feinberg. billions of dollars in the cost. ms. feinberg: i would differ to amtrak and the actual cost. they have predicted it. how far they have to go to complete it. >> i am sorry, i did not hear the base question. >> you said that ptc is not implemented in all of the points? mr. boardman: it is installed but it is not activated. $100 million is where it is at the moment. >> thank you, my time has expired. >> thank you mr. chairman and thank you to the witnesses today. i know there are still a lot of facts and many more questions we have to examine you for we get some real answers. there are some things i want to follow up on. on may 12, my understanding mr. peters, is the engineer who was operating was doing so under a new controversial work schedule that began on march 23 of 2015. that included shorter turnaround times on most runs that happened before march 23. i guess i am just curious as to whether the union or the workers had been consulted prior to the implementation of this new work sc

feinberg. the fri's mission is to oversee the safe, reliable and efficient movement of people and goods throughout our nation's rail network. that rail network is absolutely vital to the nation's economy. so it's important that those who oversee it have the requisite skills and experience. serving s the acting administrator since january prior to her current assignment, she everybody served as chief of staff to transportation secretary anthony fox from 2013 to 2014. ms. feinberg was the policy and communications director facebook. and 2009-2010 she served as special stoont the president and adviser rahm emanuel. before that she served as mr. emanuel's communications director for the house caucus. ms. feinberg clearly has commitment and admiral commitment to public service, some are concerned her background does not include deep expertise or experience regarding railroads or railroad safety. as noted in an article in politico, at this crucial moment this is the nation's top safety regulator is a

feinberg would appreciate that, too. senator wicker? >> thank you, ms. feinberg. i think we have been kind today but i do think the committee on both sides of the aisle, the members are a little confused and frustrated by a lack -- the lack of a specific proposal concerning the extension. now, the chairman came in and clarified that apparently fra still stands by the grow america recommendation concerning extensions on a case by case basis. is that your position? >> well, we ask -- what we asked for in the grow america act was not a blanket extension but flexibility to work with railroads so that we could prioritize where ptc would be turned on. so the statute is very black and white an offers literally really no wriggle room and soo what we asked for in the grow america act was flexibility to work with railroads, post-january 1 to turn on portions of ptc before waiting for an entire system. >> you know, if i were a railroad and struggling to meet the deadline, i would find that so uncertain that i don't know if i could develop a business plan. it seems to me that

miss feinberg and mr. boardman, can you speak to the future of amtrak and passenger rail if congress continues to use patchwork approach to continued improvements? >> well, i would like to say, mr. sires, that my concern has been the reliability of the railroad. the reliability of what we do for our hardware on our system. the reliability of our use of tunnels. whether it's in new york or that our reliability on the portal bridge that's ready to be rebuilt that doesn't always shut properly. so the funding for infrastructure on the northeast corridor is absolutely behind the curve. in the last reauthorization of our funding in the pria act, there was a commission established out of all the states, the federal government and amtrak, along the northeast corridor, and that's where the $21 billion backlog came from of the necessity for us to rebuild an equity investment in this corridor. we also have a requirement because of the growth of traffic on this corridor. we're handling over 2,000 trains a day on the c

feinberg?>> previously the fra has not taken action -- >> did not take action in 2000 it was also recommendation. is that correct? >> that is correct. >> it's been very difficult. since then many of the freight rails have installed those devices. are you aware of that? >> yes sir. >> that it has been difficult. they've had to go through lawsuits. i want this entered into the record. kansas city southern is attempting to put in cameras in the cab. they were sued by mr. comstock and his group. not only were both union to post, i'll be asking the court to join them going ahead with the plan. and we put that in the record please? that is the cameras and a little bit of history and nothing being done. let's talk about financing and positive train control. you just recommended you will have fra financing available. >> the program has financing available. >> since 2012 how many phones have there been? >> i believe there have been three. >> two up until this year. a total of three. the joke is we've ha

