tv Morning Meeting MSNBC September 23, 2009 9:00am-11:00am EDT
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speak shortly thereafter. protests have gone under way first thing this morning. and the man who calls himself the king of kings, libyan leaders, gadhafi, denounced the role in the lockerbie bombing and seen as the key player in the release of the lockerbie bombing and the release tied to demand for energy resources in africa for the united kingdom. we start with the news of the day, though. ron allen, and we have ross, where apparently the tent is, for now. ron, what is going on u.n.? >> reporter: we expect the president to be here to speak in half an hour, dylan. it will be different from when president bush was here. president bush had a welcome at
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the u.n. because of the iraq war. the president will strike a different tone. or try to. i think the key word is engagement. and we have a graphic that shows the president and what he will say. he will talk about what he calls the new era of engagement with the world. now it's time to take on our share of responsibility. and the president spoke last night at an event by former bill president clinton. here and what president obama had to say. >> just as no nation can wallet se -- wall itself off from the world, no nation can meet the challenges alone. >> nuclear proliferation -- or nonnuclear proliferation i should say, could make for interesting theater. >> from the u.n. to the venue for the tent, or the current
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tent venue, bedford, new york. what is going on, jeff? >> reporter: ron allen mentioned political they're tater. gadhafi set up the tent on the property of donald trump, and trump saying he was not sure who they were leasing the property to. they stopped building the tent. moammar gadhafi was staying here, and people raised their voices and were angry. >> i don't know if we should organize a protest. >> we don't want any terrorists anywhere near us. what the hell is he doing here? it just doesn't make any sense.
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>> reporter: so moammar gadhafi likes tents more than hotels. he hates elevators. he tried to set up a tent in the park, and the city denied that request. and corzine came out and said we don't want you here. and the donald trump organization now saying they have a deal with middle eastern partners and work with them all the time and leased the space out to the partners and they are looking into the matter. but with that stop work order, it appears kau gadhafi will not stay here. >> chuck todd is here, and vickie ward is here. and jonathan capehart is here.
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and we have the director of programs of the institutions. i want to continue with the gadhafi situation and we will come back and talk about some of the more pertinent things. specifically the president with the middle east and iran and russia. i want to read the trump statement to chuck and vicky, and get your response. vicky, you have covered this story specifically and so many other stories like it. here is donald trump's statement. this is as to why the tent was being built in the suburb.
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this is a distraction quite honestly from the primary issues that we will all get into. at some point we have to look at this as an indication, both the ambitions of gadhafi, because he could stay in a hotel. >> chuck, which is a pretty good side show. >> yeah, it is. and it resembles the scene from "star wars." >> yeah, we asked him back in italy in july, all of the other
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international events, why are they more -- he said because the u.n. doesn't work. we are watching why sometimes this -- so many people are like this. >> why didn't the u.n. work? why? >> it's too big to lead. >> like too big to fail? >> well, you can get some stuff done, and g-8 is too small, and -- >> i would point out a lot of people are attending the assembly that want to be more like khaddafy. >> well, it's very difficult when you have 190 some members. yeah, and the counsel of former relations.
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your thoughts on the effectiveness of the u.n. and to the extent of where it simply becomes a venue of side shows, whether it was mahmoud ahmadinejad in the past, or chavez saying you are the devil, and then now we have a tent. >> well, dylan, you make a good point. >> chuck did. >> yeah, chuck's description is when you get 192 countries in the big tent you get a lot of circus performers. and it's an inherent limitations. there are 192 countries there. everybody gets a voice. it's a one state and one vote. i think that's one of the things that is on president obama this morning when he goes to say this organization is value added not withstanding the side shows and not withstanding some of the
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crazy characters you get there. >> jonathan capehart what message does the president have to deliver in the next hour to accomplish anything by spending his morning in new york? >> the president has to make it clear. it's going to be very clear, just by stepping on the stage that he is not george bush, the united states is now reengaged on the international stage and wants to be part of the solution as opposed to part of the problem, which is how the world viewed the united states in the last term of president bush. the u.n., i think, it has become a side show, because the u.n. works when there is strong leadership. it worked when the united states was the undisputed table when they came and said this is what we should be doing and they would push ahead. eight years of the bush administration, where the united states said to the u.n., you know, forget you, we are not working with you, and you are part of the problem, i think that sort of led to the view of the united nations being
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ineffective as opposed to being part of the solution. >> got it. stewart, thank you for your time. and jonathan, we will talk to you. vicky, we are keeping you. next up, we will talk with bob manetti who lost his son by the lockerbie bomber. and that's not a side show. meanwhile, contessa has the balance of the days' news on a busy wednesday morning. wild weather across the country. georgia is getting a bit of a break from the heavy rain, but the threat of flooding is not over. ron mott, set the scene for us. what is the day looking like? >> reporter: the skies are mostly clear today. that's giving folks a chance to get inside homes and businesses to do damage assessment. hintd me is the clark dale elementary school. it was almost op to the roof line with water.
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the gym still has about knee-high water. the officials are going through and making sure they can get the student records out of here. that's the concern because of the privacy of the students. they say the building looks like it's a complete lost, at least the interior struck shurz of the building. and about a $10 million lost. part of a quarter billion dollar estimate loss here. >> thank you for keeping us in the loop. we will check back with you later in the day. >> and there is more wild weather in the west. denver, colorado, got nearly 10 inches of snow. more is in the forecast. areas above 6,000 feet could see an inch. again, you know, it's september here! snow? wow! we are watching for terrorism charges for three suspects currently being held for lying to investigators. the investigators think the
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three may have plotted to use backpack bombs to attacked subway. and police may have blown the fbi's surveillance of zazi. san diego police are investigating a shooting at the busiest border crossing into the united states. two customs agents open fire on vans accused of smuggling illegal agents as they stormed cross the border. thank you, contessa. sarah palin, beefing up her foreign policy credits with a speech on relations. something she said that made sense. should she be speaking for america overseas, however. and live coverage of the
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♪ love stinks! former alaska governor, sarah palin, jonathan's favorite politician. jonathan? he has just wrapped up her overseas speaking engagement. she spoke to global investors at hong kong. yes, contessa brewer with the details. >> this was palin's first visit to asia. the event was closed to reports but, take a look. >> i will call it how i see it.
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>> this is palin's major speech since stepping down as alaska's governor. and john mccain's campaign foreign policy advisers are helping her with the conference. in palin's 80-minute speech she criticized the federal reserves unprecedented intervention to help save the economy. and she slammed the democrats' health reform plans, instead she called for tax breaks to help individuals buy insurance. >> andy bar, a reporter. and sarah palin fan, vicky ward.
