president obama meeting with governors from across the country during the national governors association winter meeting in washington, d.c. governors wrap up their meeting with a visit to the lighthouse p we expect to hear from some of the attendees around 12:30 eastern time. we'll bring you live coverage on c-span. congress returns from a weeklong break. the senate gaveling in at 3:00 eastern time for the reading of george washington's farewell address. the house returns tomorrow. expected to work on a college savings program as well as homeland security spending. live coverage of the house on c-span and the senate on c-span2. >> the political landscape has changed with the 114th congress. there are 108 women in congress,

including the first african-american republican and the house and the first woman veteran in the senate. keep track of members of congress using congressional chronicle on c-span.org. the page has lots of useful information, including voting results. new congress, best access on c-span c-span2, c-span radio and c-span.org. >> i really weekend, the democratic national committee released an interim review of the party's losses in the midterm elections. it showed the democrats lack a single election strategy. they need to focus on local elections. kentucky governor steve bashiear talked about some of the points during the winter meeting. this is about an hour and a half.

>> i hereby call the 2015 winter meeting of the democratic national committee back into session from recess. the colors will be presented by the paul laurence dunbar senior high school color guard. please rise for the presentation of the colors.

>> join me in the pledge of allegiance. i pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. please join me in thanking the color guard from paul laurence dunbar senior high school. [applause] the colors are retired.

at this time, i would like to introduce the reverend dr. derrickk harkins. reverend harkins served as senior chapters of the 19th street baptist church, a role he has held for 17 years. he just recently accepted a position as vice president of union theological seminary in new york city. he is no stranger to the committee. he said dress -- he served as our national director of faith outreach. he was responsible for all aspects of engaging the faith community. prior to beginning at 19th street, he served as a senior

minister of new hope baptist church in dallas, texas. he began his career at a baptist church in harlem, new york. please join me in welcoming reverend dr. derrick harkins. [applause] [laughter] >> would that i could pray away the snow this morning. that is beyond my pay grade. shall we join our hearts? in prayer and reflection. eternal god, call us to high purpose. not the negative and smallmindedness of division. give us eyes that see the vision of a just society for all americans. give us ears that hear the pleas of those who are far too often in the margins and in the shadows.

give us hands that work for what is right and just and fair. give us voices that are never stilled when the call for what is loving and caring should go forth. and give us feet that move and are not dissuaded by the challenges of the day. give us finally hearts that the -- that beat with a passion for this great nation that we all love. we asked the things, asking for your abiding presence as we go stand beside us as our companion sustain us as our strength loom above is as our inspiration. always dwell within us. amen.

>> well said, as always. before i introduce our first speaker, i want to take a moment to recognize -- take your seats. i have the pleasure of introducing my colleagues and fellow officers out in the trenches and crisscrossing the country helping us make sure that we can send a message to voters all across the united states and this morning is no exception. i will do that and apologize on behalf of our vice chair who had a flight canceled and had to reschedule it. i believe he had to leave already. feel free, we understand if you're trying to get home and your flight has been canceled and we are going to go to the meeting this morning. we still will have the closed session because we want to give everybody an opportunity to interact with the task force.

this is not a last time. there are many opportunities between now when you will be able to provide that feedback. starting from my right come our incredible treasurer. our national finance chair. our amazing secretary the mayor of the city of baltimore mayor stephanie rawlings blake. donna brazile. vice chair for voter registration and participation. our vice chair, president for the association of state democratic chairs and the chair of the new hampshire democratic

party, ray buckley. one of our vice chairs who has been reelected as the chair of the labor council for the dnc. [applause] we have a special addition to the dais this morning. i want to give him special thanks for his time and dedication in helping to shape the task force -- the governor of the great state of kentucky has joined us is morning as well. [applause] thank you so much. i appreciate that acknowledgment and round of applause that you're given them. i know that everyone is as excited as i am about last week's announcement that our democratic national convention will be in the beautiful city of philadelphia. the city of brotherly love and sisterly affection.

in addition to donna and others, i know we heard from him yesterday briefly. i asked him to take some time to give us a glimpse of what we have to look forward to with the philadelphia 2016 as we move in that direction. since being elected mayor in 2008, he has vigorously managed the city government by reducing city spending. notably, closing a 2.4 billion dollars gap in philadelphia's five-year plan without compromising a police officer, firefighter or health center worker. that is an impressive account was meant. mayor nutter has been committed to public service since his youth. he served for almost 15 years on the philadelphia city council. he's a graduate of the wharton

school at the university of pennsylvania. please join me in welcoming the mayor of the city where we will nominate the president of the united states of america michael nutter, mayor of sotloff you. -- mayor of philadelphia. [applause] mayor nutter: good morning. madam chair thank you very much for this wonderful opportunity to address this incredible democratic national committee and this meeting this morning. it is truly a great honor, but to start what i would like to do is ask that we join in cheering on and supporting our great chair, who will lead

us to an incredible victory in 2016. the work that she is that provide financial security for the dnc, to focus on issues related to our challenges going forward, while i thank the governor for his work in the task force, re-examining challenges from the past that will help us as we move this party forward, as we move our nation forward, and for all of that, she is our great leader. she is tough. she is strong. she is focused. she gets the job done. for all of that and so much more, would you please recognize and maybe come to our feet to recognize our great chair and the leadership is. -- the leader she is. [applause]

she has told you to sit down. to my friend and colleague in the work of mayors, our secretary, stephanie rawlings-blake, who i get to brag on just a little bit as well. she is too shy to mention it. in a few months, in june, in san francisco, as i am a past president of the u.s. conference of mayors, i've had the opportunity to work with her at a variety of levels, but she is also a leader as she is here at the dnc. in june and san francisco of this year, she will become the first african-american woman president of the u.s. conference of mayors. we could not be more proud and more excited for her leadership as well. [applause]

some strong women leaders around here. some get nervous about strong women leaders. well, you might want to get used to that. [applause] madam chair, i'll leave it at that. for the moment. to all of the officers here on the dais, and certainly as she introduced me yesterday, as the chair said, the one, the only, donna brazile, but our leaders here on the dais recognize the leadership team of the dnc. [applause]

lastly certainly, amy dacey our great ceo. [applause] we know as leaders for all the air time that we get, we don't do this work by ourselves. it really is the folks on staff making things happen, whether for the chair and all the folks who work with the chair, amy and her entire team, and the group that went all across united states of america seeing these great cities. we thank you for your work. speaking of those cities phoenix, birmingham, columbus, and new york city, recognize them and their effort and their commitment and participation to this process. [applause] on a very personal level, my first convention was in 1992 in new york city. i was then a bill clinton

delegate. at the time i ran folks said why in the world would you become a delegate for a little-known governor in a poor state in the united states of america, who has no chance of winning whatsoever. i said, well, that's fine. i will be a clinton delegate. i think you know the rest of that story. i have been a clinton delegate every time there was a clinton on the ballot, so we will see how that goes. we are excited. we are thrilled. madam chair and all the folks involved, we are honored, the city of philadelphia, the city of brotherly love and sisterly affection, we are honored to be the host city for 2016. as i mentioned the other day having last hosted the democrats in 1948, we have been prepared and excited for some time for this opportunity. philadelphia is the largest city in america with an african-american mayor.

