wondering if that whole jihad thing looks like a good idea. we need to nip that in the bud right now.

that is a concern. and other cups have different privacy rights and requirements that might not track their travels in the same way that other countries might in europe. and canada is a great example. they have a different cultural approach to that issue. once you get into canada, you're a bridge -- you're a toll away from getting into the united states without a visa, without a government check or anything and might not have any idea in the world you had been in syria or iraq. that the challenge that we have and why those of us who are saying, this is an urgent problem, we need to get in front of and why we're -- at least i encourage the president got there last night. >> the 9/11 commission issued a report, a summary for give you an update on where we are today after the first report was issued. and basically what it -- the bottom line was they thought that we are on september 10 right now. i just wonder your comments about that.

>> oh, look at the time. here's the -- i under what they're saying. i think we're better positioned. here's the problem. again, you have these 20 affiliates around the country -- by the way, somebody said we never had 20 affiliates. >> trust me, they were there with different mission sets and i think we need to stop the argument when they got there. it's a complete waste of time. they were there and committed to political jihad and now they've expanded it against the west. you have 21 groups now and they all have an interest to commit an act of terror. some have the ability -- capability to do it locally and some have the aspiration to do it in the west.

all of them have the aspiration to do it here. what i think they're saying is are we configured in the right way to get the best information to protect us in a way that i think we would be able to sleep better at night. i argue the answer is no. because we've engaged in an ideology that wants to pull back -- you can't put a nice face on terrorist disruption activities. let me be blunt. it's a hard end of this business. you can't put a nice face on it. it is what it is. they're cutting people's heads off. you can imagine you're not going to sit down and have a cup of tea with them and talk it over. that's just not going to happen. and so are we configured exactly right in africa and the middle east and other places in southeast asia to make sure that we're doing it exactly right and try to remove any chance that we might have a terrorist attack? i argue we can do a better job and think that's what they're talking about. you might want to think of this

configuration so we can try to handle this problem. nothing's perfect. you want to get as close to never making a mistake as you possibly can and i think they're saying, and i would agree, we're not quite there yet. >> i don't think there's anything in that report where we would disagree with. we understand the world is more dangerous today than it was in 2001. if nothing else by virtue of the cheer numbers. in the past five years the state department has designated 20 groups as terrorist groups. and those are just new ones. and that's added to the list of dozens of others that were already on the terrorist list. so just the sheer numbers make the world a much more dangerous place today. \[inaudible] >> will send troops to address this issue. but those countries have different political systems than we do but i'm sure they have to be cognizant of what the common

man things about, muslim organization taking on a muslim organization. what do we know about that dynamic in some of those countries and how it may affect their ability to fully participate in trying to address the problem? >> the culture in that part of the world is different from the standpoint of anything, not just in the united states but in any other part of the world. and it's something that's very difficult for americans to understand. if you're asking muslims to go to fight other muslims, you've got an uphill battle just from the start. but the fact of the matter is that this group named isil is different from any other group of terrorists that we've seen. they do want to establish caliphate in the middle east part of the world which means shiria law and those women who

gained the rights over the last several years, they would immediately lose those rights and children all of a sudden won't be going to school again, and i think there is a large segment of the arab world that does not want to reverse to that type of system they'd been living under in some countries. i think there's more inclination on their part today to join the fight. they know that it's their back yard and they've got more to lose than anybody else. but they've never really been challenged to step up to the plate and that's what i was pleased to see the president do last night.

give them that challenge and say we're going to be there. we're going to provide leadership. but you've got to come to the fight and join us. and we need them to be the boots on the ground. we have lots of assets we bring from an airpower, from intelligence, from a logistics standpoint. but we need them in the fight in a big way. and it's their opportunity to do so and i know we've been briefed on the behind the scenes negotiations and i'm encouraged about where we are. but we'll have to see what happened over the next several weeks. >> i would agree. when they went into mosul, when isis intent into mosul they took the people that were not going to be compliant enough and chopped their heads off and put it on strikes. they call that motivation for those other arab leader.

they have no respect for law other than their strict interp station of their -- strict interpretation of their faith. i am encouraged by what i'm seeing. i think they have as much to lose in this as anyone and they're eager to interrupt the success of this organization. they're also recruiting from their own countries and those people are going to go home and it's easier to get there from those countries. they have that problem and understand it's a problem for them and think they want to get on with this as fast and quickly as they can. >> you have a long track record working across the aisle and overcome the gridlock and get important legislation through. as you all wrap up your careers on the hill, what advice or guidance to you have to successors? >> it's easy in the senate because for the most part, you still can't do anything other than get a nominee to the bench or to the administration through without getting 60 votes.

and neither one of us have those 60 votes so it's imperative you work across the aisle. and you know, i think our two committees are a good example of the positive things that can happen when reasonable republicans and reasonable democrats sit down together and check our partisan hats at the door and agree that we've got a goal that has to be accomplished and we've got to just talk through our differences and reach that goal. and i know that there are lots of democrats that have good ideas. there are lots of republicans that have good ideas. nobody has a patent on all of that. so i'm looking forward to seeing what the makeup of the next congress is going to be. i'm encouraged where we are on the senate side right now but we've got 54 days to go and a

lot can happen there. but i think with the right leadership at the top, you will see more bipartisan efforts in the senate for sure. >> you know, it takes work. we've had -- we've all four gotten together and don't want people to think we close the door and giggle and come to an agreement in 32 second. some of them have been fairly emotional and heated discussions on how we've come to the right goal but at the end of it, it was done. it was an issue we had to get through and came to it with philosophical differences but with the same goal and worked it out, in every issue. i don't think we had one we couldn't get there. but it takes the commitment to sit down and understand that we have a goal. if you don't accomplish the mission talking about it for 100 meetings means nothing. so we all came to agreement earlier that we were going to do that and national security was too important. but there is that outside influence on congress that says if you sit down with someone who believes something a little lift from yourself that that is somehow some vials of your oath and your credibility and your

principles and i say nonsense. this is a place where you bring your principles to the table and you work out to the best of your ability to get something moved forward. we need to get back to that. we need to have more people come here with the notion that they want to help solve a problem versus just tell you no to a problem. and unfortunately, there's been a lot of political profit made from being against everything, if you want $80 in cuts, they won't support you unless you get $81 and if you get $81, they really meant $85. and it's unfortunate and disrupted the senate activities and disrupted the house and governance as we see it in america. we are paying a price. we don't get to do it in a vacuum. the world watches the united states. i hope you have leaders like saxby, dianne feinstein and like dutch who understand, yeah, we're allowed to disagree.

i say i'm a reagan republican. i'll take a 80% deal and get up tomorrow and work for the other 20%. we lost that somewhere. i think we are going to have to get back to it. the only way that will happen is the american public issues congress to do it. the environment now is you have to disagree with everything, that no person of the other party has a good idea on anything ever. and if you say it's blue, i have to say it is red area that is really not helpful. i don't know how long it has been. it seems to be getting worse. in a case like this come along to travel overseas and meet with our foreign leaders, it shows. is wearing on the rest of the world. people are starting to ask questions, if america is going to make it. (202) 585-3883 when you get those questions overseas, i get a lump in my throat. to think that on our watch, we

will let the greatest nation on the face of the earth, that's been such a great force for good, just go away and melt away into mediocrity. i want to do that. it will take all this, takes organizations like this that agree in sitting down having dialogue. ofimparting that to members congress, that it is ok to sit down and negotiate and get a settlement, where you don't get everything you want. there's my pet leave. there's my unpaid political advertisement. [laughter] >> thank you both for your time this morning. and your insightful remarks. this is a lot of reassurance. this is tough stuff. there is so much information out there that we are all picking up at different points. you has really brought it all together. we know how much both of you love your country. we would like to present you with the smithsonian's new book. --h ours and theirs thanks

with our sincere thanks. we hope the want to leave, he will come back and give us more insightful thoughts on where this country is going. we know much you love it. we hope you will not go away far. we have a lot of friends in this town, and you continue to have one here. please join me in thanking our speakers. [applause]