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and then author of a soon-to-be released book on lehman brothers and editor for "vanity fair." she said the feds helped create the problem. some of her rhetoric, perhaps very narrowly and crudely, but she understands that there are systemic issues with the banking system that support moral hazard that basically are anti-competitive. >> i know you love the former governor of alaska dylan, but it's great to give a speech. that's why you get speech writers. what i would have loved to have heard was a q & a? can she move beyond the -- >> okay. and i feel like this is indicative, andy, of right wing talking points which look to deem niz the government
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inherently, as opposed to looking at the government as a tool as being skewed up and misused. it's common sense that government attempts to solve problems like the health care problem will just create new problems. now, jonathan, you be quiet. turn off his microphone, because you are not being constructed. you, too, vicky! i am talking to andy. this is not funny. it's just common sense the government tends to solve problems like health care problems will just create new problems. vickie, please! if you look at where the republicans get themselves in trouble, whether it's indictment obama for the bailout which he did not do because he was not president at the time the bailout was constructed. he perpetuated it, but he was
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not president. how is it the republicans are able to get away, not with rhetoric, but rhetoric that is openly wrong? >> well, health care and the economy and stuff, as you were pointing out was safe points to take. they were not detailed oriented. this crowd, these are experts in the field, and i am sure they would have liked to hear more from you. >> and palin's qualifications, and previous speakers, former president of the united states, bill clinton, and greenspan, and then sarah palin. she was in a town about the same size town i grew up. >> i think 2006 to 2009, i think
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she was elected '06 and then went into office, and then quit a year and a half into the job. >> you are so detail oriented? >> that's why i am here. >> jonathan, i will -- i don't know what i will turn you to. we are just getting started here on the "morning meeting." straight ahead, plugging into politics. contessa is plugged in. a new nbc news wall street poll from the president's approval rating to wall street, and the war in afghanistan. contessa brewer breaking the polls down after this.
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brewer. the new polls on the president specifically. what do the people think? >> 51% of the people approve of the job the president is doing. unchanged from last month. and what you are seeing is the disapproval rating at 41%. david axelrod pointed out to me this morning, when you look at the president's approval rating for all the talk about how bad august was for the president's agenda, you are not seeing change in the approval rating. congress, though, the approval rating at 22%. that's the lowest mark since the president took office. the democrats are seeing their highest negative now in three years. the congressional approval rating, again, at 22%. when the pollsters asked the people taking the survey, who is to blame if health care doesn't pass. 10% said they would blame the president. you have 16% that would blame the lawmakers, the democratic lawmakers in congress. and 37% would blame the republicans in congress. and in all, 23% said it's a
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combination of all of those. >> yeah, surely it is. we discussed this. and it's a literal litmus test to see if they are all trying to improve the country or exploiting the taxpayer to have a good time. >> 40% think the economy will get better in the next 12 months. half of the people there are optimistic. >> just so you know, they always think that. i will not say it won't happen. i am not saying they are wrong, but after 15 years of watching those polls, i have never seen a poll about the economy where after six months everybody didn't think it would get better. i am observing the data. and then six months later later they will say, maybe in six months. they seem like the perfect power couple, but did michelle
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and president obama nearly have a meltdown? that's straight ahead. to stay on top of my game after 50, i switched to a complete multivitamin with more. only one a day men's 50+ advantage... has gingko for memory and concentration. plus support for heart health. ( crowd roars ) that's a great call. one a day men's.
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united nations general assembly. the speech is expected to begin at 10:00 a.m. we will have live coverage here on msnbc when that happens. and then he will explain that he is not george w. bush. and moammar gadhafi, the man who brands himself the king of kings, he is on u.s. soil for the first time in 40 years. what will kau coffu gadhafi say? and then the play by play on the senate finance bill. could olympia snow and her ideas hold the key to health care reform. can she add to the momentum for free choice for all of us? not just the uninsured in this country. and opening bell rings on wall
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street. the federal reserve bought half of the government debt and provides short-term lending. there is a giant money wheel that basically supports the economy. what they say at this point determines what the rest of the world does with money. the fed expected to leave rates alone. again, the comments on how they are supporting the overall economic system will be what matters. right here, the conversation about america's power couple. the president and the first lady of america. and the love story, not always picture perfect. and the new book tells the story about how their marriage nearly fell apart. joining the meeting now, the author of the book. it's hard for me to see jonathan capehart because he is on remote in washington, d.c. >> was this authorized? >> no, no.
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>> i look at some of the things -- i will read some efro it. this is what michelle told her mother. this is a quote from your book quoting michelle to her mother. barack doesn't care to seem what i think and he is so selfish. i have been told that, i think n. a couple relationships, actually. how do you know that? >> michelle's mother told a friend of hers and she told me. many of the source of the book was in chicago. and, you know, he told everything that was going on behind the scenes, he told this them. they have been very hope about it. he said -- the president says michelle was angry all the time and it was a dark time in their marriage. >> did you go to the white house and ask for a comment? >> i approached the white house
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toward the end of the process. i took the year to write the book. this is my third book about the presidential couples. >> yeah, i know. >> in each case i go to all of the sources that can talk to me candidly. the book is not for the white house, but about the system. >> you know too much about their private conversations. >> because they have been open and gone on the record about the critical point in their marriage. >> let's read another piece. what about barack on michelle, and i should say the president on the first lady. >> yeah, it wassomething he felt that she was nagging him. this is what happened. it was not until malia was
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stricken with spinal mennen jitious in 2001 that they came together. >> to the extent where all of this makes sense, what does this do, you think, to the perceptions of the presidency and the president specifically, if anything? >> i think it just humanizes him and them more. as been said around the table many times, the criticisms of the first lady, before they were the first couple of the united states, we have known that barack obama has talked about it many, many times. he also said that she is the one that keeps him grounded. so it has been terrific to watch the couple as they go from private citizens to extremely public citizens. i have a question for the author there. how do barack and michelle obama compare to the other power couples you have written about? i think you said the clintons
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and the kennedys -- >> yeah, and the bushes. there is always a tension. the strains of living in the white house is tremendous. usually they reach a case of hostility, especially in the case of the clintons. >> if that's the headline, cancel the news service. >> they are not rivals. they love each other, and that's not as important as they are proud of each other. >> yeah, and this struck me. this is on obama smoking. it strikes me because i used to smoke and liked smoking. probably should not do it because it kills you and gives you cancer. >> this strikes me as a male rebellen, like i will sneak away, even if all i do is smoke
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a cigarette behind the airplane will. >> yeah, most of his golfing buddies are smokers. the guy is under pressure, and maybe if you are going to cut him slack, maybe that's where you do it. >> and vicky, the male desire to get away? >> yeah, it's a pretty minor vice. smoking is bad, it kills, but -- >> yeah, he doesn't smoke around malia and sasha, and they never see it and that's an important thing. >> jonathan, do you want to get in on the smoking thing? >> yeah, i rather the vice be smoking or drinking? >> yeah, or for that matter, prostitutes or whatever. contessa, what is going on out there? >> president obama is expected to issue a stern challenge when he speaks at the united nations in 20 minutes from now. it will be the president's first
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speech to the u.n. general assembly. the president will tell world leaders they must take responsibility for solving global problems and not just rely on the u.s. and we had video of michelle obama entering the united nations. we will carry the speech live here on msnbc. we expect him to begin at the top of the hour. immediately following the president, libyan leader, kau coffug -- kau cough libyan leader, moammar gadhafi will speak. and he is pitching a tent, and it's on trump's property, and he is looking into the matter. we will bring you the highlights right here on msnbc. the senate finance committee is back at it today wading
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through hundreds of amendments. they only voted on some of the amendments. and they are looking at whether the bill can deliver on its promise to deliver on affordable health coverage. and baucus has included many changes. one included lowering penalties for those that don't buy insurance. the hope is it will ease democrat concerns. olympia snow appears to be the only republican that may back the bill. and the support is gaining in wyden's amendment. his plan would allow people to buy from the exchanges where currently the baucus plan does
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not. >> go ahead. moving on to california. we are looking at bad weather there for the firefighters. santa anas are kicking up and fueling a wildfire in the hills of ventura county. governor schwarzenegger declared a state of emergency in the county. more park college is closed today because the fires are burning above the campus. the forecast is calling for scorching temperatures and high winds. and a car nearly hit a 6-year-old girl outside a mini mart. look at that. a parking poll -- you can see it there, may have saved the child's life. the woman behind the wheel is charged with reckless driving. incredible. >> oh, my god! coming up, celebrities with a cause. and we have seen this before. we are seeing it now.
