pg&e has allowed us to be the most sustainable organization we can be. any time you help a customer, it's a really good feeling. it's especially so when it's a customer that's doing such good and important work for the environment. together, we're building a better california. heads keep rolling in washington as president trump goes about reshaping his administration in his own likeness. and advances in technology come with a dark side. automation is transforming the workplace, eliminating jobs in the process. the question is, is giving money away for free the best way to help the millions of people who will be affected by all this? i'm ali velshi. >> i'm stephanie ruhle. look where we are, live in the

backyard in austin, texas, for south by southwest, the annual tech conference that celebrates innovation and great big ideas, and the brightest minds across industries, served up with great music, new movies, and killer barbecue which i would like to say ali has already sampled. >> it's early in the day and i've already done it. more than you think. but stephanie says i'm not allowed to wear this on the show. >> no. >> shortly we'll hear from one of the co-founders of facebook about his idea to help struggling workers in the advance of technology. the buzz out of washington is generating all the noise even here in texas, so that's where we start. president trump kicked off the week by sacking his secretary of state. >> yeah, he did. >> he has more personnel changes to come. larry kudlow is the president's new choice for economic adviser, a sentence commentator. the president has given him a chance to join the white house

as his top economic adviser, replacing gary cohn. as you recall, cohn left because of differences on tariffs that trump has slapped on steel and aluminum imports. trump and the white house repeatedly lied about the u.s. and its trade relationship with canada. it kept on saying there was a trade deficit with canada. in fact there's a trade surplus with canada. canadians buy more goods and services that americans buy from canada. kudlow will have his hands full. >> you and i have talked about gary cohn, and we'll be talking about larry kudlow. i want to be serious about this, on st. patrick's day i'm wearing my catholic faith in green. as a person who has been in business and business reporting for 21 years, please listen to this. i know that words matter. it's really important to me that i clear something up that happened with us, with me the other day on air. i meant absolutely no offense

when we were discussing larry kudlow's interview about his white house appointment. i apologize if my off-handed comment came off as dismissive of his faith. i assure you, i would never, ever question another person's belief in god. i would hope that all of us who are caught up, and we all are, in this toxic political environment, i ask forgiveness, and i've reached out to larry kudlow. i ask for your forgiveness as well if i've contributed to the toxic environment on the airwaves. ali, larry, and i are all rooting for this country. we wish him success in his job. and we want every american to thrive. i am sorry for anything i said. >> in the interests of st. patrick's day, good luck to you,

larry, in your job. ten years ago this week, those major cracks in the financial system broke wide open with the collapse of bear stearns. now ten years later, almost to the exact day, the senate voted to roll back regulations meant to avoid another financial meltdown. you know it as dodd frank. the law passed in the wake of the crisis that mandated banks with at least $50 billion of assets to be subject to very strict oversight from the federal reserve. the new senate bill slides that threshold to ultimately include only banks with at least $250 billion of assets. now, it wasn't just republicans. 16 democrats voted on this bill with republicans. and now it's headed to the house. republicans have been hoping to make even more drastic changes. >> so barney frank, part of dodd/frank, had said maybe the $50 billion was too low, it was hampering some smaller banks. he had thought maybe $100 billion was a good threshold. he feels that $250 billion is too high. his thinking is what happens if three or four banks with assets of $250 billion were ultimately

going to fail? would that actually create the systemic problem that the failure of a big bank would? the problem with what happened ten years ago is big banks failed and they took the economy down with them. elizabeth warren is not in favor of this at all. some democrats have split with her and voted in favor of these changes. >> elizabeth warren is afraid of a slippery slope. but remember, we say it here all the time. smart regulation is a good idea. but maybe dodd/frank isn't perfect. maybe it needs to be -- >> i think everybody acknowledges that, it was built at a time when we had to react to what was going on. >> but it wasn't dodd/frank that wiped out medium and small sized banks. the ap looked at montana where they found that before the financial crisis, smaller banks were already merging and decreasing in size. it's not like this was born out of dodd/frank. but because those big, big banks, the jpmorgans of the world, they can afford way more compliance officers. it was strangling the smaller

banks. so maybe this will be good. >> important to note, community banks, ten years ago, if you were a good client of a bank, you had been with them ten, 15 years, you would go in there, and maybe there was something about your credit report or business that wasn't in order, they knew you and could finance you anymore. that doesn't happen anymore, by the way, it's all commoditized, it's all an algorithm that goes into the system. >> it can't just be about an algorithm. you have to be willing to bet on someone and their story. and that takes some leap of faith. >> we'll follow closely what these changes mean. all the talk here this last week has been about new advances in technology that can and will make our lives more productive. it's a word we use so much in business. there's buzz that's generated about, you know, all the new apps, new devices, new systems. >> the gig economy.