>> later today, we will be live from indianola iowa, where bill and hillary clinton will be attending the 37th and final steak fry, hosted by written tiring senator tom harkin. this marks the first visit to iowa for the former secretary of state since she lost the 2008 presidential caucuses. ate coverage is beginning 330 -- 3:30 p.m. eastern here on c-span. >> next come health and human aboutes secretary talking the goals and mission. this is 35 minutes. [applause] >> good morning. it is wonderful to be here this

morning. i am delighted to be introducing our very special guest this morning, the 22nd secretary of health and human services, secretary burwell. in fact, it is especially exciting that she is with us today. recently awarded a health care innovation award from hhs and the center for medicare and medicaid services. the $24 million reward was the result of collaboration between the school of public health, the russian institute of medicine and health sciences and 20 other community partners including clinical care systems to hospitals, technology firms, and the d.c. department of the project will develop a shared information technology system that will rely on mobile technology, own testing, and an integrated care system in order to prevent hiv infection and provide better care for those who already have the virus right

here in the district of columbia. it is an exciting opportunity in reflexed innovation and results cheered approaches that invited secretary brown wells'. as well as our commitment to ensuring that every american has access to the building blocks of healthy and productive lives. secretary barrell was sworn in on june 9th 2014. called to operate under three guiding principles, to deliver results on a wide range of complex issues, to strengthen relationships and to build strong teams with the talent and focus needed to deliver and packs with the american people. most recently secretary bird will serve as director of the office of management and budget where she worked closely with congress to help return to a more orderly budget and appropriations process bringing much-needed civility, the economy, and middle-class families.

she led the administration's efforts to deliver a smarter, more innovative, and more accountable government. she oversaw the development of president obama's second term management agenda including efforts to expedite high impact permanent products next, drive efficiencies and improve customer service. additionally our regulatory system for health and safety of americans of promoting economic growth, job creation, and innovation. prior to serving in the obama administration secretary burma served as president of the walmart foundation in arkansas where she led efforts to fight hunger in america and empower women around the world. before joining the foundation in 2012 she was president of the global development program at the bill and ellen gates foundation in seattle, washington where she's been ten years working on some of the world's most pressing

challenges. vaccinations to my children's health, agriculture and development. she also served as the foundation's first chief operating officer's. during the clinton administration's secretary burr was served as tepid the director of omb, deputy chief to the president. chief of staff to the secretary of the treasury and staff director of the national economic council. prior to joining the clinton administration's secretary -- secretary burwell worked for mckinsey and company to a serving on the boards of the council on client relations, university of washington medical center among other organizations. secretary received an a.b. from harvard university the second generation, grope. she and her husband lived in washington d.c. with their two

young children. truly a skilled manager, truly a wonderful new secretary of health and human services. my pleasure on behalf of the george washington university institute for public health to join me in welcoming secretary burrwel. [applause] >> thank you. it is great to be here with you today. this institution is a tremendous leader on so many health and human services issues from research that is revolutionizing the treatment of cancers to biomedical engineering, where training, doctors, nurses, social workers, and perhaps secretaries. i had the privilege of working with many colonials including many of the talented members of our staff at the department of

health and human services. when you think of all the chinese who have come through who have coments through this university it is astounding. the great receiver from my home state, senate majority leader reid, senator nancy, and the founders of organizations as diverse as emily's list, espn, an operation tomorrow. all these people had two very big things in common. the first, of course, gw. the second is that each of them found their own road to impact. i wanted to the suburbs and ready to share some thoughts with you as you look to find your way to the impact. have been an hhs for about three months not. and it is the chance of a lifetime til the end be a part

of this department and such a unique moment in our history. in fact, i should mention we have to win a half years to go. i was honored to except president obama's invitation to lead hhs because there is some much potential to deliver impacts that touch so many lines. i can't imagine another place where you have quite the same opportunity to work at the intersection of policy, management to my, impact, and some very great challenges. since i've turned this to me erica i found that the president emphasizes results , partnership, accountability, and sound management. this is the way i've always tried to work, and it is how we're going to work hhs. we believe in building bridges, relationships, and strong teams and have the talent and focus necessary to deliver results. we believe in managing, transparency, and compact. impact on behalf of the american people we serve.

they are our bosses. these hard working americans rely on the work of our department as they look to obtain the building blocks of healthy and productive lives. whether we are talking about the affordable care act, early childhood education to more of a fight to stop the bola, believe the best path to progress and impact, what is central to all of this is not politics. setting aside the back-and-forth and instead choosing to move forward. i'm a parent when i think about the mom's and then sitting around their kitchen table tried to make big decisions for their children did not care whose idea something was.

you don't have time for that. when you try to figure out how to pay the electric bill round pick in next year's tuition or out and get the kids to get the home 110 you just want results. you expect folks in washington to live for the common ground necessary to deliver. this is the approach we bring to a big challenges that we face at hhs. defines our own and management philosophy and our own way. i learned fundamentally about the importance of relationships growing up in a place where my mom knew the one day i was tardy for school because i was late for the 9:00 a.m. class she was teaching. the values i learned growing up in a beautiful place called hinton, west virginia are what anchor how i manage, our work, and even what i work on.

you might think about what values and experiences got you here and they're going to take you beyond. hinton is the kind of place where such relationships and trust matter. it's the sort of community where neighbors tend to look for the best in each other and everyone feels a personal stake in contributing to the common good. as i have gone on in my career to manage budgets including the federal budget, i have often thought about our in our small community every time counted. people would work so hard for the money they brought home. i watch the parents of many of my friends commute to difficult, often backbreaking work in a mine. i saw my grandfather get up to open his a restaurant at 6:00 a.m. he was a greek immigrant and taught me to be grateful for the gives this country gave to our family. his restaurant was called denny's, but not that denny's. there was no grand slam. it was the english translation of his greek name.

island about customer service and delivering results at home of the congress mile. it was simple to measure results. if they wanted maple walnut, and you delivered strawberry. you didn't deliver the result they wanted. service was important to my mom and dad. i think that's why it is so important to me today. mom was the president of church women. she was a member of the service club and on the state board of education. dad was in the lions club.

he was in the elk's club and was always a trade education and citizenship pageant. we had a rule in our house. at halloween, you have to trick-or-treat for unicef before you could trick-or-treat for candy. fast-forward a few years and i still draw upon these values and experiences whether it's putting the customer first, valuing service or looking to find the best in others even when you don't agree on everything. i have been fortunate in my career to be a part of organizations that are very good strategy. i've also been part of organizations that are very good at execution. i believe in leadership and management that are good at both strategy and execution because this is the difference between great ideas that change lives and those that don't. my management philosophy is built on three principles, impact, prioritization and relationships.