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will we see it again? harrison ford on the environment, and will ferrell on health care. the list grows. trend or talk? the panel weighs in after this. okay. you were right. these healthy choice fresh mixer thingys, they taste fresh... say it again! say it like, "mmmm, these healthy choice fresh mixers taste freshh!!" they taste fresh... wait. what are you doing? got it. you're secretly taping me? you know, it wasn't a secret to us, we knew. yes, but it was a secret to me. of course, otherwise i would be sitting like this and completely block his shot. so that's why i was like... didn't you notice this was weird? no. made fresh from your desk, cook it fresh, strain it fresh, mix it fresh. healthy choice fresh mixers, look for it in the soup or pasta aisle.
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all right. you can see here libyan leader moammar gadhafi making his way into the united nations. >> i just hope they invite members of the victims' families and they can use the opportunity in a good way. >> again, he is scheduled to speak after the president of the united states. barack obama expected to speak at the u.n. in about 15 minutes. as we prepare for the speeches and whatever the fallout may be
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from the comments made from our president and from president gadhafi, we take a moment to take a look at the world in general. we take the water cooler stories in the news, and ask whether they are talkers or part of a larger trend. our guests, jonathan capehart and vicky. we begin with comedian will ferrell who is lending his voice to fight for health care reform. farrell teams up with other celebs to "protect the insurance companies." people are saying mean things about health insurance companies and their executives, and it's got to stop. >> these great businessman are american heroes. >> so why is obama trying to reform health care when
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insurance are doing fine making billions of dollars in profit? obama lied! >> yeah, and jonathan, your thoughts? >> it's funny, sarcastic and long. i am glad it's starring will ferrell where he keeps his clothes on. >> and now, "indiana jones" on his crusade to protect the planet. let's talk to our own andrea mitchell, about saving the rain forest. this is about conservation and the earth of ours. >> nothing more compelling and nothing more important or compelling than the health care of the planet. health care is important on an individual basis, but if we don't have a healthy planet, we have no place else to live. >> hoping the planet doesn't go
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the way of alderon. it's generational. we can't help ourselves. that's a reference for you "star wars" plans. say what you will, vickie? >> i was just hoping he is running on clean energy, an electric car. >> finally, she is a singer and actress, and now an activist. mandy moore making the media rounds this week, talking about a trip to sudan. here is mandy on the "today" show. >> you know there are ways to stop it, and they don't have the tools they need.
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>> they don't have the tools, and i am with an organization to help people help themselves. >> why do actors like to go to africa when detroit doesn't look that great. >> africa doesn't need help? >> well, why not start next door? >> i was going to say something, but i will not. >> oh, come on! >> what about madonna and babies? >> i will go all day. thank you, jonathan. we are moments away with the president and his first address to the united nations assembly. and jonathan capehart will declare himself not to be george w. bush. we first go to the break room and the return of our friend and neighbor, although not too close of a neighbor, pee-wee herman,
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all right. toure in his break room. officially his. congratulations on the break room. >> thank you, sir. it's a virtual room. >> you know on this show you have a segment? take a look at the table. >> nice! >> can we get a shot of the table? the break room with toure. they are still missing the act cent. there you go. toure with an accent and to be determined on that soon enough. >> pee-wee herman was on leno last night and over his boy/man character ever since arrest for indecent exposure. recently, pee-wee turned over a
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new leaf. >> oo good to see you! been a long time. what's new? whoa, let me see! you got married? >> oh, no! i didn't get married. it's my abstinence ring. >> abstinence ring, okay. >> yeah. . i'm only two days into it! >> good luck staying on that wagon pee-wee. crazy to think back on the days of 1991 when indecent exposure seemed shocking. in the age of reference senators trolling for men in airport bathrooms. his new movie comes out 2011. i can't wait! john travolta in the bahamas today to testify against two people who allegedly tried to export money from his after the death of his 16-year-old jett last january. one man on the trial is a former bahamian senator saying it's not
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american politicians losing their damn minds. anna nicole smith continues to be in the more since she died than in real life. howard k. stern they are calling her aider and abert for the doctors charged of prescribing the drugs that killed her. i bet michael jackson's personal physician dr. conrad murray will be watching this trial closely, because he needs to. >> thank you very much. >> thank you. >> i think you're fantastic. >> there is fantastic doubt on tom delay, must read stuff as use. the president's high stakes speech at the u.n. moments away. will his rhetoric be effective? reaction to the man who will follow the president to the podium. libya's president moammar gadhafi in the building.
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all right. welcome back. live coverage on msnbc. president obama's speech to the united nations to begin momentarily. you are looking at live pictures where any moment now, not only will the president give his address but moammar gadhafi in that room with so many world leaders. he is specked to say this is the president of the united states cannot go it alone and step up and partner with the united states on global crises, environment, terrorism, you know the list. welcome back to the "morning meeting." i am dylan ratigan. topping our agenda this hour is that big speech. president obama reportedly still tweaking it in the past hour. as soon as he takes the podium, we will shut up and go live to the u.n. obama may be overshadowed by
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libyan leader gadhafi arriving at the united nations moments ago and he has foked folks riled up in new york as he is trying to pitch a tent. ron allen is live for us at the u.n. to set things up and jeff rossen in bedford with the tenth and chuck todd back with us along with vicky ward. the u.n. general believe has been more known for comments from crack pots than leadership. who will get more headlines when the day is done, the president or gadhafi some. >> that's a good question, dylan. i don't know. i suppose different places, there will be different headlines. he suspect gadhafi is going to get a lot of attention because he is not usually here. the first time he is going to be here and speak to this body. of course, the whole lockerbie release controversy in the background of this. president obama will probably make a fairly straightforward speech. it will be a lot different in tone and substance than what
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we've heard from president bush when he was here during all of his years. a much different reception for obama than bush and much more polite and much more welcoming. the mood here for president bush was quite hostile because of the iraq war and a lot of other issues. we believe the president is about to arrive. a lot of activity on the streets beyond the camera there. the motorcade my be arriving and helicopters overhead which is another sign the spres nearby. he is supposed to start speaking any minute now. of course, this event here sometimes stays pretty close to schedule. it veers off schedule a lot as well which is not unexpected when you have 120 world leaders and a lot of deputies and secretaries and others and, of course, these huge entourages to make their way here through very congested new york city. the key theme is gating is what president obama is going to talk about. as a candidate, the next president, he talked about improving marc's standing in the world. this is a huge forum for him to try to begin and continue that process. >> jeff rossen, as the president
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tries to set up that message of engagement to the u.n. to invite everybody into the room with him to solve that list of problems that we all talk about all the time from climate to terrorism, trade policy, et cetera, et cetera, in bedford, libyan leader gadhafi still continues to create a stir trying to set up another tent. first, it it was in new jersey and this time, in suburban new york city. jeff rossen is there. where do we stand on the tent front, jeff? how much of this is renting from donald trump? what is going on up there? >> right. it appears that the state department now tells the associated press that it was libyan officials. the libyan government did rent this space from donald trump. we have aerials of it. the tent did go up and told moammar gadhafi was going stay there. he ended up staying in mid-town manhattan overnight near the united nations. we can't find one person walking by saying he they are glad he is
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here. the tent has been given a stop work order by the town of bedford after local officials and neighbors were complaining about it. they found a loophole and said you can't build this tent because you don't have the proper permit. it appears this won't until now at least in bedford. moammar gadhafi has been looking for a place to stay. he asked new york city if he could pitch a tent in central park, the city said no. he asked to pitch a tenth in englewood, new jersey. the mayor there said we don't want him in our state let alone on the grounds building on the embassy. he is afraid of elevators is the reason he uses these tents and ruling out most high-rise hotels in new york city. he pitches a tent because he is most comfortable there. a statement from donald trump i want to give you because this tent is built on donned trump's property. here is the statement from the trump organization.