>> artificial intelligence, automation. the dark side of that is what those advances do to the workplace. automation, robotics, and artificial intelligence do displace traditional workers from factory floors and back offices. and what to do for those displaced workers over the long term has become a burning concern to sulas you wil silico. that could be why they're talking about something called universal basic income. what is universal basic income? an old idea starting to catch on. one in which the state guarantees its citizens what's called a universal basic income. it's where the government agrees to pay a minimum salary to each and every member of society regardless of earnings or employment. no strings attached. the idea is to give everyone a fair chance to achieve a minimum quality of life and just maybe eliminate poverty and inequality by lifting all boats. this is gaining traction, especially in silicon valley, because advances in automation

and robotics have the potential to put millions of people out of work. a study by mckinsey, the management consulting firm, says technological changes in the workplace will replace one fifth of the nation's workforce, 800 million workers, by the year 2030. hardest hit will be machine operators and food processors. but paralegals, accountants, and other back office staff, could see their jobs disappear too. proponents say recipients of universal income wouldn't be starting from zero. pilot programs show it can help recipients meet basic needs like food and housing which reduces stress and provides stability. there are wider economic benefits to consider. the roosevelt institute looked into what would happen if the government paid $1,000 to every

adult in the united states. it would fuel $2.5 trillion in additional spending by consumers and create 1.1 million new jobs. others have found that a basic income system would be more cost effective system than the current system of tax-funded welfare programs. opponents argue that any unconditional salary no matter how small would remove the incentive for people to work because they're getting free money. others say such a system would fuel inflation, erasing any benefit. around the world, from canada to finland to kenya and even here in the uses, both public and private groups are already practicing some version of universal basic income. we're not going to really get to the bottom of this big concept in one show. >> simplification, that's the idea. >> it's simplification. some people might say that sounds like communism. it's not. i spoke with kevin haslett from the white house yesterday. while he doesn't fully embrace this implementation of it, the idea of not having a bunch of

different programs and figuring out some way to have disaffected workers be able to live and exist is interesting. >> this administration agrees with that portion of it. when there are so many programs and many people don't even know if they're eligible for them. all that bureaucracy is simply broken. much like what they wanted to do with the tax code, let's simplify it and then decide where the money goes. it's just when you hear it, the idea, you start to think, what is this, giving money away? they're already giving people money away. let's just be more efficient about it. >> it is a game changing idea. coming up we'll hear from a successful entrepreneur who wants to guarantee income for americans who need it with free money distributed by the government. >> he also happens to be a co-founder of facebook. we'll get his take on universal basic income. next, you know where we are, south by southwest. this is where big innovation happens here in austin, texas, and big old cowboy hats. welcome to this very special

edition of "velshi & ruhle," me and tex over here. and the wolf huffed and puffed... like you do sometimes, grandpa? well, when you have copd, it can be hard to breathe. it can be hard to get air out, which can make it hard to get air in. so i talked to my doctor. she said... symbicort could help you breathe better, starting within 5 minutes. symbicort doesn't replace a rescue inhaler for sudden symptoms. symbicort helps provide significant improvement

of your lung function. symbicort is for copd, including chronic bronchitis and emphysema. it should not be taken more than twice a day. symbicort contains formoterol. medicines like formoterol increase the risk of death from asthma problems. symbicort may increase your risk of lung infections, osteoporosis, and some eye problems. you should tell your doctor if you have a heart condition or high blood pressure before taking it. symbicort could mean a day with better breathing. watch out, piggies! get symbicort free for up to one year. visit saveonsymbicort.com today to learn more. if you can't afford your medication, astrazeneca may be able to help.