we will have, and the chair has insisted, we will have an economically inclusive convention in the city of philadelphia. every opportunity, to include the incredible diversity of our city and our nation, we will look for those opportunities in the economics of what happens in the democratic national convention. you'll also be coming to one of the most diverse cities and united states of america by race, by age, by sexual preference, and every other measure, philadelphia truly is a microcosm of the united states of america. you know our history, but let me just mention it. located on the eastern seaboard of the time, the second largest city in the greatest empire, philadelphia was a safe port in a contentious political storm as american colonists struggled towards the decision to break free from tyranny. this is where our nation's forefathers gathered and determine what form of new government we should have and

how it should work. philadelphia helped to define what we now know as democracy in the united states of america. philadelphia hosted the first and second continental congress, declaration of independence, the u.s. constitution, where our forefathers also said that everyone should have life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. isn't that what we are really all about 200 plus years later as democrats? people should be able to enjoy their lives, have liberty where they are, and be able to pursue their happiness. that is what we have been doing for hundreds of years, and we need to stay focused on that mission. there is always of course a lot of monday morning quarterbacking about what happened, what should've happened, what did we do, what didn't we do, and some

may have lost a little sight of who we have been and where we have been, of what were trying to do today. some have may let fear dictate their actions instead of principle. you know we can't and won't do that in 2015 or 2016 or any years going forward. we are the party of the middle class, not just those who are in it today, but those who struggle daily, working two jobs, putting kids through school, trying to get their own educational opportunities, struggling to get into the middle class themselves. in philadelphia, we have taken many of those same steps. you heard the president remind us of his comment last year at the state of the union that it was time to give america a raise. i was struck by the president's words that night. literally, that night i sent a message to my team that it was time for us to at least give those who work for contractors

with the city of philadelphia, it was time within my power to give them a raise. and a couple months later i signed an executive order immediately -- [applause] -- i signed an executive order immediately giving those who are workers for contractors for the city of philadelphia to raise of $10.88 an hour. and on january 1, 2015 then automatically raising the register $12 an hour with the consumer price index that every january 1 will get a raise. it is time to give america a raise. [applause] it is sheer coincidence but worth noting, the just last week on the same day that a bill was introduced in the congress to give paid sick leave across the country, i had the great pleasure of signing a paid sick

leave bill in philadelphia at city hall that we strongly supported with our philadelphia city council. we can do these things. this is who we are, it is what we are about. we remember the great recession, some said let auto fail. the president said, no. auto has come roaring back. some said we cannot get health care. the president said we will. millions of americans have health care all across united states of america. we put thousands and millions of people to work with an economic recovery program of $800 billion, when not one republican in the house and only three in the senate actually supported it. it was a month into the president's presidency when we heard all about the environment, aren't we excited let's support , the first black president, and a month later no one could stand up for americans but democrats all across the united states of america.

that is what we do. [applause] with a party of labor, with a -- we are the party of labor. we are the party of labor. i mentioned on friday night at our party and today, yesterday i saw randy weingartner, recognize all labor in the house with this is morning. [applause] philadelphia is a city with the strongest lgbt protection laws in united states of america, and we continue to strive to make sure that everyone understands that who you love and who's in your life is your business, and there's no prouder moment for me than when finally

the doma law was struck down in pennsylvania. as mayor, i get to marry couples. now i say when i marry a same-sex couples, and now with the authority vested in me finally, i pronounce you wife and wife, husband and husband, couple, whoever it is you want to be, because everybody should have the rights and privileges in the united states of america. [applause] and so lastly, we have an incredible history lesson given to us this morning, the black caucus breakfast. chairman butterfield really needs to take what he did this morning and every child, black white, green, yellow, purple should see and hear what chairman butterfield said. i will be nowhere near as eloquent as him. [applause] i will repeat the one thing i did say this morning. if you have not seen the movie "selma," you want to see the movie "selma."

this is the 50th anniversary of an incredible struggle in america for voting rights, civil rights, human rights. the dogs, the hoses, the lynchings, the abuse, the oppression, folks walked 54 miles from selma to montgomery. what i say to my folks back home is that i can't get some of you to walk five minutes out of your house to a polling place to uphold the rights that people suffered and died to give you, the opportunity to exercise your franchise. no one can stay home on election day. it is a disgrace and an insult to the memory of dr. martin luther king jr., the active work no one can stay home on election today of john lewis and so many others across united states of america, because we know that

when we vote, we win. as democrats. when we vote, we win. [applause] we need to make sure that everyone is not only registered to vote, that's a great part but if you're registered and don't go to the polls, it just doesn't matter. we will give folks something to vote for. we will give folks something to be excited about. we have demonstrated what we can do when we are active, when we are energized, engaged, we get things done. regardless of our status in the congress, we will fight these fights because they are the right fights to fight for americans all across the united states of america. and so, i say to you, the party has made history time and time and time again. we are expecting history to be made one more time in philadelphia in 2016.

it is our full expectation that not only will the democratic nominee come out of philadelphia, but that nominee will create history by having 12 straight years of democrats in the white house, because -- [applause] -- because the road to 1600 pennsylvania avenue comes right through philadelphia pennsylvania. god bless you, democrats. let's go out and win an election. thank you very much. [applause] representative wasserman schultz: thank you so much mayor nutter. we are all so excited that

philadelphia will host our convention and we look forward to working with you and your host committee and the people of philadelphia over the next 18 months until we reach philadelphia the week of july 25, 2016. as donna eloquently reminded us, next month marks the 50th anniversary of the selma to montgomery marsh for voting rights. it represented the political and emotional peak of the modern civil rights movement. the courage of those civil rights marchers is something we recognize and hope to honor every day by the work that we do as democrats. please join me and turn your attention to the screen for a video commemorating this historic moment and highlighting the importance of protecting the right to vote. [video clip] [inaudible]

>> our video, with sound. maybe. [laughter] [applause]

♪ >> what does a vote mean? why do we march for it? why do we fight for it? it has been 50 years since we marched from selma to montgomery, 50 years since we passed the voting rights act. our fight led us through bloody sunday to the halls of washington. the fight continues today across our country, that right to vote that we fought for, that we

marched for, that some died for, is at risk. our right to vote is still the continuing struggle of thousands of men and women. whose legacies echo every time we cast a ballot. so we must not forget our past. we must continue the struggle for every american in our democracy. because as dr. king said, we marched, and we march on poverty, and we continue our triumphant march until the realization of the american dream. [applause] representative wasserman schultz: that was an inspirational video. members of the dnc, and fights we engage in to make sure that we can not only protect the

right to vote and expand it inspires me every single day. we have come a long way, but the fight clearly continues for the right vote. our next item of business today is a report on the resolutions committee. the chair will now recognize the can not only cochair of the resolutions committee. his cochair is unable to be with us this afternoon. [applause] >> thank you, madam chair. the resolutions committee met last evening at 6:00 p.m. to consider 21 resolutions. they were a combination of message and commemorative resolutions which have all been e-mailed to you this morning. cochair of the resolutions they are in your inbox. in addition to the resolutions that we passed, that was an additional resolution of the executive committee submitted by it was a resolution on the right to vote amendment, adding a

right to vote amendment to the u.s. constitution. we are only one of 11 democracies in the world that does not have a federal guarantee of the right to vote. that we passed an executive committee and that goes into the package as well. resolutions that the committee passed included a resolution highlighting president obama and democratic economic of accomplishments, a resolution on expanding economic opportunity for women and families, resolution in support of comprehensive immigration reform and the right of the president to use the executive order -- power to stay deportations, a resolution recognizing black history month and the 50th anniversary of bloody sunday, resolution showing that democrats stand with the people immigration reform and the right of france, who lost lives tragically when terrorists attacked a french satiric weekly and a kosher market.