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as trump looks into it, we are told that bedford officials will be back at his estate today making sure that they've stopped working on this tent or they could also criminal smonss. >> we have to find out how much money trump was charging them. >> oh, big time, i'm sure. >> i'm sure. >> yeah. >> what number do you get from gadhafi to rent and build a tent. obama making his way into the building. i think we have tape of his entrance here as he comes in. he is moments away from making an engagement speech. >> you will hear a lot of talk about nuclear disarmament. something he keeps bringing up. you know, it's not an issue that washington forces upon him. he keeps bringing it up. of course, it does have some -- it does have a relation with the issue with iran which is front
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and center. a lot of chatter what is he accomplishing this week. it is hard to see it because we hear the noise and see the circus with gadhafi and ahmadinejad. probably the most significant things that could happen is what is taking place behind the scenes with china and russia. i think some of what he says today in the speech might have as much to do with maybe some things he is trying to say behind the scenes or try to get russia to deal with iran and get tougher sanctions on iran and have a stiff to hold over the head of the iranians to basically deal with this nuclear issue. >> a nonpublic agreement but an intended destination with critical allies. >> obviously, they are on the security council. they hold the key and have better relations than iran functioning relations than we do. >> our panel with us on the aspect of the arrival of gadhafi who is going to speak shortly after the president speaks, bob
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manetti joins us from philadelphia. his son rick was a journalism rage at syracuse university when he was killed in the bombing of pan am flight and victims of pan am 103 and with us is jonathan capehart of "the washington post" and vicky ward blogger for huffington post. if you were to look, bob, at the pictures and it's been some period of time and you were to look at the back story as we've all watched the release of the prisoner in scotland, the return home and obviously, the speculation and it's become more than speculation about the agreements done behind closed doors for oil, the thoughts that go through your mind when you put that narrative together and watch gadhafi arrive at the u.n. after 40 years? >> interesting thing by releasing megrahi, it lets us
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focus on the actual murder. gadhafi controls everything that happens in libya, so if megrahi put the bomb on the plane which he did, he did it because gadhafi told him to. so by releasing the one guy who was in jail, what we've done is we've been forced to look and say, wait a minute, megrahi was the tool, gadhafi is the killer. so when we look at this man strut up to the stage and start to talk to the world we have to remember exactly what he is. he's a terrorist and a murderer. >> if you were to look at bob's boy, which really is an interesting way to put a positive spin on an atrocious set of facts. >> right. >> at the very least the release of the prisoner reminds everybody who it is we're dealing with when we're dealing with gadhafi. >> right. >> do you think the u.n. general assembly looks at gadhafi the way bob just described him? >> chuck and i were just talking. we have to remember gadhafi along with china and russia on
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the u.n. security council at the moment. i think that speaks to what is the purpose of the u.n. really what is the purpose of this? you know, i hope you're right that the back door meetings have more emphasis, so i'm not sure what the lip service of the actual speech is going to accomplish, other than what, as bob says, reminding us. >> it's a little complicated. there was progress made with libya. gadhafi and are you with us or against us, you know? he made the decision, you know what? i'm going to get rid of this nuclear thing. i don't -- i want to try to at least develop a relationship with the western world. and so that's what makes this, i think, a difficult issue, frankly, for the u.s. diplomacy wise. on one hand, i think we're furious with the brits obviously, with how this happened. >> i agree. >> now it puts us in a position where i think, you know, there's an opportunity that maybe gadhafi is a way to try to just soften up things in the middle east and, now, we can't do that.
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>> right. >> because look at this. i mean, it is just -- you know, you listen to bob -- you know, you can't not be an american and not be just angry. >> britain, not everybody agrees with what they did. >> you're with us or against us. that's the way this stands. >> jonathan, if you were to look at that, if the softening of diplomacy with libya over the past few years was an effort to create another gateway for conversation and diplomacy in the middle east, to what extent what this man with the release and to bob's point, close that door? >> no. i mean, i don't know if it closes the door, but it certainly slams it pretty darn to close. i mean, this was something, as has been said around the table, it angered americans and the american government. it's royal politics in great britain, and, you know, it doesn't -- it doesn't help
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gadha gadhafi's situation. if he is trying to open himself up to the west this wasn't the way to go about it. >> bob, before we listen to the president of the united states, forget gadhafi for a moment, how do you view the president's address in this room in the context of the world leadership and, particularly, in the context of preceding moammar ga gaffy? gadhafi? >> i want to go back one step. y'all keep saying that the u.s. wants to engage libya and the world wants to engage libya to open the door in the middle east. do you really think that anything to do with libya has anything to do other than oil? >> no. >> he didn't have oil, would we bother talking to him? >> isn't that true with the entire middle east? would we be empowering saudi arabia to present 90% of the population to have a home if they didn't have oil? in other words, all of these conversations are oil-base theed. i would argue most of the middle eastern conversations with perhaps of israel and palestine are resource related.
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no? >> absolutely. >> what would you like to hear from the president, bob? >> well, the president is walking a real fine line between what he should be saying, which is that gadhafi is a killer and trying to be conciliatory where in the middle east all we were was antagonistic. it's an interesting place he is stuck in the middle of. >> with that said, let's join the u.n. general assembly in progress. the he's of the united states, barack obama. >> good morning. mr. president, mr. secretary-general, fellow delegat delegates, ladies and gentlemen, is my honor to address you at as the 44th president of the united states.