now i have said the word impact quite a lot already. it's why i do what i do. when we tackle a problem at hh s, i make sure that we set out a clear definition of impact from the beginning. what do we hope to accomplish and who do we hope to accomplish it for? i think a lot about those moms and dads of the kitchen table and how the actions we take will impact them. they are our boss and so are our young women like savannah goodwin who had to wait tables on a broken ankle that she had wrapped herself until she got health insurance. so are our neighbors who are beating addiction and so were children who are attending head start. all these people are our bosses at hhs. our boss is also the taxpayer. people like those miners from canton work hard for their paycheck and they deserve a government that works and is strategically efficient in spending their hard-earned tax dollars. that's one of the reasons that prioritization is so important to me because seven priorities

-- setting priorities and staying focused are how you get to efficiency and impact. determining what options are available, what policy levers are there, what will they do, what you are good at and what your partners are good at. all these things are the things that make government work. in order to deliver which levers and initiatives are the most efficient and effective we are data-driven at hhs and i'm a big believer in metrics, benchmarks and analytics. if you are serious about delivering results and looking out for the taxpayer, you need to know whether what you are doing is actually working. all these things have something in common. they need great people to make them happen. and that starts with building teams with talent and focus, necessary to deliver the impact that the american people expect and deserve. so my very first days of the

department i've been working to retain the great talent that was already in place and to recruit more of the best and brightest to join us. as far as our external relationships i am a big believer in the old cliche, relationships are built on trust. transparency builds trust and it's something that we take very seriously. even if the numbers are quite where we want them to be we are going to tell you about it. take for example our recent announcements about the numbers of consumers and the health insurance marketplaces who have citizenship based data matching issues. it might not always make for the best and most attractive press release but we believe that you build trust by sharing the news, both good and bad. we also believe in the power of good ideas and we understand that nobody has a monopoly on them.

that's why active listening and being responsive are so important. hearing ideas, input and feedback and putting them into action wherever possible. i told my staffordshire work toward the goal of returning letters we received from congress within 30 days no matter who they are from. many of the best ideas come from all different sectors of our society. i've been blessed with the opportunity to work across a number of different sectors doing everything from scooping ice cream to leaving walmart's efforts to feed needy families, to leading the efforts of the office of management and budget. along the way i've learned to have respect for every sector of our society and to believe strongly that there are more things that we have in common as americans than we have that are different. that's why when we hear good ideas from the other side of the aisle we want to listen so when republican congressman fred upton asked me to join him for

discussion on 21st century cures later this week, i said sign me up. one of my first meetings that secretary was with the governors of both parties. i said if you are finding our department is it being -- isn't being responsive i want to know about it. hoped to workem i with them regardless party to bring more states into the fold on medicaid expansion. we were able to do that with the state of pennsylvania, who has a republican governor. hundreds of thousands of people can now get the health care coverage they deserve as a result. the fact of the matter is there are always places where we can work together. there is nothing ideological about curing cancer. there is no democrat or republican way to solve ebola. there isn't a liberal or

conservative approach to preventing suicide. we have the opportunities to work together across the aisle on issues ranging from medical research to global health security to early education for our children. the american people are sending a clear signal that they want us to work together on health care too. when you start a job like mine you end up taking a lot of time in the first few months to listen. i was once told that god gave us two ears and one mouth for a reason. i can tell you that's what i have been hearing over and over whether it's from friends that i talked to back in west virginia to business leaders to elected leaders and to my new colleagues at hhs, enough already with the back-and-forth. we just want to move forward. what the mom and dad at their kitchen table really want to know is what kind of coverage is available to me and my family?

can i afford it and is it any good? what i hear from business leaders is that they are in the same place. they want to work together on solutions while making our care better and investing dollars wisely. they want a better health care system and so do we. so what i have told my team at hhs is that we are not here to fight last year's battles. we are here to deliver on affordability, access, and quality. surely, these are goals we can all agree on no matter where you happen to live, whether it's west virginia, washington or wyoming or washington state. by these metrics, the affordable care act is clearly working. health care is more affordable for families, businesses and for our economy as a whole. coverage and services are more widely available for more people. doctors and hospitals are

delivering better care to their patients. as we have said all along, we can do more and we can do better. the affordable care act is not about making a point. it's about making progress. it's about leadership and management, defining our goals, putting the right teams in place, setting the right priorities and building relationships with anyone who wants in, consumers, issuers, providers, elected officials, faith leaders, civic organizations. we want to work with people across our country and across all sectors on priorities we can all get behind. helping more americans get covered and stay covered, making health care more affordable for working families, making sure that healthcare.gov meets the standards the american people expect and demand.

expanding medicaid, working with doctors and hospitals to deliver quality and affordable care. working with insurance companies to offer more choices to more people in more regions of our country. so what you will be seen from us in the days and months ahead is an open invitation for partnership and a call for good ideas that matter where they come from. we will be looking to build and strengthen relationships with anyone and everyone who shares our passion for helping americans attain the building blocks of healthy and productive lives. and we will insist that the actions we take our managed well with and i am protecting the taxpayer and delivering impact. let's move beyond the back-and-forth. let's move forward together.

thank you. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen the secretary will now answer a few questions by george washington university students. would you please welcome to our stage setup call class of 2016 from the milken institute of public health. >> good morning madam secretary. on behalf of the student body, i would like to congratulate you on your new goal is secretary of health and human services and thank you for being here this morning. i would like to kick off our q&a with personal question if you don't mind. you you mentioned you are a mom. do you have any tips on how to achieve the ideal worklife balance? >> i think the ideal is something none of us hit but in terms of approach to this one of the things that i think is important hearkens back to something i said in a speech about prioritization and the prioritization that one does in the work so that you understand the key things you are focused on and that prioritization for the work i think is one of the things that helps put the work

in the order that it should be and contain it in the way. there is the other part of privatization which is making sure that people know your family is a priority and being clear about that articulation. these are the parameters and this is how i work. the other thing that i would add is that i'm very fortunate to have a great partner and my worklife balance and my husband and my children in terms of how they support that effort. the last thing i would just add this i talked a little bit about people in my remarks and how one wants to build great teams. because actually i've held for jobs in the last four years, you might think i can't hold a job so that means i've started and build teams a number of times actually in the near term. one of the things i have found is that actually valuing this question of respect for family and respect for those things is

an incredibly important part of recruiting high-quality people. often some of the best people that you want are people who care about these issues as well and so it is something that i am seeing as i continue to do recruiting at keeping that is a priority for me and articulating it in managed teams in that way something that helps. >> this question was by stewart portman a graduate student of the millikin school of public health. it is a little long, please bear with me. as a graduate student working towards an mph and health policy i'm learning to build bland policy development feasibility to this is just the concerns of the population. in the current environment much has been said about partisan partisan divides an inability to find common ground. as a part of a new generation of health professionals i reject that as the status quo. here's the question. how is improving communication between yourself and congress something you discussed during

your confirmation hearings work to better the relationship between you and hhs and legislatures? furthermore, do you believe improved communication about policy goals can correct many of the misunderstandings in today's health environment? >> thank you stewart. i think i spoke a little bit to this issue and the importance of relationship as i talked about one of the biggest priorities that i believed that as a manager i need to have. the issue of relationship they think is important for a number of reasons. i will let met when i was younger the idea that i would put relationship as one of the core goals for something that would be foreign because it was a means and not an end. analytically i want answered in ds, in terms of goals but this is one that is important enough that as i have gotten older and have more experience that i believe is incredibly important and gets to a little bit of what was in stewart's question.