miss feinberg ms. feinberg said they are looking at having a two-person crew situation as an internal solution along with some additional backstops as well. until ptc is implemented for deadline after deadline. would you would you be supportive? >> well, i think it is not necessary. commuter side of the house. we have crewmembers in the train itself. >> operate with 1% in 1 percent in the cabin 2 percent of the money. we don't support that initiative clicks you currently have two people. clicks is already being done. what industry-leading support of having two-person crews as an interim solution? is just not necessary with respect to give him where we are in the stuff you would have to go through to remove one member clicks okay. thank you. the only thing i would ask the record is in addition to the other things ms. feinberg may or may not, she now has apparently sent him to the hospital which obligates me to have to go visit him. abcaseven with that my questions are done and i see no more from members

feinberg. when they hired you to administer this program, did general motors lay out any limitations and if so what were they the? >> the only limitation they layed out was the limitation that only certain eligible vehicles are subject to this program. as the chair knows in bp there were limitations, in 9/11 as senator blunt, then congressman blunt drafted that legislation there were limitations. the only limitation they insisted on was only the vehicles lifted on page three of the protocol are eligible for consideration. >> did you suggest classes or coverage that should be included that general motors rejected? >> no. i am not an automotive engineer. i asked jenerageneral motors wh the definition of a vehicle that could give rise to a valid claim which is reflected in the protocol. >> so, if the airbags didn't deploy but should have, and any evidence the seat belt worked as design, under the protocol the victim isn't eligible? >> the victim isn't eligible if the power was on and the airbag di

feinberg. i have a question for you. just make sure i'm clear it's my understanding that the fra and this come from testimony, they will use all powers including enforcement fines and adoption. we know how they would assess adoption. we know how they would assess the fines. would they be assessed a daily? is there a policy that's been defined regarding that? the the goal of our enforcement actions and any safety regulators is to bring about compliance. >> i understand the goal. do we have a policy? >> as we discussed earlier we are finalizing that now. most of the policy is public and has been public since 2010. there are various signs and penalty and most of it has been public since 2010. we are in response to the congress request finalizing our strategy now. we want to be completely transparent about what the railroads and congress can expect. >> and might be daily and might be otherwise? >> that's correct. >> so a few days after you were here after the terrible mishap in philadelphia, i asked you, joe the $1.3 billion

feinberg, despite some of the credit -- criticisms, ms. feinberg will receive if she's concerned. i would like to let him make any remarks before we turn to -- >> what i am going to do is insert into the record my opening statement. let me say at a critical time a time in which there are questions of safety, the millions of people that use commuter rail at a time of essential to the economy of this country that we have healthy railroads that they can be competitive, they can operate safely, reliably and safety be central to the fra's commission. indeed, we've seen train accidents decline and fatalities decline, but then we have huge incidents of fatalities that bring it back to the floor, and so ms. feinberg for you to be willing to step in to the breech and try to offer the leadership that is so des -- desperately needed of the federal administration which oversees the safety and development of the nation's freight and intercity passenger rail networks, so it's a critical aappointment. it's a critical time. it's a time that the fra cannot let anything be slack and drop. so aisle

feinberg. senator miscast kill of missouri chairs the hearing. ght. this hearing will come to order. we revisit today the tragic management failures at gm that killed people. first, i want to acknowledge in my opening remarks then from my viewpoint the ceo of general motors, mary barra, has stepped up and con fronted head-on the problem and corporate culture that caused it. some see the record-number of recalls at general motors as a problem, i see it as a good sign. second, i want to briefly say that i think i speak on behalf of all members of congress who have asked very difficult questions surrounding these tragic events that while we are asking tough questions, we have great respect for the workers of general motors. i would like to take this moment to thank the workers at general motors. you are terrific. you build good cars. and you also were the victims of outrageously incompetent management. management was the problem here not the workers. the report i spent time with i find it thorough