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i come before you humbled by the responsibility that the american people have placed upon me, mindful of the enormous challenges of our moment in history and determined to act boldly and collectively on behalf of justice and prosperity, at home and abroad. i have been in office for just nine months, though, some days, it seems a lot longer. i am well aware of the expectations that accompany my presidency around the world. these expectations are not about me. rather, they are rooted, i believe, and discontent with the status quo that has allowed us to be increasingly defined by our differences and outpaced by our problems.
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but they are also rooted in hope. the hope that real change is possible and the hope that america will be a leader in bringing about such change. i took office at a time when many around the world had come to view america with skepticism and distrust. a part of this was due to misperceptions and misinformation about my country. part of this was due to opposition to specific policies and a belief that on certain critical issues, america had acted unilaterally, without regard for the interests of others. and this has fed an almost reflective anti-americanism which too often has served as an excuse for collective inaction. now, like all of you, my responsibility is to act in the interests of my nation and my people.
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and i will never apologize for defending those interests, but it is my deeply held belief that in the year 2009, more than at any point in human history, the interests of nations and peoples are shared. the religious convictions that we hold in our hearts can forge new bonds among people, or they can tear us apart. the technology we harness can light the path to peace, or forever darken it. the energy we used can sustain our planet or destroy it. what happens to the hope of a single child anywhere can enrich our world or impositiveerish. we share a common future.
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no longer do we have the luxury of indulging our differences to the seclusion of the work that we must do together. i have carried this message from london to port of spain to moscow and cairo and it is what i will speak about today. because the time has come for the world to move in a new direction. we must embrace a new era of gating based on mutual interest and mutual respect and our work must begin now. we know the future will be forged by deeds and not simply words. speeches alone will not solve our problems. it will take persistent action. so for those who question the character and cause of my nation, i ask you to look at the concrete actions we have taken in just nine months.
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on my first day in office, i prohibited, without exception or equivocation, the use of torture by the united states of america. i ordered the prison at guantanamo bay closed and we are doing the hard work of forging a framework to combat extremism within the rule of law. every nation must know america will live its values and we will lead by example. we have set a clear and focused goal to work with all members of this body to disrupt, dismantle, and defeat al qaeda and its extremist allies, a network that has killed thousands of people of many faiths and nations, and that plotted to blow up this very building. in afghanistan and pakistan, we and many nations here are helping these governments develop the capacity to take the lead in this effort.
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while working to advance opportunity and security for their people. in iraq, we are responsibly ending a war. we have removed american combat brigades from iraqi cities and set a deadline of next august to remove all our gat vertebra gayed from iraqi territory and i made it clear we will help iraqis transition to their future and keep our commitment to remove all american troops by the end of 2007. -- 2011. i have outlined a comprehensive engaged to seek the goal of a world without nuclear weapons. in moscow, the united states and russia announced that we would pursue substantial reductions in our strategic warheads and launches. at the conference on disarmament, we agreed on a work plan to negotiate an end to the production of materiels for nuclear weapons and this week my secretary of state will become the first senior american representative to the annual
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members conference of the comprehensive test band treaty. upon taking office, i appointed a special envoy for middle east peace and america has worked steadily and aggressively to advance the cause of two states -- israel and palestine -- in which peace and security take root and the rights of both israelis and palestinians are respective. to confront climate change. we have invested $80 billion in clean energy and we have substantially increased our fuel efficiency standards and new incentives for conservation and launched an energy partnership across the americas and moved from a bistandard to a leader in ultimate climate negotiations. the touch is every quarter of the world, we worked with the g-20 nations to forge a coordinated international response of over $2 trillion in stimulus to bring the global economy back from the brink.
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we mobilized resources that help prevent the crisis from spreading further to developing countries. and we joined with others to launch a $20 billion global food security initiative that will lend a hand to those who need it most and help them build their own capacity. we have also reengaged the united nations. we have paid our bills. we have joined the human rights council. we have signed the convention of the rights of persons with disabilities. we have only embraced the millennium development goals and we address our priorities here in this institution. for instance, through the security council meeting that i will chair tomorrow on nuclear nonproliferation and disarmament and through the issues that i will discuss today. this is what we have already done. but this is just the beginning. some of our actions have yielded
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progress. some have laid the groundwork for progress in the future. but make no mistake, this cannot solely be america's endeavor. those who used to chastise america for acting alone in the world cannot now stand by and wait for america to solve the world's problems alone. we have sought in word and deed a new era of engagement with the world and now is the time for all of us to take our share of responsibility for a global response to global challenges. now, if we are honest with ourselves, we need to admit that we are not living up to that responsibility. consider the course that we're on if we fail to confront the status quo. extremists in pockets of the
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world protracted conflicts that grind on and on, genocide and mass atrocities and more nations with nuclear weapons and melting ice caps and ravage popgs and dan demic disease. i say this not to state a fear but to state a fact. the malmagnitude of our challenges have yet to be met by the measures of our actions. this body was founded on the belief that the nations of the world could solve their problems together. franklin roosevelt who died before he could see his vision for this institution become a reality put it this way and i quote. the structure of world peace cannot be the work of one man or one party or one nation. it cannot be a peace of large nations or of small nations. it must be a peace which rests on the cooperative effort of the whole world.
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the cooperative effort of the whole world. those words ring even more true today when it is not simply peace, but our very health and prosperity that we hold in common. yet, we also know that this body is made up of sovereign states and, sadly, but not surprisingly, this body has observe become a forum for sowing discord instead of common ground. a venue for playing politics and exploiting grievances rather than solving problems. after all, it is easy to walk up to this podium and point fingers and stoke divisions. nothing is easier than blaming others for our troubles and object solving ourselves for responsibility for our choices and our actions. anybody can do that. responsibility and leadership in the 21st century demand more.