the issue of having relationships is a lot about how how you sharing of information because one of the things that i find as we try to work things in this town where things have gotten incredible contentious at times is can we all start with the same facts and often we are not doing it. if we can get to the level where we are starting with the same fact base we may have different ways of interpreting those facts but if you can start you on the same factories and you have relationship that you can have a conversation that you actually know the two of you disagree that's a lot of how one brings things together. that relationship is also about about trust. often to get to solutions and whether it's in the private sector or the public sector it's about negotiating. some people might use the word deals but in doing that the idea of trust if you think about what ms. murray and mr. ryan had to do last year to negotiate the deal we had on the budget a lot of that was about them building that relationship of trust because they were carrying on

both sides all the needs and desires of their teams on both sides and having that relationship and trust is an important thing i think to finding the places where one side is not going to get everything in the other side is not going to get everything that we can find a path that gets us living forward. >> the next question comes from angela reckitt graduate student in public health and she asked , your background and previous experience are different from us at hhs secretaries before you. how does this make your approach to the job different? what do you see is your biggest challenge? >> i'm a bit different from most recent previous secretaries and probably more similar to secretary shalala from a number of years ago in terms of my background not being an elected official. so i think my style approach and what i bring to the department

is similar to secretary shalala. and i've spoken to to that in terms of those priorities and how i think about managing and leading the department. i think also the one of the things that's important in this gets to challenges one of the first things i did was to call all of the other former secretaries so that i could make sure that i could learn from them and understand the things in places where they think michael background might have spaces that listening to them and learning from its important and whether that's my direct predecessor who i spend an enormous amount of time and am grateful for her support secretary said phileas but also

her support secretary said phileas but also secretary leavitt, secretary thompson and others actually going back to secretary sullivan from many years ago. that is one of the things that i think is a challenge. >> wonderful. the health administrative student for millikin says school prevention of disease is much less expensive than treating illness or disease. what barriers prevent us from using more resources to tackle the determinants of health that are key in preventing diseases in preventing disease is? how do we overcome these barriers? >> so the issue of prevention is one that i think is tremendously important and we are at a critical places where thinking about changing our health delivery system to one that is less fee-based and more mpac base because we know the important that prevention plays

in that both in terms of how we will save money and get better results. one of the questions i think is it is not always easy on the prevention side. my experience through a number of experiences whether it gates or walmart is n the prevention side. , at walmart,nce when you think about prevention, the first thing is that people have to have the knowledge. let's take healthy eating. they need to actually know what healthy eating is. they need to understand how that is defined and what that would mean eating. the second thing is they need the tools. the tools come in various forms. some people don't know how to fix fresh vegetables or have never used them before. if you have never cut a pineapple or have never cut a pomegranate, how do you get the seeds out?

tools also come in the form of affordability. we are trying to teach communities about prevention and healthy eating. are they in a food desert? the tools. the third thing is culture. and behavior change. and probably, if we did a little survey, did everybody get up this morning and exercise? did everyone each a serving of yogurt?d a low-fat i would say that most of the people in this room are good on 1 and 2. but even those of us who have those things -- so it is about behavior and -- behavior change. as ave to, not just government, but as communities , work on allls

three. >> now i feel bad. because i did not work out. >> i hope everyone had breakfast at least. [laughter] >> what is the biggest surprise in your career as secretary? >> the question of the biggest surprise in the first 100 days a actually, there has been recognition of the magnitude and the volume that we have. that is not a surprise. it is whether it is unaccompanied children -- as many of you know, would have 12 thousand children in the care of the department of health and human services at one point. many of you are probably familiar with ebola. the surprise has been a positive one. i am very fortunate to have the innce to have worked organizations where people have a real passion for their work. whether that's the gates foundation, working on hunger i will not -- at walmart.

is for theiron work at the department of health and human services. when i meet with physicians, the fda, our organization that does substance abuse and mental health, and all of these organizations. to a person, every person that i talked to the tummy that their work is the most important work of the department. i welcome that because a kind of passion, including a note from a librarian who wanted to make what she andtood her library had to offer within the hhs system, it is that passion. i knew people would care. but i am surprised by the level of passion and intensity that i in the hhshere i go staff. >> on behalf of the entire george washington university community. fornt to thank you

sharing your leadership view with us this morning. i want to thank you for bringing your message to dw and giving the students of this university an opportunity to directly engage with you. as we are shaping our own public service futures and developing a deeper understanding of the challenges we face, we look to you and leaders like you not just as role models but as teachers. we learn from their actions. we learn from your leadership. we learn from participating in events like today. questions to ask you directly has been an extraordinary opportunity for the students at the george washington university this morning. i know i speak on behalf of the all -- the gw community when i say that we hope this is one of the first of many ongoing direct conversations with the students of the george washington university. madam secretary, thank you again. [applause] >> thank you, seth, very much and thank you all for having me

here today. it was a pleasure to be here. thank you very much. [applause] excited to announce that it is launch week for the 11th annual student camp documentary contest. $100,000 in cash prizes will be awarded this year to middle and high school contest winners. this years theme is the broadest ever, the three branches and you. we would like you to tell a story that demonstrates how a policy, a law or inaction by either the executive, legislative, or judicial branches of the federal government has affected you and your life or your community. the common unity -- the competition is open to such duties in grades six through 12. students may work alone or in groups of six.

the $100,000 in cash prizes will to 53150 students and teachers. the grand prize winner with the best overall entry will win $5,000. the deadline for entries this year is generate 20th, 2015 and winners will be announced in march. -- is january 20, 2015 and winners will be announced in march. >> with the balance of power at stake in congress, c-span is bringing you over 100 debates from key house, senate, and governors races from around the country every sunday until election day. next, a u.s. house debate between the candidates running in iowa was third district in after that, the first debate between kansas senator pat roberts and independent challenger greg norman. that a, the kansas governor's debate between incumbent republican sam brownback and democratic challenger paul davis.

between democrat staci appel and david young is rated a tossup. here is a look at some of the ads running in that race. republican antiparty brokers went into the back room saturday, they chose tc insider david young. by standinge room up for cutting social security and ending medicare as we know it, even raising the minimum retirement age. what washington really needs is iowa commonse of sense. staci appel worked as a financial consultant who knows small business is key to job growth. she helped to get equal pay and equal growth in iowa. she will protect social security

and medicare. the backroomend deals and put iowa families first. i am david young and i approve this message. barack obama promises hope. then he ripped apart our health-care system, shredded our economy, and crumbled our national security. but if we band together and fight for conservative principles, we can put our economy and our country back together again. >> iowa's answer is not magic. it's david young. and just want a good meal good government. we get the good mail. but our government over spends, over taxes, andover regulates. it underperforms. i get it and you get it. why can't they?

i will bring a dose of iowa reality to washington. then maybe we can have a good meal and good government. i am david young and i approve this message. iowa public tv posted this debate between democrat staci appel and republican david young. the two candidates are running to fill the seat of who isntative tom latham retiring in january at the end of his 10th term. from iowa western community college and council bluffs, this is one hour. [applause] >> welcome to iowa western community college. this is iowa's third congressional district stretching from central iowa, southwest route to the missouri birder and the missouri river, two. tot includes des moines

council bluffs and kristen, red oak, and atlantic. tom latham is not seeking reelection. that makes it one of the 44 open seats in the u.s. house of representatives. democrats hoping to reclaim that seat are pinning those hopes on staci appel. she is a former state senator serving a term from 2006 to 2010. republican david young hasn't held elective office, but he has capitol hill experience as senator grassley's chief of staff. welcome to this special edition of iowa press. you're familiar with their traditional format. but we are in a different setting with a live audience in addition to her television viewers. they have agreed not to cheer during the debate. we are following our real or iowa press format.