feinberg: we do an end run on theories of tort. we invite people to come into a system which does not to fix blame, does not deter. it compensates, that is all it does, individual victims. 9/11, 94 people, 3%, decided voluntarily not to come into my program. i met with them and i said to each one, why aren't you coming into a program that will compensate you in 60 days with an average award tax-free of $2 million? some would say, i lost my wife at the world trade center. she would want me to sue to make the airlines safer. to make the airlines safer. you are not going to make the airlines safer by suing. the airlines are as safe as they are going to be. even if you believe that a lawsuit will help make the airlines safe, let the other 93 people sue. let 93 people litigate to make the airlines safer. come in and get your money. >> without the threat of a civil jury trial, would bp or gm ever put up that kind of find? mr. feinberg: i doubt it. >> tell me of any kind of civil case where the biggest issue, the one that amounts to the m

feinberg on friday. we think he's an expert in the area, and we want to do what's right, so we thought he was a person with the most expertise to go forward. i would also -- to the previous question, if a perp is not comfortable driving these models, we have loaners free of charge. >> with feinberg on board, does that suggest that gm is going to compensate owners who feel the need that they have to park their car? other than the loaner that you're speaking about? >> again, working with mr. feinberg, there's many aspects that we need to work through with him, and so that will -- that is why he, on his timeline, is saying it's about 60 days. >> the center of auto safety has suggested that they think this defect may have caused over 300 deaths. that's a big difference from the 13 you've acknowledged. why do you think those numbers are so far apart? >> my understanding is there's data sources from the fars data base where it captures a proportion of incidents that occurred in the vehicles in a broader popula

miss feinberg, do you agree with mr. boardman's comments that amtrak will reach the december 2015 deadline to get ptc in the entire northeast corridor? >> we see no reason they will not meet the deadline. >> and do you have an estimate of time frame for the rest of the corridor? >> well, beyond the fortheast corridor, other than in michigan, the amtrak decision will be dependent on freights implementing ptc. so that could take some time. >> do you have any estimate on the cost of that? >> the cost is in the billions. billions have been spent. they have billions further to go. >> multiple billions of dollars to the rest of the amtrack system? >> yes? >> and what about the rest of the class one freight railroads? how much would that cost? >> i actually thought that was the question you were just asking. so again billions. >> what about the short lines? are they implementing positive train control or just for the class ones at amtrak? >> it's for class ones and for passenger railroads. >> so the short freights will not be d

feinberg, i appreciate your comments. certainly when we set up the model after 9-11, the idea is the one you continue to pursue that victims are not subject to which judge they're assigned to. that you don't have cases handled one somewhere and one way somewhere else. they still have the legal option if they want to take it. but if they want the assurance that these cases are going to be handled in a way that has a structure, they have that from you. now, in that structure, as i understand it, when it comes time to a settlement, you have the ultimate authority on what that settlement would be, am i right in that? >> that is correct. the program is as you just pointed out entirely voluntary. no one has to come into this program. and if they do come into the program, we will determine their eligibility and if they're eligible, the amount of compensation. and only as with 9-11 as you know, only after they know what it is they'll receive, how generous it is. only do they then agree and there is no appeal from my determination

feinberg. again let me thank you for your response. the last committee meeting we did something somewhat out of the ordinary and asked you for a quick response with some of the questions this committee had on the amtrak crash but i think that those issues are important to resolve and understand quickly come in this committee thank you for your rapid response. we're getting the answers to those questions back out to committee members this morning. i did want to continue on exchange you and i had several times now. i pressed fra on positive train control is such a big priority, why are you not using california high-speed rail of dollars to upgrade not only the corridors of those connecting routes in california? california obviously we're ptc was started it is a big concern for those that ride the rail in california. it's a big concern for those who live by real in california. this is a national issue but in our home state were looking to provide leadership to resolve the safety concerns that people have quickly. and california high-speed