a resolution recognizing lunar new year, resolution reaffirming our commitment to state parties, which incidentally have the most cosponsors of any resolution i've ever seen, resolution -- [applause] -- supporting health care, education and job training for our service members, and then some commemorative resolutions one recognizing the life and career of former new york governor mario cuomo, his daughter maria is here with us today. i would like to ask her to be recognized if you would. [applause] we have a resolution for the life and legacy of former boston mayor, tom menino, and a resolution honoring the life and career of our d.c. mayor marion berry. we also passed a resolution urging democrats on all levels to support the right of the

district of columbia to full statehood. thank you. [applause] i urge adoption of these resolutions. representative wasserman schultz: you can never take the staffer out of the girl. of france, who lost lives thank you so much. that is the report of the resolutions committee. is there a motion? is there a second? all those in favor. motion carries. the committee's report of the resolution committee is adopted. to thank all the committee members for their hard work. thank you. [applause] i have spoken to many of you this weekend about the democratic victory task force. i don't want to steal his thunder and give too much

away, because we have a great privilege of hearing from him this morning as he delivers the task force's preliminary findings. it has been wonderful though working with and getting to know the governor over conference calls and hours of meetings, and there were moments during the process when we were completing each other's sentences. i am honored to be his opening act this morning. i'm going to tell you, this morning were going to hear some tough love. frankly, we need to hear it. i strongly believe that we have to look back in order to move forward. we cannot be too proud to learn. i love this party. i love standing up and saying, i am a democrat. but our passion for this party only gets it so far. we cannot just say we are democrats. we need to do a better job of

telling people our stories telling them why we're democrats. and my family's dinner table, i remember asking my parents, why they were democrats. their answer was clear. because democrats care about people, because our government has the ability to affect real change in people's lives, as a jewish family, as good citizens in the society, we believe that it is part of our responsibility to help others. we even have a term for it in my community, tikkun olam, repairing the world. those kitchen table conversations became a template of who i am at my core. i never looked back. i knew i was a democrat. i am sure that for many of you it is the same. i wonder how many people in this room live in a home where photographs of fdr and jfk running on the all right next to the photos of grandma and grandpa. maybe even above them. you all know what i'm talking about.

you also know what motivates you to knock on the doors, make the phone calls, to pull out your checkbook. something made you drag yourself out of the bed and into a hotel conference room on a morning in cold february. seriously, i know all of you know that i'm talking about, and i know what i'm fighting for. i know why i am a democrat. my parents helped lay the groundwork for me, but as an adult, there are two experiences. one is exhilarating, and the other devastating. that i associate with providing the greatest clarity of what being a democrat means to me. the first was having children. even before i have my kids, i knew i wanted to be a children's

advocate in government. as a parent, relying on the general intuition that children are the most vulnerable members of our society is not the same as actually being a parent. since having children of my own, it is almost impossible for me to make any policy or political decision without thinking about how what we do now will shape the world that my children grow up in. being a mother has brought my mission into sharper focus. understanding not only the threats we hope to protect our children from but also the opportunities we want to be sure are open for them. the other experience that reminds me why i am a democrat was being diagnosed with breast cancer. at a time when you want to be strong for yourself and for others, the greatest source of joy in your life, all of a sudden become the triggers of your deepest fears.

you cannot help but think of the baseball games, graduations, weddings you might miss. you wonder how many anniversaries you have left. sorry. even now, celebrating my 24th wedding anniversary earlier this week -- [applause] -- healthy and cancer free. [applause] i can only imagine what would've happened if in 2007 i was one of the tens of millions of americans who were uninsured or underinsured. how long would it have taken for me to know that the lump i found was breast cancer? when would i have decided it was worth the expense to see a doctor? how would i afford care without

insurance? why am i a democrat? because thanks to democrats, more americans today have access to quality, affordable health care. [applause] they don't have to make those decisions. why am i a democrat? because thanks to democrats, it is more likely that my children, our children will enter a workforce where women make equal pay. and will raise their own children in a society that does not discriminate on the basis of who someone loves. why am i a democrat? because thanks to democrats, dreamers will get their shot to pursue the american dream. [applause] women can make our own health care decisions and we just might have a chance of tackling climate change before it is too late. [applause]

as democrats, we know all these values become reality in one place, the ballot box. the last term, the last several midterm elections have shown the democratic party two things. first, americans overwhelmingly support the people and issues that the democratic party fights for a daily basis. we have seen voters support ballot initiatives and legislation to raise the minimum wage, support workers rights and back amendments guaranteeing the right to vote. at the core, the democratic party is our belief in equality for all. and american voters endorse that every day. however, in midterm elections, democratic incumbents and candidates have suffered losses at all levels of government. since 2008, we have lost 69 seats in the u.s. house. 13 in the u.s. senate. 910 state legislative

seats and 30 legislative chambers. 11 governorships. enough is enough. enough is enough. [applause] that's why in november, i assembled a task force to conduct an assessment of the democratic party's role in recent elections. the mission of the task force is simple, examine the last several election cycles. how we can improve the long-term strength of the national democratic already. the task force has digested a great deal of information since november. during biweekly meetings, the task force met with experts in a variety of categories. each member of the task force has been assigned to meet with groups in their fields of expertise including elected officials, campaign managers, consultants, academics

donors and most importantly activists and voters in every state. i have been so proud and thrilled about the earnestness and commitment with which the members have undertaken this assignment. join me in thanking them. thank them so much. [applause] i am going to introduce them when i introduce the governor for his remarks. they have been listening and speaking with a variety of stakeholders from the grassroots level on up. they will continue working on until the recommendations are finalized in june. the dnc conducted a postelection paul was 100,000 supporters. -- poll with 100,000 supporters. the association of state democratic chairs conducted a survey in each of their

committees. we will continue to work together. the work has reached into all 50 states to look at what it takes to build, run and win political campaigns in america. the bottom line of what we need to do is educate people who are not in this room. voters donors, community leaders and we need to do it through every channel possible. from voter registration to candidate recruitment and training. as the dnc, it is our responsibility to be the vehicle which enables our party committees to take our values, and our tikkun olam to voters. the dnc has been busy making the transition from the 2014 to the 2016 election cycle. we will elect a democrat as the 45th president of the united states of america. [applause] a few things we have been up to. in 2014, the dnc data and technology team continued to

build on the tool set from the obama campaigns. our teams offered training and assistance so that each tool we developed was used to its fullest potential and was deployed up and down the ballot. we've compiled data from more than a decade of campaigns including voter volunteer history. last year, even the smallest campaign had access to the same technology and analytics tools pioneered by the obama campaigns. the dnc has developed analytics platforms to synthesize and enrich our voter targeting tools and processes. taken collectively, the dnc's data and technology programs were worth millions of dollars in savings to party committees. all of this is designed to get more people out to vote. later this year, we will recognize the 50th anniversary of selma and the voting rights act. since the supreme court in 2013

strip down key components -- struck down key components of the voting rights act, we have watched republicans seize every opportunity to curtail voting rights across the country. they have pushed voter id laws. this disproportionately impacted voters more likely to vote democrat. the democratic party has long defended the right to vote. last year, a shift for us towards a more proactive expansion mission to ensure that every eligible voter is registered, every registered voter is able to vote and that every vote is accurately counted. that has been done under the leadership of donna brazile. [applause] since launching the voter expansion project last winter, the dnc has worked with our state parties to develop voter expansion programs including dedicated voter expansion staff in more than two dozen states. last cycle, we've recruited trained and mobilized more than 30,000 volunteers.