that means no debate rules. that means no opening or closing statements. just ideas and issues. i will be moderating and questions will be coming from political journalists. and pamockovich henderson. began,just say before we onare producing this debate september 11. appel,ndering, mrs. where were you on 9/11? be seating area third child on my couch with my two-year-old son beside me. >> how has 9/11 changed your life? >> it has made us more cognizant of the whole world. it is a dangerous world. i remember today we were driving

to kids to school and the flags are all over, hundreds of flags there. and it was visually moving to think of all those lives that were lost that day and families that were left behind. and the first responders that went in there. >> mr. young, where were you? >> i was sitting at my desk on capitol hill in an office. first clips of this on a tv on my desk. someone called and it's a turn on the tv. it looks like someone has flown into the world trade center. when the second one hit, you knew there was a problem. life.nges your >> how has it changed your life? >> you want to live every day to the fullest because you never know if that will ever change. your family and friends come a spend valuable time with them and make sure they know that you care for them.

>> we will start the questioning was k henderson. >> 13 years on, terrorism still exists. president obama announced he is authorizing airstrikes into syria. mr. young, do you think congress should vote to authorize those strikes or do you think the president has authority to do as he has done? outlinedesident has that he has those powers and you hear many members of congress say and acknowledge that he does have that. i think congress needs to buy into this, to be consulted for authorization and appropriations. when the president and congress work together on issues, especially such as this, national security, it is very important. i think congress needs to be involved. >> how would you vote were you a member? >> i don't get ossified briefings or have that intelligence information. but i would make sure that i was on the floor listening to the debate at every moment. how would you approach this as a member of congress and do

you think the president has the authority to act on his own? >> i think he has the authority to act whenever our homeland is threatened. i think we are threatened with isis. i do believe the way he has put forward the airstrikes and the humanitarian aid and working with folks on the ground makes sense. so i approve of how he has done it. >> she mentioned working with the bolt inside -- with people inside the state of syria. do you think it is a good idea to arm and train people inside syria? >> we need to make sure who we are arming and which side they fall on. when the president spoke last night, for months, he had been indecisive. he had some resiliency last night. he talked about not just the meaning this threat, but

destroying it. i was happy to hear that word finally because i thought it was overdue. from the armed services committee said it is hard to tell who the good guys and the bad guys are in syria. he is concerned about that component of the president's proposal. >> i do share those concerns. we need to make sure we are working with the right people and arming the right people. we need to work with people that want to defend their own freedom . that takes time in working and listening to folks on the ground. >> you mentioned a security interest to the united states. the president last night talked about there have been threats and that isis might pose some future security threat to the united states. do you think that that is sufficient american interest to get more involved in military the -- militarily?

>> isis is growing. really weng over two countries. i look at it as a mom. i want to make sure that my homeland, my family, my home is secure. >> do you feel like american interests are sufficiently represented in this action? --there going to be enough is there enough of a threat actually to the united states to justify this? are there other interests in the united states that the president should be paying attention to? >> the thread is big and it is getting bigger. it is getting larger. isis is on the move during their looking to overtake baghdad. i believe they want to go south from the reports i have heard and read. they want to grasp and control the oil fields in the middle east. imagine if they harvest that -- harness that and what that could

do to the pocketbooks of americans. look at what that could do to our economy. more importantly, these terrorists aren't finding to come -- are planning to come to america. in all to be vigilant angles come overseas and here at home. >> what does that mean if you were elected to congress, sitting there now, what would you be urging? >> i would be urging our state department to invoke -- to revoke the passports of those who have admitted they are part of terrorist organizations. our state department has that authority. not doing they are it. they are advising it under the gauge of religious freedom. that is absurd to me. >> congress has the role of a recite. they need to make sure that what role oforking on -- oversight. they need to make sure that we are working on -- fox what would you be urging? >> we will look at it through a very diligent basis. to from being the

world's placement to perhaps being the world's dr.. there is an ebola outbreak in africa. what role should the u.s. play in an outbreak such as this? >> this is so new, this pandemic. in iowa, there is a biocontainment unit. there is a patient there with ebola. it is kind of unnerving. what happens if this gets out. to pushe we need forward with vaccinations as fast as we can. the fda has a role in that. the cdc does. we need to work with other countries as well. we need to expedite this. >> does congress need to provide more money for those efforts? >> if they are asked, possibly. i am not sure there has been a request. -- you saidthere is

it is unnerving for the doctor to be in omaha. is it inappropriate? >> i don't know that it is inappropriate. possibly the best treatment is here in america. >> what sort of role should the u.s. play in these horrific outbreaks that are occurring elsewhere and have not yet reached our shores? >> it is a humanitarian effort. we have the best scientists in the world here in our country. coupled with that, that is what we should be working on. >> what about the fact that the doctor who contracted ebola was flooded to the midwest? >> that dr. is a u.s. citizen. he should be here. we should be taking care of him. his family wants him to be taking care of. >> health care here in the united states still hasn't been entirely sorted out. what is your position on the future of the affordable care act, obamacare? are there things in the law you would like to fix?

>> of course there is because the need to be fixed -- >> such as? >> everybody's right to have access to health care. i think there are great things within the affordable care act, making sure that big insurance companies cannot take away your insurance coverage just as you have a pre-existing condition. i look at it as a mom, thinking being diagnosed with leukemia or cancer and then being told the next day that they no longer have coverage. >> you had the opportunity in congress to fix this law. what is it that you think needs to be set? >> if you were told that you could keep your insurance coverage, you should keep it. another thing we should be able to do is, with medicare, we should have been able to negotiate drug prices, just like the v.a. does. but what we should not be doing

is repealing it. i traveled the state for the last 15 months during i never had one person say they want to repeal the law. what they have said is people want to get together and fix it. i think it is atrocious that we to repealmes voted it. we should have worked 50 times together to fix it. havelot of republicans voted to repeal the law. i think you said repeal and replace. correct? what is it that you would replace obamacare with? >> i think it is a bad law. i think it was a bad process. it was a very partisan process. i've a -- i wish this could have been a bill, lower both sides came together and it would have been voted on. but it did not. so we are stuck with it. >> before you go on, do you think it is fixable or do you think it has to be repealed and start over? >> when the president delays

parts of it, it is hard to tell if it will ever come into place so it can stand on its own merits or if it is fixable or not fixable. though we had a president who said if you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor. you like your insurance, you can keep it and your health insurance won't go up. they have real problems with this. it is hurting relationships between employers and employees to my between doctors and patients. >> what are the solutions to that? with that start with repealing or can you fix it? >> it will not be able to be repealed as long as we have this president. it's his his keynote legislation , his keynote law and it will be there for the long haul. i would have dropped the barriers around straight -- all around state lines so people could shop for the way they do car insurance and homeowner insurance. consumers need to know what they are paying for before they go