feinberg craig c. that's correct. >> one of the things we know there's your loan gm has issued an astonishing 44 recalls covering 17.7 million vehicles in the u.s. and more than 20 million worldwide. how many of those recalls to your knowledge relate to problems that were known to someone at gm before the bankruptcy sale order of july 2009? see at the senior level no action would have been taken. >> so adjure testimony that none of those are covert? >> i am not sure. >> you were saying here today that no one, that none of the recalls that have been initiated this you relate to problems known to someone at gm before the bankruptcy sale order in july 2009? see what i said the senior leadership had no knowledge of those issues. >> that's my question. you did a very exhaustive investigation into the cultural problems at gm. my question as part of that investigation did you identify anyone working at gm who acknowledged relating to those product recalls that covered products affected by that bankruptcy disc

feinberg? >> mr. feinberg's program is a voluntary program. otherwise people have the same rights they have today. >> they have the same rights, but you're trying to block those rights in the bankruptcy court yes or no? >> our intent is to do a compensation program and the right thing for these individuals. >> but you'restructing your lawyers to back off the bankruptcy case. so if mr. feinberg's parameters don't mitt but a competent court finds they might, not going to matter to you. i'll move on to another question. i'm concerned a little bit about the fact that your legal department didn't pick this up. were any of the lawyers fired for not being dill gept? >> there were four different functions in which individuals were fired. legal being one of them, engineering, quality and public policy. >> because it did concern me that the trooper young's report was sitting in the gm files in the legal department for a period of about six years and only one person opened the fire during that time period and that was the legal assistant. let me ask you

>> we are starting our work with kenneth feinberg on friday. we think he is an expert in hysteria and we want to do right. he was the person with the most expertise to go forward. i would also to the previous question if a person is not comfortable driving their cobalt or one of these models we are providing loaners free of charge. >> with kenneth feinberg on board does that suggest gm is going to compensate and owners who feel the need that they have to park their cars and other than the loaner you are speaking about? >> again, working with kenneth feinberg there are many aspects we need to work through with him so that is why he on his time line is saying it is about 60 days. >> the center of auto safety has suggested that they think this defect may have caused over 300 deaths. that is of big difference from the 13 that you have acknowledged. why do you think those numbers are so far apart? >> my understanding is there are data sources from the far database that captures the proportion of incidents that occurred in those vehicles and a broade

feinberg. regardless of whatever plan the fra chooses those mandates the use moving farther i hope the agency keeps careful tabs as i do on efforts in reports and submit your we already know they have released ambitious and aggressive timelines for finishing the ptc installations and some of the issues we've had with them which we have discussed. and i think we need to make sure we follow up and keep rails the safest possible. thank you. i yield back. >> assortment. if i could make one point in response to the back and forth. we've asked for a sum total of $2 billion to go toward tbc and fermentation and technologies. 825 million integral america but altogether 2 billion. we are in favor of the additional federal funding going to ptc of limitation. >> thanks, mr. lipinski. >> thank you, mr. chairman. good morning ms. feinberg. got a question here for you, start out to make chocolate packets may be sent to fra, and this comes from testimony, fra will use all its enforcement powers including warn

feinberg? >> that is correct. >> now, one of the things we know is that by this year alone gm has issued an astonishes 44 recalls. cover 17.4 vehicles in the u.s. and 24 million worldwide. how many of those recalls, to your knowledge, relate to problems that were known to someone in gm before the bankruptcy sale order of july 2009? >> at the senior level of the company where the action would have been taken. >> so it's your testimony that none of those are covered? >> i'm not sure what you -- >> you're saying here today, that no one -- that none of the recalls that have been initiated this year, relate to problems known to someone at gm before the bankruptcy sale order in july 2009? >> what i said was, the senior leadership had no knowledge of those issues. >> and that's not my question. you did a very exhaustive investigation into the cultural problems at gm. >> yes, we did. >> my question is, as part of that investigation, did you identify anyone working at gm who had knowledge relating to th