capdynamic lightingrs elevated comfort powerfully efficient and one more thing the world comes with it ♪you can go your own way... the 2019 jeep cherokee

hey, welcome back to beautiful, beautiful austin, texas. this is truly one of my favorite places. >> that's why he wore a cowboy hat today. oh, he's got boots on too. >> i do have boots on. we're at south by southwest. it's a music festival, it's a film festival. it also is one of the biggest annual technology shindigs showcasing new ideas. one of the ideas consuming the tech set these days is how many automation and robotics are reshaping the workplace and people's prospects for jobs. >> that's what's interesting. you don't necessarily think these companies will focus on it, they just focus on the robot side. no, this is a lot more thoughtful, something that could help address people, more and more, who are facing this

widening income inequality divide, in some form of universal basic income. our own jo ling kent sat down with facebook co-founder chris hughes who is promoting a unique idea, guaranteed income. i want you to listen. >> reporter: income inequality is a persistent problem across america. the gap between rich and for an is widening. 1% of americans make 22% of the income in the u.s. some tech voices are proposing a controversial new way they say could help level the playing field, offering americans financial relief. >> the most powerful way to combat income inequality is the simplest, with money. >> reporter: facebook co-founder chris hughes believes luck can play a big part in success. he admits he made a lot of money fast, creating facebook with his roommate, mark zuckerberg.

>> i made a half a billion dollars with three years' worth of work. my story is actually indicative of a fundamental unfairness at work in the american economy. >> reporter: hughes detailsing his solution in his new book "fair shot." the proposal, guaranteed income. his idea, the government distributes regular payments to some working citizens to give them what he calls a fair chance at quality of life. >> when you give people money to invest in themselves, their families, they're healthier, their kids stay in school longer. i want to see a guaranteed income of $500 a month for every working american who makes less than $50,000, paid for by the 1%. >> reporter: why $50,000? that's the bottom 35% of the country, more or less. >> yeah. >> reporter: why not provide this guaranteed income to more people, under $100,000, so to speak? >> a job used to mean 40 hours a week, benefits, vacation, if you're lucky, a retirement package.

now for much of america it's just another gig. so in my view, we need to not only help people who are living at the poverty line and below, but also people who make up the middle class, who are also struggling to make ends meet. >> reporter: why not, though, take that exact value and apply it to public education, higher education, or job retraining? >> over the past few decades we have invested anmoney in educat seen some gains. we also have the largest cash transfer program in the world. we just don't talk about it that much. it's called the earned income tax credit. it's a tax credit but the lived experience of it is a check. tens of millions of americans get cash with no strings attached. they spend it on housing, health care, education. their kids do better in school. their hospitalization rates go down. it's food stamps and housing

vouchers combined. >> reporter: is this the responsibility of the tech industry, that we've gotten to this point that you're proposing a guaranteed income of $500 a month? >> what's the responsibility that we all share to ensure that the american dream stays alive? this is much bigger than any one industry, any one region, any one person. this is the idea that if you work in america, you shouldn't live in poverty and you should be able to climb the economic ladder and we all have a collective responsibility, i think, to make that true. >> so chris hughes is talking about something that's very similar to the earned income tax credit which by the way a lot of it conservative economists embrace. the trick is, do you get it just because you work, you get a minimum income if you work, or does everybody get it? the issue is that we as a society value companies that find more efficient ways to do things, or increase productivity. but efficiency and productivity are both code words for doing

more with fewer people or getting more out of the same people. >> without a doubt. the trump administration loves to talk about companies now have more money and they're going to reinvest. if you look at where companies have reinvested in the last ten years, it's in r&d. it's in automation, which is a positive. but you have to take that positive and figure out what are you going to do with those people and who has to own that? is it the government? is it those corporations? it's great to hear from chris hughes on this idea. but he's come up with this idea as a fiphilanthropist. who is going to own it if those programs are put in place? >> and as we said, they're being tried in different parts of the world. in fact in some places in america they're being tried. we have a very big bureaucracy at the state, local, and federal level dealing with various benefits that people get, if they don't make enough money, medicare. what if we had one system that

said everybody gets this money? nobody is proposing a 50 or $60,000 a year. we're talking about $500 to $2,000 a month as a basic cushion so you don't have to live in poverty. it's an interesting concept. >> you have to remember, these companies have just gotten a huge, huge tax cut. now they're saving all of this money. where is the money going to come from? we have seen the deficit balloon a trillion and a half dollars. where is the money going to come to retrain people for these apprenticeship programs? the cash has to come from somewhere. it's simply not going to be in the corporate social responsibility departments of, you know, the facebook and salesforces of the world. >> that's why this is a good conversation to start to have. there's a lot of reading and writing out there on the concept of universal basic income. it goes by different names. it's worth thinking about. this is a worldwide problem. we are finding ways to get more out of people for less work. so there may come a point, we showed it earlier, by 2030,