into the doctor, before they see their provider and not wait for the sticker shock afterwards. >> did you favor the expansion of medicaid which was included in obamacare? >> it seems to be working in iowa. , inuld make sure that regards to medicaid, states have some flex ability. >> medicaid, should it have been expanded? >> yes, we have more women, more children getting coverage. >> would you extended still further? >> if need be, we would. >> let us turn to what occurred in washington, d.c., last october. there was a debt ceiling vote and republicans such as yourself, mr. young, decided let's push this and try to get president obama to capitulate in regards to the affordable care act. should you become a member of congress, would you tie future votes to raise the debt ceiling to find -- to some other issue or would you vote on a

stand-alone prospect of raising the debt ceiling? you havefirst of all, to take a look at how we got there. we are not doing budgets. we're spending money. it is out of control. budget principles, such as auditing the federal government to see where the fraud is an waste management and duplication so we can cut those programs, sunsetting legislating , but when it comes to the debt ceiling come over 40 times in the past 30 years, there have been other items that have been tied to the debt ceiling. and i think there are some opportunities where you could add that. maybe it is the keystone pipeline, something like that. maybe tax certification. we are seeing corporations go overseas because of tax and version, lowering -- so maybe lowering the corporate tax rate. but they need to get the thing out of this. >> should you become a member of congress, would you vote to raise the debt ceiling? is there a point at which you

would say, ok, the credit limit has been reached? and also address the issues that he brings up, tying future debt ceiling votes to other issues. >> once again, we need to work on where the money is being spent and how it is being spent. when i was in the state senate, i became the chair of state government. i worked with democrats, the senate, house, the managers of departments, employees, citizens, and we found ways to save money for the iowa taxpayers. >> that sounds to me like you would not be in favor raising the debt ceiling without some cost savings being in that bill. >> what i think is we have so much gridlock and people that are elected that are not working, not doing their job. they need to sit down and work together and do their job so we are not coming to a shutdown. they should be working to do their job.

that is who we need to elect. >> peeking of spending money, there are a lot of infrastructure problems in this country. not just potholes in the road, but problems with the electrical grid, all kinds of infrastructure. mr. young, if you were in congress, what priority would you give to infrastructure improvement and would you consider any sort of revenues such as the gas tax increase to help pay for that and have the users pay for it? >> for roads and bridges, the gas tax isn't doing it anymore because we have so many new vehicles out there that are not fueled by gasoline. you had the electric, propane, natural gas. i believe we need to have a long-term solution and be very creative and make sure that users of those other vehicles that are using our roads and bridges pay user fee. >>? what is that solution? ? is it toll roads? >> i would not go toll roads.

something in the line of a gas tax. much fuel they put into their vehicle or maybe bywaters, i don't know. -- maybe by how much fuel they put into their vehicle or maybe by wattage, i don't know. >> would you raise the gas tax to pay for highway repairs across the nation? other commitment would you make to repairing infrastructure in a time when budgets are tight? >> i do not support raising the gas tax. our middle-class iowan families cannot afford any more taxes. our infrastructure is crumbling. in the third district, we have some of the worst bridges and roads that needs to be fixed. this is a budgetary issue and a priority and we need to start making it in those budgets. dollar spent in washington

is red inked. do you borrow in during -- in doing those repairs across the country? >> you need to sit down and look at the budget and look at them line item by line item and make it a priority. saying is thats something else has to go. so if you are going to devote money to infrastructure and roads, then you are taking away from something else or you are going deeper in debt. where are you going with this? >> you have to sit down and look at the budget and find your priorities. that is what we did in the state senate. we worked through it, line item by line item, and found where we had priorities and effective efficiencies. >> you wouldn't raise the gas tax. what did you say about the gas tax? >> the gas tax alone, it is not doing the job because we have so many other vehicles out there. we need some equity with the other vehicles that are using our roads and highways. >> so are you in favor of

raising the gas tax if need be then? >> we need to have that debate first. but our state legislature has to have that debate as well. >> the united states than in past what they call a comprehensive immigration reform bill. the house did not act. if you are elected to the house, what sort of immigration plan would get your vote? border,hat protects the first and foremost, and secures the border. in the senate bill, the bill gave the delegation authority to the department of homeland security to certify whether or not the border was secure. i didn't trust this president. i may not trust any other president having willy-nilly summary of bureaucracy say that it is secure. that, withmake sure people coming in here the way they are illegally, it was

easier to come in with visa reform. we live in the greatest country in the world still and we have to put a human face on this. people come over here to better their lives, understand that, and i believe in a guest worker program as well. >> do you either fall tour favor the business of community's efforts in regards to passing immigration reform? do you think there needs to be more workers brought into the country than the nativeborn? >> >> it depends on how our economy is and the need for workers at any time. you may have to match that up to what our unemployment rate is, or what the needs are. >> immigration reform -- president obama has delayed what was rumored to be executive action on his own to address those issues. if you become a member of congress, do you think congress should act instead of the

president? >> we have a bipartisan bill that is sitting on speaker boehner's desk that increases the border control by over 22,000 individuals. it creates the dream act. a pathway todes citizenship for 11 million undocumented workers. but we need is people who want to go up there and do the work. you think president obama has the authority to act on his own in this regard, or do you think congress needs to set -- >> congress and the president need to work together. right now we have a congress that does not work. >> what about the undocumented young adults, children under 10 them, comingme of to the united states and trying to find either relatives here or a place to live? should iowa or the federal government he involved in

finding them a place to live? >> you have to put a face on this. these are children. they are separated from their families. it's heartbreaking. you see the video and pictures and hear the stories of what are happening. i do believe that governors need to be notified when these children are dropped into our state or any state. i want to make sure these kids are taken care of. there are health needs. could they have some communicable disease that could be harmful -- >> i hear you saying some humanitarian things. it do i hear you saying, let's take care of them, they are here , let's take care of them and settle them and find them a place to live and not send them home? >> i want to match them up with their families in central american make sure they are with their families. need to lean on our southern neighbor, mexico, to

lean on their southern border to make sure their borders are secure. >> send them home or resettle them here? >> there's a process. we need to find out how they got here, are they refugees? status have true refugee , iowa is always welcoming to refugees. >> are you? >> i am. i am a mom of six. i can hardly imagine how hard it must be as a mother to send your child over miles and miles. and'm hearing from teachers parents and communities, and they are seeing we have enough needs to take care of in our municipalities and schools to take care of our own children here and it is just another urban. it is really hard to make sure -- heard in. it is really hard to make sure that everyone is taken care of and we need to take care of our children first. >> you are seeking to identify yourselves to third congressional district voters.

commercials,nning doing it for you. we have a couple of those commercials. mr. young, first one about you. >> i can't wait. >> after 20 years in washington, david young says -- >> i have seen the ugly washington, d.c. >> caught by its trappings. >> maybe that is why young was to give more tax breaks to big corporations and billionaires and pay for it by slashing funding for schools and eliminating the department of education. because david young got caught up in washington. the democratic congressional campaign committee is responsible for the content of this advertising. >> mr. gann, that was a comment that was made on iowa press. i have been caught by its trappings, that is the phrase.