feinberg. some of these families have said they want to go to seek punitive damages against the m. -- gm because they feel that will bring gm further to justice for covering lingering this problem for so long. why should they take your offer rather than suing? >> they shouldn't. if an individual family member wants to seek to bring general notice to justice in their mind by seeking punitive damages they should not come into this program. they should sue. now i would say this about litigating against general motors. it's one thing if somebody wants to litigate to get additional monetary punishment from general motors. .. only way we can find out what really happened. i'd be careful about that argument. there are other, more efficient available mechanisms and avenues to pursue to find out the facts about what really happened. the congress is very interested in finding out what really happened. i read in the newspaper the u.s. attorneys and the department of justice are very interested in finding

feinberg wrings expertise and objectivity to this expert.as i have said i consider this to be an extraordinary event and we are responding to it in an extraordinary way. as i see it, gm has both civic responsibilities and legal responsibilities and we are thinking through what those responsibilities are and how to balance them appropriately. bringing mr. feinberg on is the first step. i would now be happy to answer your questions. thank you. >> thank you. i want to briefly go through your resume. beginning in 2004 and the defect was discovered by someone you were the executive director of manufacturing engineering from 2004 to 2005 and you are the executive director of manufacturing engineering in from february 12008 to july of 2009 you were vice president of global manufacturing and engineering and until february 12011 you were vice president of the global human resources from february 1 to 2013 were the senior vice president of global product development and from 2013 to january 152014 you are the executive vice president of global product

feinberg: the e.o. that went out last week or -- i'm sorry, ten days ago was aimed specifically at amtrak. we are looking beyond amtrak to see if we would take similar or other steps at other commuter railroads and we went directly to amtrak and others beyond that. >> only amtrak. ,s/ms. feinberg: for the emergency order. >> does that mean you have the authority to tell connecticut and massachusetts, are they able to be included with that. ms. feinberg: that would want work for the emergency order that's currently out, but that's what we're looking at right now for next steps. >> see if you can include them? ok. mr. boardman, positive training control. you said in your statement you're committed to getting it by the end of the year. the -- can you talk a little bit about the process that you've been talking to the last couple of months and i know you were talking spectrum and that was the last step of the equation and can you talk about the cost and the money? you have the mono sdpe can you talk about t

feinberg, maybe you have covered this.in all, it has taken these railroads several years to get to the point where they are now and apparently there's still a pretty good ways to go. i am wondering, do you have any estimate of how long it will take your agencies to certify the railroad after this process? >> the status versus safety plan estimated to last. basically the railroads plan and how they will ensure the system is working. we have perceived one and turn it back around to the railroad. and you're in close consultation offering edits and changes to make sure the system is going to work. we feel confident as they roll and we will be able to turn them around in the kind that time periods that we've laid out for the railroad. as of now we've just received one. >> are you satisfied with the progress that the railroads have made thus far? >> i am not satisfied. i would not be satisfied unless the deadline were going to be met. >> you know, my dad told me years ago when i don't wonder what he was talking about the time bu

feinberg, i don't get mr. feinberg, i don't get it. my daughter died in the basement of the world trade center in the 1993 attacks. it was not just terrorism. explain something to me. last year, my wife saved three little girls from drowning in the mississippi river and then she drowned a heroin. where is my check? bad things happen to good people every day in this country and you do not have a 9/11 fund. there was no 9/11 fund after katrina. after tornadoes or forest fires. to delegate all of this uthority, president bush, ken, i want you to do the 9/11 fund. no second-guessing, you decide. that is not the constitution. that is not checks and balances. president obama with the bp oil spill. great job, thank you. on behalf of the american people, you got out in 16 months , $6.5 billion, two people who suffered economic harm. all that was was a handshake between bp and the president. no laws, no regulations. that is not the constitution and that is not america. i get involved when policymakers decide, very rare. we have to think out-of-