more than 10,000 poll observers and more than 3000 poll workers. the dnc has made a concerted effort to engage constituencies through a variety of avenues. our constituency department under reverend regina thomas continues to work with our caucuses to execute plans to mobilize members of the democratic base. last september the dnc announced a seven-figure media campaign to reach african americans, hispanics and women voters. diversity is the democratic party's greatest strength. both the diversity of our supporters and our ideals. we must do a better job of ensuring that each of our supporters and voters feel that they are a welcome member of an open and accessible party. this is an important issue that we as democrats care deeply about and we must continue to look for new and innovative ways to bring more people from diverse backgrounds into our party and make sure they feel

welcome and included and embedded for the top of our party to the bottom. our chief diversity officer has worked every day to ensure that the party's business practices and commitments live up to our expectations. the dnc has launched five initiatives to ensure that we reflect the diversity of our party and nation as a whole. first, improve the party's diverse contracting practices to encourage diverse hiring through our supply chain. second, continue to grow training programs that promote diversity. third, ensure that diversity policies are followed throughout the dnc. diversity. fourth improve diverse hiring

practices monitoring senior and general staff in identifying more diversity in our internship opportunities. fifth, work with our state partners to grow diversity by sharing best practices and helping develop state specific expectations and goals. the strategies, tactics and tools of the party are designed to help us spread the democratic message. middle-class economics works. six years ago, president obama inherited an economy that had been losing 750,000 jobs a month. the housing market bubble had burst and the auto industry was in danger of collapsing. under democratic leadership we experienced our 59th straight month of private sector job growth. [applause] that is a remarkable achievement. pay and benefits rose in 2014 by the most in the last six years. the auto industry is thriving and millions more americans have

access to affordable health care. it is our responsibility to fight for families in the middle class. the trickle-down economics of republicans has failed again and again. mitch mcconnell may have tried to take credit for our success but make no mistake, every republican 2016 contender wants to go back to the same economic policies that have failed in the past. instead of fighting for middle-class families, they want to stack the deck in favor of millionaires and corporations. let's take a look at their candidates so you can see how clear this is. first, the governors. jeb bush is not going to fight for middle-class families. he never has. for jeb bush, it has always been and always will be what is best for him and those at the top. as governor, he slashed taxes by billions

largely benefiting the wealthy. when his brother was president jeb backed his plan to privatize social security. he cashed in on wall street as americans were hit by the financial crisis. jeb bush is the heir to george bush's record. chris christie likes to think of himself as a straight talker. he is happy to tell you all about it. here is some straight talk he will not like. his administration has been modeled on his leadership style, thanks functional -- dysfunctional, incompetent. his failed leadership has driven new jersey's economy over a fiscal cliff, leaving the middle class to fall further behind. scott walker is talking about bringing wisconsin to washington. oh good. [laughter] the fact is he has already brought the worst of washington's divisiveness to wisconsin.

pitting people against one another in contentious and ideological fights. walker is the latest republican to stumble during a trip to london where he dodged tough questions like his views on evolution. he sat silent when he was -- he refused to condemn when rudy giuliani directly said that our president does not love america. questioned the the president's patriotism. rick perry's biggest liability is not his pathetic 2012 run o r the felony indictment, is that in his 14 years as governor, two texases

have emerged. one for the working families and very poor that have to suffer consequences of his policies. bobby jindal has put partisanship and ambition ahead of what is good for his state. under bobby jindal's watch, louisiana is facing a budget shortfall. that he refuses to do anything about. no wonder polls show he is one of the least popular governors in the country. if you can't govern your state, how can you be expected to govern the country? it is not like republican senators are any better. ted cruz has essentially been the de facto leader of the gop for more than a year and look at how that has turned out. cruz is the embodiment of what is wrong with the republican party. opposition and obstruction when it comes to helping middle-class families. last time ted cruz got all his

tea party buddies together, they shut down the government. back at the ranch, marco rubio has shown he is not a leader with fresh ideas. he is a follower using a tired playbook. instead of doing what is best for his constituents, at every turn, he panders to the republican base, going so far as to run away from his own immigration plan when the party put the slightest bit of pressure on him. his book tour happens to stop in iowa, south carolina and new hampshire. he had no problem missing a week's worth of the votes to engage in. behind the shiny book cover are just some of the same failed ideas voters have rejected in the past. finally, rand paul. the good doctor likes to tell people he is a candidate who can broaden the gop's appeal to african-americans but then he gets mad when you point out he

has questioned the civil rights act, opposes fixing the voting rights act, opposes raising the minimum wage and when asked about the president's nomination of loretta lynch, bragged, she is going down. he said he's not an isolationist but he confirmed he wants to end foreign aid to israel. he wants to come across as the future of the gop but repeats lies about vaccines causing mental defects. who is this guy? amid the contradictory positions he takes to pander to whatever audience he's speaking to, his policies are way outside the mainstream and consistently would hurt the middle class at home and abroad. he is not a new type of republican. every day, he is something new. these are considered the front runners. when you add in ben carson, rick santorum, mike huckabee, this

crew is going to make the gop field look presidential. i cannot wait to watch their debates. it will be an incredible circus. it will put ringling to shame. we recently announced where the 45th president of the united states will be nominated. in the city of brotherly love and sisterly affection. the selection of philadelphia to host our convention is the culmination of a long process. all three finalists cities put in strong bids but philadelphia stood out. based on our security, logistics and research criteria. i'm sure our delegates and attendees will have a fantastic experience that will launch us into the general campaign united and excited. with the rich history,

philadelphia offers an ideal stage. it was there that our founding fathers had the courage to declare independence by observing adherence to self evident truths. the belief that all men and women are created equal is embedded in the fundamental values of the democratic party. we are the party of inclusion and expanded opportunities to -- we are fighting to ensure that all americans have their fair shot and a chance to get ahead. why am i a democrat? i know what being a democrat means to me. i know that every person here has their own reasons as well. over the coming months, we need to distill our collective stories into one narrative so that the american voter knows we are on their side. that must come through every day in our words, actions and priorities. we have a lot of work ahead of us and it will not be easy but nothing worth doing ever is easy.

i'm excited about our future. thank you for your continued support, for rolling up your sleeves and for focusing on the work we have ahead. we have many days that are better ahead of our party and i look forward to working with you. thank you, so much. [applause] thank you. [applause] thank you. as you know, shortly after the 2014 elections, i appointed the task force to conduct an assessment of key components of the democratic party's role in recent elections and so that we could identify places where the party can improve operations so we can better serve our candidates and constituents. i want to acknowledge our task force members.