campaigning as a washington insider, i know the system so i can get things done, or is you campaigning as an outsider that, send me here and i will change things? >> can i comment on that commercial taken out of paragraphs and sentences. i have seen washington, d.c. up close. it's ugly. you can get caught in ebro craddick -- bureaucratic maze. creative.ays to be i have done so. i will never run away from my service for iowa alongside senator grassley, working day in, day out. being on the phone with iowans. hearing their heart aches, problems, solutions. wheng their tears at times the epa or irs is coming down on them. that's why i want to go to washington. >> those opposing your

candidacy. when your family makes its budget, what are your priorities? the mortgage? groceries? voted to spende your tax dollars, she had different ideas. she voted to spend $120,000 on decorative flower pots at the state capital, and voted to spend $80,000 to repair an organ. the national republican congressional committee is responsible for the content of this advertising. >> you catch the drift there. it is big spending. flowerpots. you said you set priorities, spending priorities, and yet the commercial says she spent money for flowerpots and repairing an organ. >> is is a negative ad that they try to take away from what my record really is.

my record is about creating preschools for every four-year-old in the state of iowa, organizing state government and saving millions of dollars, creating equal pay for equal work. those are big pieces of legislation. >> are those votes in that commercial votes that did not exist? they both were vetoed on it. the organ was a matching program with senator grassley. think i need to point out too, neither of you are paying for those negative ads against each other. they are coming from outside sources. >> that's correct. that is why it is unfortunate during a campaign, when you have outside groups come in and do this. those votes are real. that shows a contrast between me and my opponent. she voted for the largest budget in the state's history, which had to be bailed out by federal stimulus funds.

she talks about reorganization and oversight. those are new words to me from her, because she voted against the state accountability office at the time. we need to be watching our government day in and day out from the local to state level. >> i was interested in that question about the government accountability office as well. wasn't that adding more government bureaucracy in a bill that is posed to be making government more efficient? >> yes, it was. amendment, and i joined with democrats and republicans against creating the accountability office. we already have -- >> [indiscernible] >> it was the republicans. i'm not sure which individual put the amendments forth. at that time we had a republican auditor who is doing a pretty great job, and to increase

government was not what we were going for. >> every dollar put in for accountability, you get so much of a return. i have direct experience in this. watching this government, and some of the fraud, waste, and abuse that comes out, whether it is military contracting or over reimbursements in the medicare program. those are taxpayer's dollars. >> this is what we did with government reorganization. we went through department by department and we found ways to make government more effective and efficient. that every forth other year we would go through and in the interim, do it again. >> let me ask you this. we just heard each campaign trying to define each of you. most people who live in the district probably don't know you very well. starting with you, mr. young. how do you define yourself?

what is this person that you want to send to washington, d.c.? >> i'm somebody who knows how to listen. i cannot be a better advocate for iowa. open right now, but usually when i'm in the town in the third district, i'm asking questions because washington, d.c. does not have all the answers. i'm somebody who are members who my boss is -- remembers who my boss is. who my boss is. we see what happens when people go to washington and they go wayward. look what happened to eric cantor. he was house majority leader and he just lost a primary because he forgot who he was, forgot who his boss is, the people in this district. i will never forget who they are. i'm somebody who believes that the best government is the government that governs closest to people. how do youl, introduce yourself to iowans who have never heard of you before?

>> that i am a very independent speaker who has results of getting things done for the people of iowa. i know the democrats don't have all the right ideas. republicans don't have all the right ideas. when you talk about your experience as chief of staff, your experience as a state -- people don't have very much of a voting record with both of you. you served a term. you didn't take votes. young, why should somebody trust that you are going to do what you say you're going to do? >> i can hit the ground running. if you want to know what kind of person i am, ask senator chuck grassley. he is someone that i once trust. they know he would not have a they of staff or any staff

do not trust. we have so many challenges in washington, d.c. i want to be at the table. i know what can be done and how to get it done. i want to represent iowa and help take care of these problems. >> mr. young, what differentiates you from ms. appel? >> two things i just mentioned contrasting in our philosophy -- i like balanced budgets. keeping an eye on the federal government. she voted against the state government accountability office. she voted for the largest budget in iowa's history. iowans hate debt. i want to take care of debt in washington, d.c.. he said you are not for balanced budgets. he inferred that. is that true? >> i don't think so. in a state of iowa we have to balance our budget every single year. >> what differentiates you from david young? >> my service for the state of

iowa. my background, being a mom of six. being a financial consultant for 12 years, working with families, trying to help them with their retirement and putting their kids through college. there's a lot of differences between myself and mr. young. i would not have been for the government shutdown. he is. he wants to repeal the affordable care act. i do not. >> you said, be a mom. is that playing the card of sending a woman to congress? >> i think you want to send the most independent thinker who is willing to work hard for middle-class families of iowa. that is what you are looking for. pass ad you vote to balanced budget amendment to the u.s. constitution? >> we need to have a balanced jet it that carves out for social security and medicare. it hadou would vote if those conditions, to amend the u.s. constitution requiring a federally balanced budget?

>> at a not believe i would. >> -- i do not believe i would. >> i would. >> you would what? >> i would vote for a allen's budget amendment if it allowed -- balanced budget amendment if it allowed for the possibility of busting those caps if there are emergencies and we had to protect our homeland, things like that. a balanced budget amendment could be a 20% across-the-board cut. that would affect social security, medicare, education. we have to be extremely careful when we do things like that. >> that is why you make sure mandatory spending is priority. >> i went to our watching the television sets and listening to their radios are hearing a lot of ads for the united states senate race. focust race, there is a on issues which neither of you have focused upon tonight.

security, be social medicare, and the veterans administration. let's start with social security and medicare. how would you solidify, make those systems solvent? >> i would keep my promise to seniors and 40-year-olds and 50-year-olds who are paying into the system trade social security and medicare is not a goal, it's a promise. the best way to shore up social security and medicare is to create great paying jobs so there are more people paying into the system. that's the best way to do it. taking a look at medicare -- we spoke about it earlier -- being able to negotiate drug prices, just like the veterans administration does, which saves billions of dollars. this is personal to me. my mom called a couple months ago and said her doctor wanted to put her on a new prescription. it was $1000 a month for the co-pay. she says, i can't afford that. there are lots of other families

just like that across the state of iowa. >> beyond those ideas, you would not vote to raise the retirement age, you would not vote to require wealthier americans to contribute more above the cap on perhaps social security taxes on their entire income? >> when i was a financial consultant sitting at kitchen tables, we made plans with the promise of social security being there for them, medicare being there for them. >> so how do you make it solvent if you don't make any changes? >> just like i just said, we need to create a great paying jobs for middle-class families and making sure that more people are paying into the system. >> mr. young, how would you change the system? keep need to make sure we that promise. those are not entitlements, those are ns have paid into. we have to ask ourselves, how did we get here?