feinberg: i doubt it. mr. rosen: there you go. mr. feinberg: i doubt that very, very much. mr. wilson: this -- mr. rosen: bert, this question is for you tell me of any kind , of civil case where the biggest issue, the one that amounts to the most money is not intent. i have never tried a case where intent is not the key issue. just like it was the issue in the obamacare supreme court case. what did congress in 10? what did the parties intend? who better than a jury of your peers at ascertaining what people really mean and think and intend? that is not technical. what is the intent? mr. rein: you do not have to prove willfulness to win. you have to prove it for additional certain rewards, but all you have to prove is that you infringed the claims of the patent. you know that better than anybody else. you are being too cute. thee are live at congressional where cbo director keith hall will give us an outlook for the economic here. this is life. again. morning, i am keith hall at the congressional budget office. we have released a net day to our previous economic projections for t

feinberg. please join me in welcoming her. [applause] >> good afternoon. it is such a pleasure to be here today with my colleague and friend teresa macmillan. in multiple role as chief of staff for secretary fox i always appreciated the commitment this organization shares with the administration's goal of making the national transportation network safer, more interconnected more reliable and more efficient. your board your members and staff, faint you for your partnership and support over the years. i am so honored to be here with you today and there are no greater friends than the department of transportation. i am a pretty frank person so let me get to my main point and we will get to the moderated conversations. i want to spend our time talking about safety and the importance of bringing a fresh perspective and new thinking to some old problems and about surface reauthorization and the incredibly important opportunities we see there. but first safety. as all of you know and much to the credit of the people sitting in this room overs last decade total tr

feinberg. some of these families have said they want to go to court to seek punitive damages against gm because they feel that will bring gm further to justice for covering this up, for lingering this problem for so long. why should they take what you're offering rather than -- >> they shouldn't. they shouldn't. if an individual family member wants to seek to bring general hotters to justice -- general motors to justice in their mind by seeking punitive damages, they should not come into this program. they should sue. now, i would say this about litigating against general motors: it's one thing if somebody wants to litigate to get additional monetary punishment of general motors. i'm here to compensate victims, not punish general motors. i'm here to compensate victims, innocent victims. sometimes i hear victims tell me or their family we want to litigate because it's the only way we can find out what really happened. i'd be careful about that argument. there are other, more efficient available

feinberg. >> thank you very much. [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] >> earlier today, rear admiral john kirby held a briefing at the pentagon on the malaysian airliner shot down over the ukraine. he said he saw strong evidence that the plane was hit by a surface-to-air missile. here is more. >> this morning secretary spoke with malaysian defense minister and offered his deepest condolences and those of all the men and women at the department of defense for all those of -- aboard the flight and those affected by this tragic -- tragedy. they've secretary reiterated the united states is prepared to assist to and they agreed the investigation must be credible, transparent, and and indeed. all parties in the vicinity of the crash site, russian, pro- russian separatists, and ukrainian must agree to an immediate ceasefire, the only way to ensure safe and unfettered access for international investigators. still collecting taxes. international investigators need to be given time and space to do their job. cle

we're also hearing from sarah feinberg who joined the administration january 9th, 2015. in this capacity, she managed a $20 billion rail investment portfolio and helps develop and enforce rail safety regulations and oversees research and technology development programs. prior to coming to the fra, miss feinberg served as chief staff to the secretary of transportation. providing strategic advice and counsel regarding operational and legislative initiatives across all modes of transportation. now, updating us about the major goals and initiatives of the federal railroad administration, we'll turn to miss feinberg. please join me in welcoming her. [ applause ] >>> good afternoon. it is such a pleasure to be here today with my colleague and friend therese mcmillan. you know in my old world as the chief of staff of secretary foxx, i always appreciated the commitment that this organization shares with the administration's goal of making our national transportation network safer, more interconnected more reliable and more efficient. to the president, michael, your board, your m