some were held up by the weather. i want to thank them for their hard work. naomi eberly. she hails from boston. she might be buried under seven feet of snow right now but she sends her regrets. she is also the vice chair of the dnc's national committee. donna brazile, vice chairwoman of the democratic national committee. [applause] maria cardona, principal of the dewey square group. [applause] marc elias, the chair of the perkins political law group. [applause] teddy goff, a partner in position strategies. maneesh coyle, the president of

mkg marketing. [applause] rick palacios, chairman of the colorado democratic party. and lee saunders. and i am so pleased to recognize the kentucky governor who serves, last but not least, as de facto chair to give us a preliminary report of their work today. i guess we are making you chair by default today. he drew the short straw to give the presentation. governor beshear was elected in 2011, while in office, he was focused on issues affecting kentucky families. an attorney by profession, governor beshear served as

attorney general prior to be elected governor. he served in the u.s. army reserve. i can tell you, his service on this task force has been remarkable. this has been a person that has been the governor of the state and he has produced in every field task force meeting and is here with us to give up his time to make sure that we can be walk through the task force with his preliminary recommendations. please join me in welcoming governor beshear. [applause] governor beshear: good morning. well, i want all of you to sit back in your chairs, fasten your seatbelts, but do not fall off the podium. [laughter] fasten your seatbelts and take a

deep breath. we have some things to talk about. some very serious things to talk about. it is not all happy faces. as you know, my name is steve bashir, i am the governor of the commonwealth of kentucky. i'm a proud democrat. [applause] i am also here to tell you that the democratic party has lost its way. you know, we have always been the party of the people, by the people, and for the people. i purposely use the words of the very first republican president of the united states, a great kentuckian, abraham lincoln. if you were with us here today he would be so disappointed and what his party has become that he would be reregistering as a

democrat. [applause] you know democrats have always been the party that believed deep this in, and fought hardest to protect the economic and political well-being of all americans. thanks to our efforts, the dream of a better life has been both visible and reachable. for workers, families, on to be newest, new arrivals, no matter what their economic background, no matter how humble their origins. unfortunately, the last few decades had given birth to a dangerous and ugly trend in america. we now live in an era in which the privileged few are grabbing a larger and larger share of wealth power, and hope.

those foldable by birth health, or other circumstances, have found themselves powerless and voiceless. this should be the time, this should be the time for democratic leaders to rise up to the forefront. as defenders of the people. we think we have. we think we have. the american people, by their votes, do not agree with us. they do not think we have. in this increasingly volatile and hostile climate, when the american people need us the most, the democratic party has too often allowed its message to become muddled. its passion, it's strength to be diluted. its strategy and execution to grow flabby.

our core supporters to grow distracted. rather than gaining strength and stature, our candidates find themselves increasingly shunneed by the frustrated electorate in search of answers and the need to vent. now, democrats have been successful in residential races, and thank god we have. but, the results at almost every other level bode ill. not only for our future, but for the future of this nation. since 2008, and you heard the chair recite some of the statistics, the collective democrat party has suffered some losses. losing congress hurts. it hurts bad. we are also being squeezed out of governor's offices, state legislative chambers, city

council halls around this country. those numbers, folks, are scary. now, the problem lies not with the party's core beliefs. they are as relevant and necessary today as ever in this country's history. it is clear, by many majors -- measures, that the american people support the people and the issues that the democratic party fight for. rather, the fault lies in our inability, our inability to convey our principles to the american people in a concise precise, and passionate way. it lies with our inability to demonstrate the truth of how we are the party that puts people first, and whose p values

align vastly with the americans. finally, the fault lies with a single dimensional election strategy. that strategy, which is blind to anything it seems beyond 1600 pennsylvania avenue. for the sake of this country, we have to fix these shortcomings. we will fix these shortcomings. for three months, the members of this democratic victory task force, have been formulating a plan, and it is a plan raised on input from you, the entire democratic family across this country. to improve the long-term strength of the party, and return it to strength at all levels. i want to congratulate our chair. she had the courage, and it took a little courage. she had the courage to step

up and put this in motion. like us, we know how strongly she believes in this democratic party, and shares our passion to win elections. so, today, we formally unveil a preliminary plan, preliminary draft with recommendations. with the goal that the democratic national committee released the final and complete report in may. that report will serve as a strategic plan to guide the party's efforts through the 2020 two election cycle. however, the preliminary recommendations unveiled today identified many areas in which work must start right here and right now. i have been chosen to speak briefly on this. why me? i will tell you why me. it is because kentucky's political story demonstrates how

we can stem this type that is moving against us. nationally, the bluegrass state is content considered red. after all, the president received only one third of our vote. five of our congressmen are republican. thanks to defectors, the gop took control of our state senate years back and maintains that control today. but, six of our seven constitutionally elected statewide officers are democrats. [applause] since 1930 and democrats have controlled the governor's office except for three times.

democrats have also controlled the state senate from us 100 years. after democratic setbacks nationally in 2012, kentucky republicans smelled blood in the water. they probably proclaim that they would take over our statehouse in 2014. inmany gop groups, including the famous, or infamous koch brothers joined in that effort. they were in kentucky in our legislative races. yet, in 2014, in the mid-term election cycle kentucky democrats retain control of the kentucky house of representatives. [applause] folks, mitch mcconnell carried 110 of our 120 counties. think of how many thousands of kentuckians had to go into that

voting booth on election day and after pulling his lever and the republican congressman's lever, went and search for that democratic state representative candidate. for, not only did we not lose control, we did not lose a single seed. [applause] we came within 200 votes of adding one seat. successfully defending our house in that kind of a political climate, it was a germanic achievement. how did we do it? we did it because we spent our time talking to families about things they care about. jobs. health care. educating the kids. we did it in a way that engage them and excited them and demonstrated in clear terms how democratic leadership was making their lives better. some caution me in that campaign

about talking about things. like health care, core academic standards, or the economy. because, so-called obamacare and common core are unpopular they said. the economic narrative was not convincing. today, kentucky remains the loan southern state with a democratic-controlled legislative chamber because i ignored the advice. [applause] my friends, this is something that we all know. when you take care of the people, the politics takes care of itself. because of our strategy, our messaging, kentucky voters know that a vote for a democrat in state races means access to health care for families who do not have coverage. it means a job for those who do not have one.

it means early childhood programs that get children off to a better start in life. it means a tough curriculum for our kids in schools. they know that democrats are fighting for families and a higher quality of life for all kentuckians, and not just for a privileged few. now, we also made it clear -- and this is very important out there today -- we also made it clear that kentucky democrats were willing to work with anybody. democrat or republican. anybody. at any time. on any issue. provided only that they leave the partisan politics at the door. and voters of all persuasions appreciated that. they appreciated that we put families first, far ahead of partisanship for its own sake. now, all of us know the republican narrative. it is the narrative of

negativity that plays on fear and frustration, lays on bitterness. the national republican party as a collective whole is an expert at that. its leaders have been successful at playing at people's emotions. they use that passion to fuel the rank partisanship and the narrowminded nature of their views. democrats, on a national level need to channel that passion of the american people and we need to channel it in a positive direction by focusing affectively on the things that democrats stand for. that, my friends, is the very top recommendation in this preliminary report. you will see that these recommendations fall into five primary areas with four other still in discussion. the very first area has to do with the parties brand. quite simply, we need one.

