that's former senator alan simpson, a republican from wyoming. and erskine bowles, who was president clinton's chief of staff. gentlemen, it's good to have you both back with us. >> thank you, judy. >> thank you. >> ifill: let me -- >> woodruff: let me start with you, senator simpson. do you think you are going to get the 14 votes you need on this commission to get this report conveyed to congress? >> we really don't know. tomorrow we'll be riding the trap line, as we say, and see where we are, but i think erskine and i are very pleased that we had not just the people you expressed and addressed but we have democrats and republicans alike, and an independent. only one person voted against it, and that's fine -- that person, jan shakowski has added to the debate. i've never been a numberses guy. this will never go away. it's an indigestible lump. >> woodruff: if you don't get the 14 votes will this have been an exercise? >> the path we're on is unsustainable. i think this is the moment of truth. the american people get it. when alan and i go throu

thank you alan simpson. thank you erskine bowles. >> thank you. we would not be here without you and senator gregg. another congressman has asked to be recognized. >> i want to begin by saying thank you. thank you for giving us a chance to have this conversation. to alan since -- to alan simpson, who was the perfect choice to be a call to air -- to be a co-chair. he would say all of the wrong things before he said the right things. to erskine bowles, if you were doing the running of the bulls, the bulls would move out of your way. the president chose two individuals who had the courage of their convictions to move forward. the enormous applause or what you have done for helping that stay together. i stayed in my office until the wee hours this morning and kept my staff with me. i wanted to figure out if there was a way to get to a yes. for all of the reasons i think my colleague, dick durbin, said he is a yes, i think it is appropriately think about why we would all be a guest. i would be a no. dick durbin said he would be a yes because it is impo

. >> woodruff: republican co-chair alan simpson, a former wyoming senator, had a more colorful view of the outcome. >> we took a big banana and thr it into the gorilla cage, and the gorilla has picked it up, like they do. they peel it, mash it, play with it, but they will eat some. ( laughter ) and that's where we are right now because... and so it is with this. many pieces of this will be digested and nourish this country. >> woodruff: those pieces included recommendations to: raise the retirement age to 68 for full social security benefits by 2050; reduce future increases in social security benefits; and eliminate some tax breaks and curb others, including the child tax credit and mortgage- interest deduction. in exchange, the plan calls for corporate and individual income tax rates to be simplified and cut. overall, the package would shave nearly $4 billion from the federal budget over the next decade. it won the surprise backing today of a key democrat on the commission, illinois senator dick durbin. another yes vote, north dakota democratic senator kent conrad, said getting 11 vot

well, first, let me just say i think that the co-chairman of the commissioner skin bowles and alan simpson have really done yeoman's work with. they've done a greet job. they really highlighted a lot of key issues. and i think this report is going to set much of the debate whether it's voted on or not. but i think there is several concerned i have. and one is that the big driver of spending and deficits is health care spending. and we know that the new health-care bill actually increases the deficit and increases health care spending. so it didn't make it better t made it worse. and this commission report largely has left that whole area untouched. and i think that is one of the areas that is really lacking in this report. but having said that -- >> they have a couple hundred billion dollars in spending reductions in health care and medicare and they have this idea of a global health care budget essential three would cap all federal spending on health care as a percentage of gdp is that where we where headed? would you support something like that. >> what they do is they unfortunately inst

rather than watering down the plan to get support, the commission leaders, erskine bowles and alan simpson persuaded all sides to compromise-- to get something the left could sign onto, the right could sign onto and, importantly, that was good policy. then last week, the tax deal. in typical washington fashion, more and more goodies were piled on: new spending, tax cuts for businesses, tax cuts for the rich, tax cuts for the middle class, tax cuts for the poor. even tax cuts for the deceased. and no one paid for anything. here's a stunner-- the decade- long cost of this tax plan is larger than all the savings from the fiscal commission's plan. somebody better call the bowles- simpson team back to washington. we're going to need them again. listen, we need more short-term stimulus, but this was more like a drunken, debt-financed bonanza. and by not combining any short- term stimulus with a budget fix, we failed to enact the model of spend now, save later that is watching washington last week was like watching a junkie promising this hit will be the last. let's just hope our creditors don't

so, chairman alan simpson doesn't expect the plan will be well received. >> they're going to rip this thing to shreds and do it with zeal. we will now in the next few days to the same old crap i've been dealing with in all my public life, emotion, fear, guilt and racism. and when people use emotion, fear, guilt and racism on you, you use facts on them, which really irritates them. >> the chairman acknowledged the plan will even face resistance from the 18 commission members. >>> in other news, wikileaks founder julian assange on interpoll's most wanted list for alleged sex crimes in sweden. he denies the allegations. his whereabouts are still unknown. meanwhile, the u.s. is considering criminal charges against assange for the release of a quarter million sensitive state department documents. elizabeth palmer has more. >> reporter: love him or loath him, julian assange provokes passion at debate. he was born in townsville, australia, in 1971. raised by his mother, he was home schooled and said to be fiercely intelligent and a skilled computer hacker while still in his teens. by 2007, h