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in an era when our destiny is shared, power is no longer a zero sum game. no one nation can or should try to dominate another nation. no world order that elevates one nation or group of people over another will succeed. no balance of power among nations will hold. the traditional divisions between nations of the south and the north make no sense in an interconnected world, nor do alignments of nations rooted in the cleavages of a long gone cold war. the time has come to realize that the old habits, the old arguments are irrelevant to the challenges faced by our people. they leave nations to act in opposition to the very goals that they claim to pursue and to vote, often in this body, against the interests of their own people. they build up walls between us
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and the future that our people seek. and the time has come for those walls to come down. together, we must build new coalitions that bring old device, coalitions of different faiths and creed of north and south and east, west, black, white, and brown. the choice is ours. we can be remembered as a generation that chose to drag the arguments of the 20th century into the 21st, that put off hard choices, refused to look ahead, failed to keep pace because we defined ourselves by what we were against, instead of what we were for. or we can be a generation that chooses to see the shorelines beyond the rough waters ahead. that comes together to serve the common interests of human beings and finally gives meaning to the promise embedded in the name given to this institution that united nations. that is the future america
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wants. a future of peace and prosperity that we can only reach if we recognize that all nations have rights, but all nations have responsibilities as well. that is the bargain that makes this work. that must be the guiding principle of international cooperation. today, let me put forward four pillars that i believe are fundamental to the future that we want for our children. nonproliferation and disarmament. the promotion of peace and security. the preservation of our planet, and a global economy that advances opportunity for all people. first, we must stop the spread of nuclear weapons. and seek the goal of a world without them. this institution was founded at
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the dawn of the atomic age, in part, because man's capacity to kill had to be contained. for decades, we averted disaster, even under the shadow of a superpower standoff but, today, the threat of proliferation is growing in scope and complexity. if we fail to act, we will invite nuclear arms races in every region and the prospect of wars and acts of terror on a scale that we can hardly imagine. a fragile consensus stands in the way of this frightening outcome and that is the basic bargain that shapes the nuclear nonproliferation treaty. it says all nations have the right to peaceful nuclear energy and nations with nuclear weapons have a responsibility to move forward disarmament and those without them have the responsibility to forsake them. the next 12 months could be
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pivotal in determining whether this compact will be strengthened or will slowly dissolve. america intends to keep our end of the bargain. we will pursue a new agreement with russia to substantially reduce our strategic warheads and launchers. we will move forward with ratification of the test band treaty and work with others to bring the treaty into force so that nuclear testing is permanently prohibited. we will complete a nuclear posture reroux review that opens the door to deeper cuts and reduces the role of nuclear weapons and we will call upon countries to begin negotiations in january on a treaty to end the production of materiel for weapons. i will host a summit next april that reaffirms each nation's responsibility to secure nuclear material on its material and help those who can't because we can't allow a single nuclear
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device to fall into the hands of a violent extremist and we will work to strengthen the institutions and initiatives that combat nuclear smuggling and theft. all of this must support efforts to strengthen the mpt. those nations that refuse to live up to their obligations must face consequences. let me be clear. this is not about singling out individual nations. it is about standing up for the rights of all nations that do live up to their responsibilities. because a world in which iea inspections are avoided will leave all people less safe and all nations less secure. in their actions to date, the governments of north korea and iran threaten to take us down this dangerous slope. we respect their rights as members of the community of
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nations. i have said before and i will repeat, i am committed to diplomacy that opens a path to greater prosperity and more secure peace for both nations, if they live up to their obligations. but if the governments of iran and north korea choose to ignore national standards and put the pursuit of nuclear weapons ahead of regional stability and the security and opportunity of their own people, if they are oblivious to the dangers of escalating nuclear arms races in both east asia and the middle east then they must be held accountable. the world must stand together to demonstrate that international law is not an empty promise. and the treaties will be enforced. we must insist that the future does not belong to fear. that brings me to the second pillar for our future. the pursuit of peace. the united nations was born of the belief that the people of the world can live their lives, raise their families, and
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resolve their differences peacefully. you know, we know that in too many parts of the world, this ideal remains an act strakion abstraction, a distant dream. we can accept that dream as inevitab inevitabling conflict or recognize the yearning for peace is universal and reassert our resolve to end conflicts around the world. that effort must begin with an unshakeable determination that the murder of innocent men, women, and children will never be tolerated on. on this, there can be no dispute. the violent extremists who promote conflict by distorting faith have discredited and isolated themselves and offer nothing but hatred and destruction and confronting them, america will forge lasting partnerships to target terrorists and share intelligence and coordinate law enforcement and protect our people. we will permit no safe haven for
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al qaeda to launch attacks from afghanistan or any other nation. we will stand by our friends on the front lines as we and many nations will do in pledging support for the pakistani people tomorrow. and we will pursue positive engagement that builds bridges among faiths and new partnerships for opportunity. our efforts to promote peace, however, cannot be limited to defeating violent extremists. for the most powerful weapon in our arsenal is the hope of human beings, the belief that the future belongs to those who would build and not destroy. the confidence that conflicts can end in a new day can begin and that is why we will support, we will strengthen our support for effective peacekeeping whileing inizing our efforts to take hold of efforts. we will pursue a lasting peace in sudan for support for the people of darfur and the implementation of the comprehensive peace agreement so
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we secure the peace that the sudanese people deserve. and in countries -- and in countries ravaged by violence from haiti to congo and east timor, we will work with the u.n. and other partners to support an enduring peace. i will also continue to seek a just and lasting peace between israel, palestine, and the arab world. we will continue to work on that issue. yesterday, hi a constructive meeting with prime minister netanyahu and president abbas. we have made some progress. palestinians have strengthened their efforts on security. israelis have facilitated greater freedom of movement for the palestinians. as a result of these efforts on both sides, the economy in the west bank has begun to grow, but
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more progress is needed. we continue to call on palestinians to end -- against israel and we continue to emphasize that america does not accept the legitimacy of continued israeli settlements. the time -- the time has come -- the time has come to relaunch negotiations without preconditions. that address the permit status issues, security for israelis and palestinians, borders, refugees and jerusalem. the goal is clear, two states living side-by-side in peace and security. a jewish state of israel with true security for all israelis and a viable independent palestinian state with contiguous territory that ends the occupation that began in 1967 and realizes the potential of the palestinian people.
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now, as we pursue this goal, we will also pursue peace between israeli and lebanon, israeli and syria, and a broader peace between israeli and its many neighbors. and pursuit of that goal, we will develop regional initiatives with multilateral participation alongside bilateral negotiations. now, i am not naive. i know this will be difficult. but all of us not just the israelis and palestinians, but all of us must decide whether we are serious about peace or whether we will only lend it lip service. to break the old patterns, to break the cycle of insecurity and despair, all of us must say publicly what we would acknowledge in private.
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the united states does israel no favors when we fail to couple an unwavering commitment to its security with an insist ns that israel respect the legitimate claims and rights of the palestinians. and -- and nations within this body do the palestinians no favors when they choose attacks against israel over constructive willingness to recognize israeli's legitimacy and its right to exist in peace and security. we must remember that the greatest price of this conflict is not paid by us. it's not paid by politicians. it's paid by the israeli girl who closes her eyes in fear that a rocket will take her life in the middle of the night. it's paid for by the palestinian boy in gaza who has no clean water and no country to call his own.
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these are all god's children and affiliate politics and all of the posturing, this is about the right of every human being to live with dignity and security. that is a lesson embedded in three great places that call one sis of earth the holy land and that is why even though there will be setbacks and false starts and tough days, i will not waver in my pursuit of peace. third, we must recognize that in the 21st century there will be no peace unless we take responsibility for the preservation of our planet. and i thank the secretary of state general for hosting the subject of climate change yesterday. the danger posed by climate change cannot be denied. our responsibility to meet it must not be deferred.
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if we continue down our current course, every member of this assembly will see irreverse re ible changes within their borders. we will be eclipsed by refugees and resources and development will be devastated by drought and famine. land that human beings have lived on for millennium will disappear. future generations will look back and wonder why we refused to act, why we failed to pass on -- why we failed to pass on an environment that was worthy of our inheritance. and that is why the days when america dragged its feet on this issue are over. we will move forward with investments to transform our energy economy, while providing incentives to make clean energy the profitable kind of energy.