we need one. [applause] as this report points out, our party is loosely understood as a long list of p policy statements, and not a group of people with a common core values. that hurts our recruiting and support. we need a cohesive values-based narrative that quickly and six singly the font -- and 60 succintly defined our values. this national narrative project is already underway. the second recommendation is equally as basic. we need to strengthen partnerships with state parties in order to ensure wins on the local and state levels. [applause]

for the last several election cycles, the dnc has focused time and resources and talent on presidential battleground states and has had great success in the fight for the white house. we must, and we will, be successful again in that fight in 2016. folks, that strategy -- >> this year, we have one of the largest classes are vegan governors. some of us got back in by the skin of our teeth. [laughter] we also have a dozen new colleagues who are relatively new to politics. i think the experiences and perspectives of these governors will be of great benefit, not

just to the individual states but to the whole country. we look forward to working with this administration. our commitment to an ongoing and lasting partnership with our federal peers at all levels is continuous. i think that partnership depends on having people that understand the benefit of that relationship , are willing to invest themselves in that relationship and really understand how governors were. it is my honor to introduce a friend of states and governors a man who joined us at the summit meeting to talk about the work that remains to be done. someone who has worked tirelessly for this country. vice president of the united states, joe biden. [applause] vice president biden: good morning.

or almost afternoon. thank you very much. governor, thank you for the leadership you have shown. and for the introduction. it is great to be here with silly old friends. i got a chance to meet many new friends -- i hope friends. i hosted the new governors over in my office back in december and had a chance to spend some time with you last night. i appreciate it very much. the president and i look forward to this every year. for real. we get a chance, as mary can tell you, to actually have real-life conversations that often do not take place in the city. you guys, and women, took office to get things done. you are accustomed to making sure whatever the problem is your faces is stating, actually addressing the problem.

we look forward to this event every year. you know, as i said when i spoke when i was in nashville back in july, i said then, and i really mean this, governors are the single best hope for the political process now. we will get it right and eventually back in washington. it will occur. the public will not put up with this gridlock for much longer. you are the place where it is happening. so many of you are experimenting with, and moving forward on plans that are viewed here as toxic. republic governors democrat governors, you are reaching consensus on things like

early childhood education to minimum wage. i do not see much difference between a republican governor and democrat governor. you're getting things done. the other thing that i have observed is that you are used to being held accountable. held accountable for what you do. i think that focuses one's attention really closely. i got a chance to work with some of you veteran governors when we initiated the recovery act. it ends up being over $800 billion. everyone said, it could not possibly work and would not do much for the economy. and it was going to be such a way for undertaking. i want to thank you vegan governors for making a look like i knew what i was doing. i spent time with all but four of you at the time on the telephone, multiple times.

you took every single solitary project and program you had, and you held it to the same standard that i did, which was if you needed an answer, you would get one in 24 hours. or if you did not get an answer, within 24 hours you got a call to tell you when you would get the answer. it worked. at the time, it was viewed as something that was not very useful. since then, it was pointed out that because of you and the way you implemented the recovery act, there was less than 1% of waste, fraud, or abuse. paraphrasing someone said it was a model for the federal program. not only that, as time has gone on, the vast majority of economists, on both sides of the aisle, have acknowledge that

this work. 88% of a condiment -- of economists found that the recovery act was worth doing. that is because of you. by the way, the mayors were equally as responsive. michael greenwald wrote a book called "the new new deal." in the past year or so, i've also had the chance to be in a number of your states. i had the chance to travel with governor cuomo and governor haley in their states to talk about building 21st century infrastructure. you all know. last time we met, afterwards, i sat with you, and said, if you could take one infrastructure project in your state that would have a profound impact on the economy of your stay and growth of your state, and attract business to state.

most of you cannot come up with one. most of you came up with 2, 3, 4. i don't remember how much time we spend together. we still long time talking about what is possible. this used to always be bipartisan stuff. it was never viewed in such as in terms as it is in the city. working with other governors you are working on strategies to make sure that we have the most highly skilled workforce in the world. you are doing a great job. you're using the community college and the most laughable way that it can be used. it is working. you are actually putting people back to work and connecting them with businesses. with a little help from the federal government, a little funding. the tiger grants you have used

every one dollar of those. you have brought in private capital, state capital. you understand better than any group of people how this process works. most of all the thing i want to thank you for is the tone that you set. it's the one place in politics where most american people feel some sense of security. some sense of maybe we can get this right. i'm caps on you being contagious. i'm counting on you continuing to talk to -- democrat or republican -- you're elected senators and called his people to see if we can move this thing forward. we are ready to work with you. we genuinely see you as the vehicle in order to -- look we are gone from crisis to recovery, and we are on the verge of resurgence. we are in a better position than

any country in the world to lead the 21st century. it is not just us. take a look at what the imf has projected in terms of growth in the united states relative to the rest of the world. take a look -- they go out and ask ceos, we are the best place in the world to invest. for over three decades of doing this poll, they say the united states. you know, we need two things to keep the swelling. the highest skilled workforce in the world and the best infrastructure in the world. we are anxious to work with you. the person who is most anxious to work with you, the man that i will introduce now, who looks at you, as he said last night -- i'm paraphrasing, he said, i job

that a governor does in a really big state. or something like that. you all have been our best hope right now. i think you can help us all change our mindset about making politics work in this country because we are so well-positioned as a country to be the dominant economic force in the 21st century. we have the cheapest energy in the world. we are at the epicenter of energy. we have the most active venture capital is in the world. we find our workers are three times as productive as they are in china. we have the greatest research universities in the world. and, we have you. we are counting on the goodyear. we are counting on being able to work with you. ladies and gentlemen, the person who is most anxious to work with you, the man who i want to do is now. my friend, the president of the

united states, barack obama. [applause] president obama: thank you everybody. thank you so much. everybody have a seat. thank you, guys. thank you. welcome to the white house, once again. the only thing more glamorous than a dinner with hall and oates is a q&a with obama and biden. we saved the best for last. i know you are excited. i want to thank everybody for being here. i will be very brief. as joe said, last year was a breakthrough year for the united states. last year, the economy created more than 3 million new jobs. that is the best job growth any single year since the 1990's. the same was true for

manufacturing growth. in fact, manufacturing jobs grew even faster than the overall economy. the deficit has the cut by two thirds. energy production at an all-time high. small businesses have created over 12 million jobs. the best news of all, wages have started to go out. america is as well-positioned as we have been in a long time. the question is, what kind of choices do we now make together to make sure that that momentum is sustained? i have talked about it before and want to emphasize it again during our conversation, the belief that middle class economics is what works. the idea that not only do we want the country as a whole to prosper, but we want to make sure that everything a person in this country has opportunity. if they work hard, they can get ahead.

prosperity is broadly shared. not only is everybody sharing in a prosperity, but everyone is contributing to that prosperity. in order to do that, we have to make sure that everybody has a fair shot. the everybody does their fair share, and everybody is playing by the same rules. we have to make sure that anybody out there that is gripping and saving, trying to figure out how to send their kids to college, worrying about retirement, that they have some sense of security and some sense that they can make it. as joe indicated, i think everyone of the governors here and every one of the states of this great union of ours, cares about the same things and is doing a lot of creative work to enhance the opportunities for advancement for their citizens. you have states like oklahoma, leading the way in making sure that we are educating our

children at the earliest age with high quality early childhood and pre-k education. since 2013, 17 states have joined companies like the gap and walmart to raise their minimum wage and make sure that the hardest working people in america can support their families while working full-time. states are removing unnecessary licensing requirements so that people can fill jobs that they have skills four. you have states like california, leading the way in providing paid leave so that a mom or dad can take a day off to take care of a sick child or an aging parent without having to give up a paycheck. states are also leading the way to make sure that citizens have health insurance. thanks to the affordable care act, millions of americans now have the peace of mind of being covered. i want to thank all governors republicans and democrats

supporters and opponents, who have expanded aca to millions of people over the past couple of years. i think there is recognition that it makes sense. and it is bigger than politics. as one governors that, for ohio, it saves lives. the question about it. if your state is not one of the 28 that has expanded and, i would urge you to consider it. our team is willing to work with you to make it happen. some of you may not always agree with my approach of policies, that i think we can all agree that it is a good thing when a family does not lose a home just because a member of that family get sick. surely, we can agree that it was a good thing with businesses have roads ports, and internet connections that allow all of us to thrive. surely, we can all agree that when workers and management come together around helping families getting ahead, that is a good thing.