if a trust fund was pillaged on wall street like bernie made off did, he would be thrown into jail. for some reason, our trust fund can be rated and it seems that nothing happens. and it seems that nothing happens. we need to do what ronald reagan did, along with the liberal speaker of the house. they got together and put everything on the table. republicans and democrats alike are saying, this is an american problem now. then you can take things off the table. i would take raising the retirement age right away off the table. at --d make sure we look the wealthier americans, they have to forgo. appel wanted to respond. >> it's interesting to hear my opponents say the sings, because he has talked about privatizing and changingty

medicare as we know it. i think seniors need to know where he stands on these issues. >> can you quote where i said i want to privatize medicare? >> you applauded it, and i'm -- after we will -- >> is that off the table for you? >> it is such a political issue. it is amazing that so many americans, when it went to get a better investment on their dollar, they look to mutual funds or stocks but it has been so politicized it will be taken off the table. >> as a financial consultant, i know, and we saw how a lot of those 401(k)s or retirement plans went way down. i don't see how we can afford to privatize social security. >> let me be clear now. where would you put social security? you are not in favor of raising the retirement age. >> no. >> you want to keep the traditional pay as you go social security, without the option of

putting it into 401(k) type plants. >> -- plans. >> absolutely. >> how would social security be under your vote? >> how would it be? >> yes. >> we need to make sure we keep that promise to our seniors. >> how would you pay for it? >> we need to make sure we are creating good paying jobs so there are more people paying into the system. >> good paying jobs means setting the minimum wage where. >> setting it to $10.10 an hour. one of my very first bills i voted on in the state senate was to increase the minimum wage to $7.25 an hour. that was seven years ago, and those folks deserve a raise. >> the federal minimum wage? >> yes, sir. >> where would you said it, mr. young? >> it's time to raise the minimum wage. we have to do it in a bipartisan effort where you make sure you're keeping in mind the small

businesses out there that employ 70% of the workforce. make sure we tie it together, and we need to make sure that the main streets and are smaller cities, they thrive. >> give me a dollar figure. $10.10? >> $10.10 seems to be -- >> how do you consider small businesses that are having to pay the minimum wage? what consideration would you have in the law for them? >> just reauthorize at the same way it has been in the past, whether it has been tax incentives or credits for small businesses. >> when you say tie it together, are you saying it should be indexed in the future? >> i'm saying that they raise with the tax credits should be in one piece of legislation. >> but you want some sort of comprehensive package that would raise the minimum wage and also redo corporate taxes? >> not corporate taxes, just for small businesses. >> it's interesting that my

opponent has always been against minimum wage until this evening -- against increasing the minimum wage until this evening. >> is this a new position for you? >> i have spoken about it on public radio. >> a lot of your fellow republicans say this is a job killer. do you not agree with that? >> half a million jobs could be lost. but with the small business tax relief, it seems to offset that. >> the renewable fuel standard is under debate, it seems, every month in the heartland and washington, d.c. do you support continuing the renewable fuel standard, and how long should it be maintained, mr. young? >> i do support continuing the standard. what i do not support is the epa meddling with it. the standards have been set into law.

it should be done through congress. i don't have a crystal ball and can't tell at what stage you move that standard. it probably will be removed someday. that is how industry will get to the level where we will become additive. appel, would you maintain the renewable fuel standard forever or do you foresee a point at which it could be removed? dependsconomy in iowa on the renewable fuel theaters. our farmers and families depend on it. i truly support it, and we need somebodyure we have who truly supports the renewable fuel standards here. my opponent has stated numerous times that he wants to phase out the renewable fuel standards. >> i did not hear him say that tonight. >> he did not say it tonight. it's interesting. >> what about what he said to have this go through congress instead of it being an administrative rule to the epa? would it be a good idea to have congress decide what standard

there should be for renewable fuel? >> it would be if we had a congress that is working and doing their job. there's too much gridlock. wa's economy depends on these renewable fuel standards. we need to have them continue. >> are you feeling confident that if congress were in charge of setting the renewable fuel standards, this is something they would actually want to continue, especially considering the fact that -- this is a big interest to iowa -- but it is not necessarily a priority all over the country. >> if you look what is happening globally, and if you want to get away from being dependent on middle east fuels, we are going to have to have a comprehensive energy strategy. we have a department of energy, but we don't have an energy policy. renewable fuels aids to be a part of that -- needs to be a part of that. one of the problem with our

political climates that you mention here is all these negative ads. kong risk this week had an opportunity to vote on a constitutional amendment tilling with the citizens united ruling, opening the doors to super pac's , corporate funding, campaign advertising. would you have voted for the constitutional amendment? how do you feel about campaign-finance reform? >> when it comes to campaigns and fund raising, i think we need to make sure we have full transparency. in the citizens united case, it should stand. we need to make sure that we know who is funding what, and at what level. there are voters, consumers, and americans can make a better judgment on who to vote for. do you agree with the supreme

court and citizens united money from corporations council is constitutionally protected political speech? >>. >> i do. >>. >> and so you don't want to change that at all? >> i would like to see more transparency and oversight. you havepel, would voted to amend the constitution to deal with the issue that came up in the citizens united ruling? >> absolutely. in the state senate i put forth two pieces of legislation to take money out of politics. there is way too much money in politics. >> what about the philosophical question? fromampaign money individuals -- does that count is constitutionally protected speech, or from corporations? >> i do not think a corporation is a person. i do not think that should be protected. >> what would you do with campaign-finance? you said the first legislation would be to take money out. how come? >> in the state of iowa, there

is no limit for any of the statewide or anything below that. there's no limit. that's just wrong. there has to be a limit about how much people can contribute to campaigns. >> mr. young, it seems as if there is a limit to some republicans' tolerance for firms subsidies. at what point would you as a member of congress be able to convince your fellow republicans that farm subsidies should continue, and would you also ever separate the food and nutrition part of the farm bill from the farm policy itself? >> the most recent farm bill, there was a reduction in direct payments. took a lookm bureau at this and said, maybe it's a good time to start talking about this conversation. the farm bill, $800 billion -- 80% of that was the food stamps.

iowans who are suffering, and were hungry, who are dependent on those food stamps. theret like the fact that are not asset tests to make sure people are not defrauding the program and it's not there for the people who really need it. the best way to lower the amount of people on food stamps is to get the economy rolling so there are good jobs out there. >> had you make the argument that the farm policy should be united with nutrition aspects of the farm bill? >> it has been a marriage between the rural folks and the urban centers in our country. they both kind of hold their nose up and hold hands and walked down the aisle. they both need each other. >> some of your fellow republicans want to and that lineup. >> that is where they stand. >> ms. appel, at what point do you think farmers should get a subsidy to buy insurance whereas

the small business owner on main street does not get a subsidy to buy insurance for his business? farming is so important in the state of iowa. the farm bill is critical. it's terrible that we had three years of non-passage of the farm bill. children that are [indiscernible] why that wasn't working, and the gridlock in congress. i remember my oldest son saying, mom, you did so much for the people of iowa. you should run for congress. i bet you can get this fixed. that is one of the primary reasons i'm running, to make sure we break up that gridlock and get things passed like a farm bill. >> and that includes also guaranteeing some prices such as for corn, it will be below the andet price of last march so farmers this year will be getting some payments from the government to subsidize that loss? >> right.

>> and you agree with that? >> yes. our farmers need to know how to make their plans over the next years. >> mr. young. >> the farming industry is different from any other. there needs to be a base support system. for farmers, it is like going to las vegas every day. they depend on the weather. when it is really bad, there needs to be that support their so they can make sure they can do the right things for the next season to make sure we have feed and fuel and food on the table. >> there's a new cash crop in colorado with the legalization of marijuana. states around the country are looking at medical marijuana, including iowa, with approving a derivative of marijuana for kids with epilepsy and other disorders. would you as a member of congress consider backing off of the federal laws and allow states to make their own control and how to

distribute marijuana? >> i look at it as a mom. i think any legalization of marijuana i am not supportive of it. i do have a lot of compassion for the families that are seeing solution for their children's epilepsy and i can see a pathway there. >> some of the state-by-state pathways are being hamstrung by the fact you cannot transport this product across state lines and there are a lot of federal regulations that make difficult. would you as a congress person say the states know best about what is right for them? >> well i think iowa is work ing through the problems and rule process. so i think we have to let that process work. >> you believe in leaving the law the way it is? >> at this point, yes.