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we will press ahead with deep cuts and emissions to reach the goals that we set for 2010 and eventually 2050 and 2020. we will promote renewable energy and efficiency and share with countries around the world and we will seize every opportunity for progress to address this threat in a cooperative effort with the entire world. and those wealthy nations that did so much damage to the environment in the 20th century must accept our obligation to lead. but responsibility does not end there. what we must acknowledge the need for differentiated responses, any effort to curb carbon emissions must include the fast growing carbon emitters who can do to more limit their growth. any effort that helps the poorest nations will adapt to the programs that climate change
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have already brought and help them travel a path of clean development, simply will not work. it's hard to change something as fundamental as how we use energy. i know that. it's even harder to do so in the midst of a global recession. certainly, it will be tempting to sit back and wait for others to move first. but we cannot make this journey unless we all move forward together. as we head into copenhagen, let us resolve to focus on what each of us can do for the sake of our common future. this leads me to the final pillar of this must to fortify our future. a global economy that advances opportunity for all people. the world is still recovering from the worst economic crisis since the great depression. in america, we see the engine of growth beginning to churn and, yet, many still struggle to find a job or pay their bills. across the globe, we find
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promising signs, but little certainty about what lies ahead. and far too many people and in far too many places, live through the daily crises that challenge our humanity, the despair of an empty stomach, the thirst brought on by dwindling water supplies, the injustice of a child dying from a treatable disease, or a mother losing her life as she gives birth. in pittsburgh, we will work with the world's largest economies to chart a course for growth that is balanced and sustained. that means vigilance to ensure that we do not let up until our people are back to work. that means taking steps to rekindle the man so global recovery can be sustained and that means setting new rules of the road and strengthening regulation for all financial centers so that we put an end to the greed and the excess and the abuse that led us into this disaster and prevent a crisis like this from ever happening again.
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at a time of such interdependence e we have a moral and pragmatic interest, however, in broader questions of development. the questions of development that existed even before this crisis happened. and so america will continue our historic effort to help people feed themselves. we have set aside $63 billion to carry forward the fight against hiv/aids, to end death from tuberculosis and malaria and eradicate polio and strengthen public health systems. we are joining with other countries to contribute h1n1 vaccines to the world health organization. we will integrate more economies into a system of global trade. we will support the millennium development goals and approach next year's summit with a global plan to make them a reality. and we will set our sights on the eradication of extreme
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poverty in our time. now is the time for all of us to do our part. growth will not be sustained or shared unless all nations embrace their responsibilities. and that means that wealthy nations must open their markets to more goods and extend a hand to those with less, while reforming international institutions to give more nations a greater voice. and developing nations must rout out the corruption that is an obstacle to progress. for opportunity cannot thrive where individuals are oppressed and businesses have to pay bribes. that is why we support honest police and independent judges, civil society in a vibrant private sector. our goal is simple -- a global economy in which growth is sustained and opportunity is available to all. now, the changes that i've spoken about today will not be easy to make and they will not
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be realized simply by leaders like us coming together in forums like this, as useful as that may be. for as in any assembly of members, real change can only come through the people we represent. that is why we must do the hard work to lay the groundwork for progress in our own capitals. that's where we will build a consensus to end conflicts and harness technology for peaceful purposes and change the way we use energy and promote growth that can be sustained and shared. i believe that the people of the world want this future for their children. and that is why we must champion those principles which ensure that governments reflect the will of the people. these principles cannot be afterthoughts. glox democracy and human rights are essential to achieving each of the goals i discussed today
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because governments of the people and by the people are more likely to act in the broader interests of their own people rather than narrow interests of those in power. the test of our leadership will not be the degree to which we feed the fears and old hatreds of our people. true leadership is not measured by the ability to mussel the assent and harass opponents at home. the people in the world want change. they will not long tolerate those who are on the wrong side of history. this assembly's charter commits each of us and i quote, to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights and the dignity and worth of the human person and equal rights of men and women. among those rights is the freedom to speak your mind and worship as you please. the promise of equality of the race and the opportunity for women and girls to pursue their own potential.
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the ability of citizens to have a say in how you are governed and to have confidence in the administration of justice. for just as no nation should be accepted to force the tyranny of another nation no one should be forced to accept the tyranny of their own people. as an african-american, i will never forget that i would not be here today without the steady pursuit of a more perfect union in my country and that guides my belief that no matter how dark the day may seem, transformative change can be forged by those who choose to side with justice and i pledge that america will always stand with those who stand up for their dignity and their rights. for the student who seeks to learn, the voter who demands to be heard, the innocent who longs
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to be free, the oppressed who yerns yes or nos dyearns to be equal. each society must search for its own path and no path is perfect. each country will pursue a path rooted in the culture of its people and in its past traditions. and i admit that america has too often been selective in its promotion of democracy it. but that does not weaken our commitment. it only reinforced it. there are basic principles that are universal. there are certain truths which are self-evident and the united states of america will never waver in our effort efforts to stands up for the right of people everywhere to determine their own destiny. 65 years ago, a weary, franklin
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roosevelt spo to the people in his fourth and final inaugural address. after years of war, he sought to sum up the lessons that could be drawn from the terrible suffering, the e new orleans survive that had taken place. we have learned, he said, to be citizens of the world, members of the human community. the united nations was built by men and women like roosevelt from every corner of the world, from africa and asia, from europe, to the americas. these architects of international cooperation had an idealism that was anything but naive. it was rooted in the hard-earned lessons of war. rooted in the business com wisdom that nations could advance their interests by acting together instead of splitting apart.
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now is falls to us. for this institution will be what we make of it. the united nations does extraordinary good around the world, feeding the hungry, caring for the sick, mending places that have been broken, but it also struggles to enforce its will and to live up to the ideals of its founding. i believe that those imperfections are not a reason to walk away from this institution. they are a calling to redouble our efforts. the united nations can either be a place where we bicker about outdated grievances or forge common ground. a place where we focus on what drives us apart or what brings us together. a place where we indulge tyranny or a source of moral authority. in short, the united nations can be an institution that is disconnected from what matters in the lives of our citizens, or
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it can be an indispensable factor in advancing the interests of the people we serve. we have reached a pivotal moment. the united states stands ready to begin a new chapter of international cooperation. one that recognizes the rights and responsibilities of all nations. and so with confidence in our cause, and with a commitment to our values, we call on all nations to join us in building the future that our people so richly deserve. thank you very much. >> the president speaking to mutually aligned interest to the u.n. and mutual responsibility on almost every issue. talk about ambitious engaged. israeli and palestine, strong language of mutually aligned interesting for everybody at the u.n. to address that issue. same agenda for environment and
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resource management and the global economy, for health and hiv. if you can think of a bloble global issue the president offering direct rhettry rick to lead the u.n. in an act of mutually aligned self-interest to bring the misbehaving parties if you will, the irans, the venezuelans into line should not, in his opinion, be a united states responsibility, but a responsibility for everybody in that room who would benefit from that level of stability. powerful rhetoric. we know he is a powerful speaker. he is trying to be president of the world here? >> i think he absolutely is, dylan. the question was was anyone he was addressing singling out north korea, the middle east, were they paying attention? we saw gadhafi there looking like he was looking to the side and picking his nose. i mean, you know, it was audacious speech. >> if we can presume the prond children if you will are not going to engage, their whole point is nonengagement. the question is can obama bring
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the balance of the room with enough intensity on the rhetoric of mutual el aligned self-interest and mutually aligned responsibility not only to relief the u.s. of the responsibility of fixing iran and north korea and forcing everybody in the room to solve those problems. >> he gave it his best shot. as speeches go, someone say obama with a teleprompter is like -- he did it best. it was conciliatory but tough. i think it's the best the u.n. the best he is going to do at the u.n. go that forum. >> the president trying to switch the rhetoric from us versus them to everybody versus a few of them. we'll see whether he -- whether the alteration in that sticks in that room. we will hear from gadhafi in a moment. day two for the senate finance committee as they continue to mark up the health care bill. hundreds of proposed amendments to the health care reform bill. changes being made but are any a silver bullet to get it done and
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is getting it done actually mean anything gets done or is it just nonsense cal political theater. what i have noticed some of the political support for the snowe amendment and wyden amendment release free choice to all of us and not a few of us seems to have a little bit of momentum. >> when you talk about a silver bullet, if you're focusing on a key issue, you may find that there are amendments that will address that and will gain some political momentum. olympia snowe has been at the center of so much going on here because she is a moderate republican who has remained close to the democratic negotiators and has sent all of the signals she is willing to be cooperative and helpful, while, at the same time, not fully signing on yet. senator snowe has been putting forth an idea about trying to open up the choice to anyone who has employee-based health care and that covers so many people who get their health insurance through their employer.