it is a good thing when workers and businesses can compete on a level playing field with new agreements for fair and free trade. that will be my agenda for the next two years. congress may pass parts of that agenda, not others. i will keep on pushing for these ideas because i believe it is the right thing to do. i do get is right for america. i will keep on urging congress to move past some of the habits of manufactured crisis and self-inflicted wounds that have so often bogged us doubt over the last five years. we have one example of that right now. unless congress acts, one week from now over 100,000 dhs employees will show up to work without getting paid. these are folks, who if they do not have a paycheck, will not be

able to spend that money in your states. it will have a direct impact on your economy. it will have a direct impact on america's national security. their hard work helsinki but safe. as governors, you know that we cannot afford to play politics with our national security. that said, let's try to focus on some of the things that we have in common. i want to thank governor ensley and his fellow west coast governors that reach an agreement to help open 29 points and keep is the slowing. i have to add an applause for tom perez who went out there and really made an extraordinary conjuration to the effort. that will make a big difference for the country's economy as a whole. that's the kind of thing that we can accomplish when we put aside divisions and focus on some common sense steps to improve

the economy for everybody. it is an economy -- an example that i know congress follows in the months ahead. keep in mind, when congress does not act or does not act fast enough, i think we can still work together to make a difference. whether you're a democrat or republican, what i have found is that the more specific we are on focusing on problems, less concerned about politics, the more we get published. i will give you one specific example. that is in the criminal justice area. last year was the fourth -- first time in 40 years that the criminal and cost -- criminal incarceration rate and the crime rate went down. in georgia, governor deal's have given judges cert is to -- even judges new

alternatives. we want to be a partner in those efforts. that is what the american people expect. one of the great privileges of being president is that you get to travel everywhere. you get to meet people from just about every walk of life. what i have found is the assumption that i made that i think joe made when we first round to office still holds true. the american people are good decent, and have a lot more in common than our politics would indicate. if we can just focus on that there is a lot of good stuff that we can get done. i'm in the fourth quarter of my presidency. of course, some of you might call it the kickoff for your campaign season. [laughter] i think there is still a lot that we can get done together. i think we can build an america

that is creating more opportunities for hard-working folks. i think we can make sure that the future for the next generation is even brighter than the one that we enjoyed. i look forward to making progress together at the federal and state levels. thank you very much, everybody. [applause] thank you. thank you. if we can move out those cameras -- [no audio] >> the national governors association at its winter meeting in washington over the weekend. they are wrapping up with the white house visit. we expect those attending the meeting to speak with reporters

around 12:30 p.m. eastern. we will have live coverage from c-span. the senate is expected to move forward with a vote. this will be the fourth blow on the same measure in three weeks. the department of homeland security will run out with funding on friday at midnight. politico is reporting that the president intends to veto it. the senate will gavel in at 3:00 eastern. at 4:30 p.m., one hour of debate on homeland security. that vote on moving the dhs spending forward is set for 5:30 p.m. eastern. the house returns tomorrow at noon eastern. we will have loved live coverage of the house on c-span. you can what's the senate on a companion network, c-span 2. tonight, on "the communicators"

we spoke with two industry experts. they talk about their companies and technology in which the internet, mobile phones, and the cloud operate. >> we talk about something called the network society. the network society is a society in which everyone can benefit from a connection without really having one. we put forward the idea in barcelona in 2009. over 50 billion connectivity advices and -- devices. it has got on in the world. the idea that the mobile industry is not limited to smartphones. it is also a great technology to connect so many other things and build a better society based on those things.

christ the internet started with this idea that people need to get through by a dial-up connection. we brought the internet to your home. we brought out from your home to every device the you carry around. the next that this taking this from all of the mobile devices to connecting, not just people, but things with people. so, we can actually create a whole internet of everything. i think we are at the early stages. >> tonight at 8:00 eastern. the nation's governors gathered here in washington over the weekend. the keynote including danny meyer. utah governor gary herbert served as vice chair. we will show you their comments

now. >> good morning. thank you all for being here as a takeoff the national governors association 2015 winter meeting. i'm standing here with my colleague and good friend, you governor gary herbert of utah. he serves as vice chair of nga. as you probably know, gary and i stood before a number of you at the annual state of the states address a few weeks ago. since then, we have welcomed 12 new governors. governors, we all share the ambitious agenda making sure that our states move forward. we also recognize that as this country moves forward, states are leading the way. states are navigating through

the partisan gridlock. developing solutions. testing one solution against another. i think in many ways, we have become the primary places of action for the large part because we do not have the luxury of an action. just last month, our legislative counterpoints were sworn in as thee 114 congress. we are hopeful that the new congress will provide us a clean slate. we certainly look forward to this fresh start with partners and encourage them to look towards states as they put together their agendas. we recognize the difficulty of congress and what it faces right now. the passions intensities of emotions sometimes make gridlock

unavoidable. again, when your governor of a state, you do not have that luxury. what we hold true -- we continue to embrace what we call flexible federalism. it is the ability to give states and the flexibility to approve programs and policies and that the federal government should support those efforts of improvement. the winter meeting always provides us an opportunity to discuss a number of important issues with members of congress, the president, and his a administration. we are also going to spend a certain amount of time working on discussing the chairs initiative, which this year is called delivering results. we spent a lot of time working

on this. i know i spout a lot of time thinking about it. government touches many different people's lives. our goal of this initiative is to make sure that the government can work in the most effective and efficient way possible to deliver and results. people can argue about whether the government should be larger or smaller, but the government needs to work. delivering results has three areas. making sure that we hire a bright team. how to develop an innovative improvement practices in order to enhance results. create systems that emphasize continuous improvement. lastly, how to improve regulations that protect the public, but at the same time make it easy to work with state government and do not hinder economic growth. to make sure that the process of

creating rules and regulations is as lean, and that we keep things as simple as possible, yet make sure we protect the public and maintain a level playing field. in april, i will host governors and colorado for a summit on these three issues. again, how we hire, how we have continuous improvement, and how we create appropriate regulations. we will then some of the progress -- some up the progress and make the information available to all governors. this morning, we will focus our session on delivering results. he will be joined by one of the great restauranteurs in the united states, danny meyer. he will discuss his ability to create innovation in a restaurant setting. and to maintain quality and customer service, as it has affected his restaurant, it is

very similar to what governors all over the country deal with on a daily basis. that is the ability to take systemic improvements and transform them into a higher level of service. it will really improve the quality of life of our citizens. it is something that danny meyer is nationally respected as being an expert on. this afternoon, we'll have a session on where the economy is headed. it will be moderated by maria of foxbusiness networks and fox news channel. tomorrow, the economic commerce committee will continue with the theme of growth. governors will talk about the opportunities presented by the precision manufacturing revolution. economic development and job creation is critical for the future of every state and i think a priority for any