net/net, the world will have lost 800 million jobs. we're not gaining more jobs. we're able to produce more and put more out there without employing more people. we should think about it. >> a quick social element, we talk about how angry people are in this country, the discord. much of that comes from hopelessness. if you're part of the population that lost your job and your job hasn't come back, you're not seeing these programs put in place, but you feel like who cares about me, who is going to help me? the good news is the conversations are happening. it's time to get things moving. coming up, we couldn't talk about a co-founder facebook without asking him how russians were able to use their social media platform to influence u.s. elections. and youtube's own solution for combatting misinformation online. they did it right here at south by south west through so-called information cues. you know what they say about the early bird...

he gets the best deal on the perfect hotel by using tripadvisor! that's because tripadvisor lets you start your trip on the right foot... by comparing prices from over 200 booking sites to find the right hotel for you at the lowest price. saving you up to 30%! you'll be bathing in savings! tripadvisor. check the latest reviews and lowest prices.

he snuck that hat back in. welcome back to "velshi & ruhle." look where as we are, austin, texas, the site of south by southwest. a few moments ago we heard from facebook co-founder chris hughes about his big idea to combat income inequality. we need those big ideas. during the interview our colleague jo ling kent also asked about russia's effort to use facebook's platform to try to swing the 2016 election and what exactly went wrong. >> i think that there's a responsibility that the folks at facebook have begun to acknowledge. we'll see where they go, to understand that facebook is not just a neutral platform, not just a place where people go to, you know, share fun videos or

see entertainment, but it's a place where many of our political conversations, our most urgent and important civic dialogue, is happening in the country. with that comes a huge responsibility, certainly to make sure that foreign powers are not able to hack our elections. >> now, of course this interview with chris hughes was before the new explosive revelations on facebook on friday. the company says it is suspending the political data analytics firm cambridge analytica, which worked for the trump campaign in 2016, after reports that cambridge analytica did not delete facebook user information that had been shared with them. facebook said, quote, we will take legal action if necessary to hold them responsible and accountable for any unlawful

behavior. >> things are out of control in the internet wild wide west. there are plans to pair conspiracy videos with wikipedia articles. youtube says it will better information viewers about controversial topics, i don't know, this thing is hairy. >> we're out of time. that's it for "velshi & ruhle" in austin. have a great week. >> we have to go get some barbecue. have a great weekend. see you in new york. people would stare. psoriasis does that. it was tough getting out there on stage. i wanted to be clear. i wanted it to last. so i kept on fighting. i found something that worked. and keeps on working. now? they see me. see me. see if cosentyx could make a difference for you- cosentyx is proven to help people with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis... ...find clear skin that can last.

don't use if you're allergic to cosentyx. before starting cosentyx, you should be checked for tuberculosis. an increased risk of infections and lowered ability to fight them may occur. tell your doctor if you have an infection or symptoms. or if you have received a vaccine or plan to. if you have inflammatory bowel disease, tell your doctor if symptoms develop or worsen. serious allergic reactions may occur. never give up. see me. see me. clear skin can last. don't hold back... ...ask your dermatologist if cosentyx can help you find clear skin that lasts. fthere's flonase sensimist.f up around pets. it relieves all your worst symptoms including nasal congestion, which most pills don't. and all from a gentle mist you can barely feel. flonase sensimist. was a success for choicehotels.com badda book. badda boom. this year, we're taking it up a notch. so in this commercial we see two travelers at a comfort inn with a glow around them, so people watching will be like, "wow, maybe i'll glow too if i book direct

at choicehotels.com". who glows? just say, badda book. badda boom. nobody glows. he gets it. always the lowest price, guaranteed. book now at choicehotels.com

breathe freely fast wmy congestion's gone. i can breathe again! i can breathe again! vicks sinex... breathe on. next, stinging reaction to the firing of the former fbi deputy director. what impact could it have on the russia investigation? >> it really does feel like the long arm of the white house reaching out at this man. >> it's a chilling impact on individuals who are trying to do their work