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if her ideas were to go forward people would be able to choose from among the array of things that would be available and not limited only to what is offered at the office. >> vicky ward is with us again from vanity fair. if you were to look at -- >> right. >> -- at where we're headed. >> yes. >> and if we're head to do a police place -- place of resolution or -- i was thinking about the president's commentary at the nun and u.n. and whether the guilt from the deep left or fear mongering from the deep right both which are ways to avoid actually dealing with updating a series of clearly outdated systems. do you get the sense that the american people are becoming more aware of that and, as a result, the value of the guilt and fear is diminishing? >> over the health care reform? >> sure. over actually understanding the issues of being afraid of illegals or death panels or
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guilted into a social agenda they are actually understanding they have an inefficient system is updated system that is basically robbing them through a systemic failure. >> i think everyone is aware there is an inefficient system. what i think is don't clear is the alternatives. i saw the figures out early this morning who is to blame for the sort of nonpassage of this. is it the republicans, the democrats? but it's really obama. actually -- because he has not laid out a clear plan and not laid out a plan that gives us choice. >> if you were to look, kelly, at where we go from here, help us with the time line. i know we have the amendments and -- i guess we have lost kelly. but, again, the time frame, as i understand it, i'll just tell you, i'll answer the question that i was going to ask, you got a couple more weeks of this marking up effectively and ultimately won't see a vote until the end of october and interesting to see whether this whole thing goes. if i understand correctly that
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final chapter where they merged the senate and the house. >> right. >> that is quite a moment there with a lot of back room deals that are cut. i'm told i do have senator harkin. thank you so much for your patience and in waiting out, obviously, the president's speech. he is a democrat from iowa and relevant to this conversation directly by virtue of his seat on the education labor and pensions committee. very quickly, senator, your thoughts on the president's rhetoric of mutually aligned self-interest and responsibility, briefly. >> quite frankly, i think the president hit the nail on the head. i think the rest of the world is looking for that kind of a response from us that, look. we want to join with other nations of the world to solve these big problems like climate change and other things. >> let's discuss health specifically and specifically choice. senator snowe's amendment number 8. also from the cbo on the wyden amendment which is a choice
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immediate -- amendment. where do we stand on free choice for everybody in america so that those of us who are on employer-based programs have an option to use the employer program but not the mandate? >> first of all, in the health bill that we have from my committee, we say that if you have an employer-based health insurance program that you like, you can keep it. >> i know but that is the whole problem. if i don't like it i cannot not keep it. i wrote a piece yesterday getting what i'm getting right now is like ge paying me in stoves even though i want money. how is it you can mandate everybody by health insurance without mandating that the health insurance companies have open competition to sell to us instead of hiding behind the employer-based plan? >> the problem is that we have so many employer-based plans and we didn't want to dismantle that system. that would be too disruptive. >> how can you create an exchange, with all due respect?
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you're already doing the exchange and then simply to protect the employer-based health care system not allow all of us to participate in that exchange? it seems crazy to me. you're already building the exchange. >> no. because the exchange will provide a lot of competition. that will drive down prices for everyone including the employer-based program. >> that's not -- >> i -- >> i just don't understand. market theory say the more participating and more competitive is why the government will protect health insurers from more competition befuddles me. >> dylan, that why so many of us are for a public option. because if we put that out there, that provides for more choices. now, on the employer-based program, what we put in our bill was that if your premiums are more than, say, around 12% or 13% of your income, you can leave your employer-based program and go on the exchange. >> but, senator, why do i have to wait? why can i not sit here? i'm a single man at this point.
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if i want to get the health insurance equivalent of the salad as opposed to the steak dinner, i can't do that because everybody at ge is buying steak because, ultimately, the system is et set up for everybody to spend as much as they can because ultimately that's the way it's structured. why can't i opt out of that system and buy on the exchange like anybody else? >> because the employer-based systems are so big in this country that we didn't want to disrupt that right away. now, it may evolve, it may evolve in the ensuing years that something like that will happen, but rather than trying to disrupt everything right away, we wanted to protect -- yes, the right word, protect the employer-based system as it is today, except for those that are so high cost that employees should be able to leave there and go on the exchange. >> statement, that's the government preventing real competition to be brought up against our health insurance companies who currently compete to see who can shed the most
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risk as opposed to competing who can provide the best health insurance and releasing them from muscle market competition to all us on the exchange. we buy our home insurance and car insurance. not like we don't know how to do it. building an exchange and make a national mandate and make all of us buy it and without helping the health insurance companies into a stru truly competitive environment. >> because of the employer-based system, if we have all of these exchanges set up and we will set up the exchanges that will drive a lot of competition if we have a public option that will be more competition and more choices for people. that will also provide for more competition among the insurance companies to make contracts with large employers for their coverage. so everybody wins under this. everybody wins. >> i disagree with you actually, because i don't win. and i represent 174 million people who are employer-based plans who may be lucky to have what we have but are titled i
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would think to be released from having to be tied to our employers for health insurance when we are not tied to our employers for our cooking supplies or our car insurance or anything else, senator. >> dylan, one other thing. the insurance reforms that we're putting in like no preexisting condition clauses, no lifetime caps or annual caps, they can't refuse to renew you because you got sick. guaranteed renewal. your kids can stay on your policy until they are 26 and applies to employer-based programs so you are a winner under this. >> to a point other than if the markets are not being released, i don't know why we're being any competitive as a country. senator, i'm out of time. i want to bring you back but i'm out at 11:00. thank you very much. we're off to the u.n. moammar gadhafi presenting to the u.n.
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would like to welcome you. i do call that this gathering will be a historic one. in the world and the history of the world. i am the -- general assembly presided in the name of the african union. and in the name of 1,000 traditional african kingdoms in your own name. i would like to seize this opportunity to present to the -- obama because this is the first time that he attended -- general assembly in his capacity as the president of the united states and -- it is the hosting country of this gathering.
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