governor of the country. earlier this month, we announced that nga will host the first ever summit of north american governors to discuss economic involvement and trade through improvements and innovation in infrastructure. through innovation in supply chain management, as well as discussing education, energy technology, and culture. this will be the first time we will get all the governors from mexico, united states, and canada together in one place. also on saturday morning the education workforce -- on sunday morning, the education workforce will discuss policies. governors believe that federal education policy should build on state policies to support effective teachers and

educators. it should work towards accelerating state led innovation. we have long called for authorization -- reauthorization of the secondary education act. in mechanized is the need for maximum flexibility as states meet their goals and work hard to make sure there is a great teacher in front of every classroom. in the afternoon, the health and human services committee will meet. governors are always focused around health care, one way or another. especially in the last few years. governors are increasingly pushing for economic incentives, and move away from service values to value-based models. many governors are starting that

transformation with medicaid. the governor of alabama will talk about his efforts. there also be a chance to talk about the changing health and human services landscape with sylvia birdwell. she has been open and very flexible to the governors trying to work with them on their health care systems. last year, the nga health care task force gave the president a series of recommendations which included the streamlining of the medicaid, and delivering a pathway to permanency, that these were not just temporary waivers. governors have been working with the departments to make these recommendations of reality. we will make sure to continue that conversation in the governors only session. on monday, we will vote on policies of our association. we will wrap up the weekend with

the annual meeting with the president. as you can see, we have plenty to do. we got a lot done, but there's still plenty to do. we have a lot of work. a very busy weekend ahead of us. now, i would like to introduce my cohort it all this stuff. our vice chair of nga, a very able governor, governor gary of utah. >> thank you, john. i hope people appreciate the great leadership of john and his common sense approach to governance. as a former businessman, and a former mayor, he understands the bottom-up nature of getting good results and the business principles that we try to employee, as much as we can and government, to get as good results. i appreciate and applaud the governors leadership and ambition to help us come

together in a bipartisan way at the national governors association. from the great state in colorado, which we refer to as eastern utah -- [laughter] they call us western colorado i'm sure. anyway, we are looking forward to a very productive few days here with the governors. i would just say, it seems that there is a growing awareness in congress and others here in this town that we need to look to the states and governors for some resource -- for some experience. we are the laboratories of democracy. we are the programs where they are trying out and experimenting with things. i believe there is an opportunity for us, maybe even more so than in past years to work in concert with the congress and get things done on many different fronts. there are a number of issues that governor hickenlooper has

already touched on. you are number of issues opportunities. if you think back, working in a bipartisan way led to welfare reform a lead to legislation. it was led by the states, and passed into law by bill clinton. that's the way it should work. the national governors association provides us with an opportunity as governors they come together, have healthy discussion debate, and see where we can unite ourselves to help influence policy here in the united states congress. whether that is with our commerce committee that will meet today -- again, i've already mentioned governor bentley and the governor from

vermont. they have been called on to speak before the senate committee on environment and public works to discuss some long-term fixes to our infrastructure. as it has been mentioned by governor hickenlooper, talking about flexible federalism, there needs to be the opportunity in states -- in fact, the common think you will hear is give the states more autonomy and flexibility to do what we need to do in our own backyards. try to stay away from a one-size-fits-all solution that does not necessarily work or fit. a new and emerging issue that is growing concern. i see the state department. some of the hacking taking place. still not be able to solve that problem. cyber security is really a significant issue in the new frontier of how people steal information. still information and money online. cyber security is a big issue.

we would ask the congress, and the federal government, to work with states as we try to find solutions to that issue. our national guard. we have a lot of expertise from the private sector that are available to help on this issue. i think working together, we can find some solutions. we will be speaking with the u.s. department of homeland security secretary jeh johnson. he will come and have a conversation with us. we will have experts from the public and private sectors so we can adjust the very significant and growing problem here in our communities. we are also concerned, as i mentioned, the national guard. we are concerned -- again, as the federal government tries to balance the budget, which we applaud. states have to live within our means, we do not have the luxury of printing more money, or borrowing incessantly. we applaud the efforts to be

fiscally prudent here in washington dc. within doing so, let's not overlook the opportunities to have a more efficient national defense by utilizing the national guards of our states. we are, in fact, very good bang for the taxpayers dollars. the intense, or at least approach, from the pentagon to take away some of our air capability, some of our apache helicopters, and replace them with blackhawks it probably does not make a metaphysical sense when it comes to having a ready army. we are concerned about that. we have said no. we will say no again. we hope congress will listen to us as they go about their budgeting, recognizing the cost-effectiveness that we get with the national guard in our respective states. it would probably be a move backwards if they do not understand the blessing that we have with our national guards. also aries -- areas of concern

energy, environmental things and how they dovetailed together. we recognize that what the public wants is in fact sustainable energy. they also want cleaner energy. they also want it to be affordable. sometimes, those but up against each other. the states are doing a great job developing the resources within their boundaries, and doing them in responsible ways that respect the environment, and yet understand the need to develop more energy for the use of our consumers. not only here in america, but around the world. we will be discussing with our natural resources committee sunday, i think we have administrator gina mccarthy from the epa. we will be talking about some of those issues. a lot of our states are involved

in coal development. the question is how we go forward and respect the need and demand for energy and an affordable way, but also the need to clean up the environment and do it in responsible ways. we also want to talk about along with that, the regulatory climate. in states, we are leading the way in having regulation reform. again, sometimes we have regulations are well intended, but so cumbersome that they become counterproductive to the economy and do not really do anything to help the playing field or the public. regulation reform is something we will talk about on this issue when it comes to the environment and the business community. one such issue is the water of the u.s. rule which has the potential to change whether falls under state regulation, which has been historically the

case or if it is shifted to federal regulation. it may cause some problems to our private sector, and does not benefit the public. we will work in coordinate efforts with the epa. last but not least let me mention one that is really has to that we must resolve. i think we have an opportunity this year working with the leadership of the house and senate, on both sides of the aisle -- this is an issue of remote sales where we are not collecting taxes that are owed but are not able to be collected based on online sales. we have said before, it is time to act. we have some proposals out there. as states, i think congress will listen to us, with all the partisanship that you hear about, here in washington, d.c., it is night to see -- nice to

see states and congress come together on this effort. in a bipartisan way, i think there is nice support on both sides of the aisle, we should be able to get this past congress. i'm looking forward to working with nga to get that done. we have an ambitious agenda. thanks to the leadership of governor hickenlooper. we have some summits coming up. april. a summit on making government work. don't we all wish that would happen. clearly, there is room for improvement. we should not be afraid of trying new things, and looking for ways to make government more efficient. clearly in this town, no one believes that washington, d.c. is at maximum efficiency. there are ways that we can get better results for the taxpayers

dollars. we think states needs to step up and take on more in the role of providing services and not having the overreach of federal government into our backyards. it requires us working together. this north america opportunity that we have coming up. we will be bringing premieres from canada, governors of america, governors of mexico together. again, the north american bloc. we have great opportunities for improving the lives of the people we represent and has significant ability to improve economic opportunities for us here in america. again, we have great opportunities. again, i think our leadership from governor hickenlooper and all the members of the nga and the 50 states and territories that come together to help us lead this nation. as we were together, i think our success is assured. there is reason to be very optimistic as we look forward. we look forward, from utah,

as being part of the effort. they give for being here today. i will turn it back to the chairman. quite thank you. questions? >> mark warner has proposed -- [indiscernible] utah has been a leader -- [indiscernible]