feinberg is completely independent as he administers this. i don't know this procedure if anything will be shared but it will be his sole discretion if anything a share to be chooses to do that. >> will it be his discretion alone as to whether applicants are given time to postpone their decisions until after the department of justice concludes the investigation? in other words will applicants be given a choice to wait until they know what the full story is out of the department of justice investigation? >> we have been clear what the timeline associated that claims will begin to be accepted on august 1 in the period for applications will and at the end of the year. then he will evaluating make decisions. >> but he has not as far as i'm aware definitively stated whether applicants can postpone the decision as to whether to accept the offer for the fund or bring private litigation. >> i don't know the timeframe in this process of how long a person has. i don't know the timeframe on that. that will be i think what is called out but i just don't

that is why i am pleased to announce we have attained kenneth feinberg. i am sure this committee knows mr. feinberg is highly qualified and is very experienced in handling matters such as this, having led the compensation efforts involved with 9/11, the bp oil spill and the boston marathon bombing. he brings expertise and objectivity to this effort. as i have said, i consider this to be an extraordinary event and we are responding to it in an extraordinary way. as i see it, gm has civil responsibilities and legal responsibilities. we are thinking through what those responsibilities are and how to balance them in an appropriate manner. ringing in mr. feinberg is the first step. >> i want to acknowledge, we know the families are here today we offer sympathy to their families and we have all of you in our hearts. reviewed many documents. theoon as the cobalt it road, drivers began to immediately complained to general motors that the ignition systems did not work properly. you can imagine how frightening it is to drive a car that suddenly loses its power stee

feinberg was the policy and communications director facebook. and 2009-2010 she served as special stoont the president and adviser rahm emanuel. before that she served as mr. emanuel's communications director for the house caucus. ms. feinberg clearly has commitment and admiral commitment to public service, some are concerned her background does not include deep expertise or experience regarding

feinberg or others as to best or worst-case scenario? >> we have been in conversations with him and i believe we will work through him to evaluate the situation. >> has anybody else given you a best or worst-case scenario in the situation? >> there have been a lot of estimates but none specifically to he. >> would those liability issues have negatively impacted the prospects of either a bail out by the federal government or prior to the bail out, the people who were lending you money to keep gm afloat with it's heavy liabilities would not those that have come forward by this problem have had the potential to dissuade private investors or the federal government from giving cash to gm. >> as i look attis, and fix it, then there aren't liabilities and they are contained. we are going to make the change and accept that. >> i don't feel appropriate commenting. >> i appreciate that. >> when this issue first came up the core spending problem resolution tracking report document identified the issue of severity three. i'm referencing back to some

feinberg brings expertise and objectivity to this effort. as i have said, i consider this to be an extraordinary event and we are responding to it in an extraordinary way. as i see it, gm has civil responsibilities and legal responsibilities. we are thinking through exactly what those responsibilities are and how to balance them in an appropriate manner. bringing on mr. feinberg is the first step. i would now be happy to answer your questions. thank you. >> thank you, miss barra. i want to acknowledge the families are here and have sympathies, one kelly erin ruddy of pennsylvania is one of those we offer sympathy to the families and we have all of you in our hearts. miss barra, our committee reviewed more than 200,000 pages of documents. what we have found is that as soon as the cobalt hit the road in 2004 drivers began to immediately complain to general motors that the cars ignition systems didn't work properly. you can imagine how frightening it is to drive a car that suddenly you lose the power steering and power brakes. when the switch f

"sundays a new book t 8" includes kenneth feinberg. >> from the perspective of the victims, i do notee any distinction. if you try to justify my program on the basis of the victims lost, i cannot convincingly explain why. 9/11, yes. 93 world trade center, no. i think the only way you justify this program as a special carve out is from the perspective of the nation. was,ognition that 9/11 along with the american civil war, pearl harbor, may be the assassination of president kennedy, and 911. its impact on the american people was such that this was really a response from america to demonstrate the solidarity and cohesiveness of the american people towards these victims. >> read more about this conversation with kenneth feinberg and other featured interviews from our book notes and q&a programs in c-span's now availableght" as a father's day gift at your favorite bookseller. >> the house veterans affairs committee continue to look at delays in veteran health care. the records by some of ba facilities to hide those delays. the first part of the hearing a little more than 2.5 hours. >> go