and former republican wyoming senator alan simpson. they sat down with the budget, came up with these suggestions, which are being hashed up, hacked apart and debated. but as they see it, they have a job to do and every american has to face up to this. we talked to both men late today from washington. >> this is a haircut greater than any hair i have left on doing something with everybody in the united states in a balanced, fair way, and getting rid of $1.2 trillion in these tax cuts. most of them go to the top 1% earners in the united states. >> this is the moment of truth. every business, every family, every university, every city, every state has faced these problems. washington hasn't. this is the moment of truth. the path we're on today is completely unsustainable. if we don't get this debt under control, this country will go bankrupt. >> here's a question for either of you. if these cuts go through, though not exactly as you've called for, as you would like to see them, if there's a process that gets us more or less to the same p

and the republican's co-chairman of that panel, alan simpson, said today with his trademark candor he expects critics to tear right into it. >> they're gonna rip this thing to shreds and do it with zeal. we will listen now in the next few days to the same old crap i've been dealing with in all my public life. emotion, fear, guilt, and racism. and when people use emotion, fear, guilt, and racism on you, you use facts on them, which really irritates them. >> couric: we'll have comprehensive coverage tomorrow of the panel's recommendations and the tough choices we'll all be facing to reduce the sea of red ink. the outgoing congress has a lot on its plate. the senate passed the biggest overhaul of the nation's food safety laws since the great depression. it gives the f.d.a. new power to prevent food-borne illness which is kill 5,000 americans every year and put 325,000 others in the hospital. more now from congressional correspondent nancy cordes. >> reporter: 17-year-old haley bernstein was hospitalized for nearly four months after eating e.coli-tainted lettuce when she was three. all th

. >> reporter: commission co-chair alan simpson today acknowledged that this report may soon go into a coffin, but he predicted it will rise from the crypt in the spring when members of congress vote again on raising the debt limit and on funding budgets well beyond the nation's means. >> jake, they have known this was coming. they have known it was coming. what's going to happen when they get to the vote on friday? >> reporter: well, it might not pass. but there is some talk between the president and the republican leader in the senate that they might still use it as a template for deficit reduction votes in the future. but i wouldn't hold your breath. >> not even the discussion, necessarily, in the near future. so, why not? what about these inflamed issues, social security, medicare, defense spending? we have a fact check tonight, because we wondered, would two people from opposite ends of the spectrum, two experts, agree that even these have to be on the table? david muir has been checking these facts. >> reporter: diane, as jake points out, the proposals, very tough pills to swal

, where i think you could have a deal done even early next year with some small tweaks to what alan simpson and erskine bowles put forward. >> so social security obviously one of those big kahunas that we have to attack. and then there are the other entitlements. how do you do that? what is your vision in terms of really getting our arms around this deficit? >> well, over the long-term, social security is a problem. it's not actually the main problem. the main problem involves health care cost growth. but on social security, the proposals are relatively straight forward. for example, bowles and simpson put forward a combination of additional revenue in the form of, for example, raising the cap on where the payroll tax applies and then also indexing benefits or indexing the retirement age to life expectancy. there is a variety of changes that are possible here, and a combination of revenue and benefit changes is the most plausible scenario in terms of addressing the deficit in social security. >> and what is possible in terms of addressing the high cost of health care? >> well, there i think

i want to thank alan simpson, my co-chairman. i would not be here today without him.ou have never been as high as this guy is every day. on my most optimistic day, i am not as high as he is. we walked out of our first meeting and i said, those guys we just met with think we are crazy. are we crazy? he said, no, we are going to get this done. that is the kind of partner he has ben. thank you to the wonder twins, to captain paygo, all of you have been great. if you had not helped us push this forward, america would not have had a chance to focus on the rils of this deficit. i also want to thank my two new friends. senators, i could not respect you more. my old friend, dick durbin, thank you, sir. i have been honored to serve with you. the godmother of fiscal irresponsibility taught me my first thing about the -- fiscal responsibility thought meet the first thing about the budget. i really, really appreciate it. i think you have done a great service for your country. today, several members have said they would vote no, and these members of a great patriot and great peopl

. >> reporter: erskine bowles and former senator alan simpson offered some revisions to the sweepingllion over the next nine years, and they got support from members of both parties worried about our future. >> we will be the first generation in the history of this country to pass less prosperous and secure nation to our children. >> i am prepared to support this plan. and to support it strongly. because i don't see another alternative. >> only one person said she will vote no. in all, seven commissioners were supportive, even those with reservations that want to keep the plan alive. >> i think it's extremely important we continue the process. >> the problem is real. the solutions are all painful. there is no easy way out. >> such as freezing domestic and defense spending for years and eliminating $1.1 trillion in annual tax deductions, including for mortgage interest, though some could be added back if paid for. some of the savings would be used to lower all tax rates, leaving them between 8 and 23%. simpson emphasizes we cannot keep borrowing so much money. >> no more fun and games

i want to thank alan simpson, my co-chairman. i would not be here today without him. optimistic day, i am not as high as he is. we walked out of our first meeting and i said, those guys we just met with think we are crazy. are we crazy? he said, no, we are going to get this done. that is the kind of partner he has ben. thank you to the wonder twins, ygo, all of you have been great. if you had not helped us push this forward, america would not have had a chance to focus on the perils of this deficit. i also want to thank my two new friends. senators, i could not respect you more. my old friend, dick durbin, thank you, sir. i have been honored to serve with you. the godmother of fiscal irresponsibility taught me my first thing about the -- fiscal responsibility thought meet the first thing about the budget. i really, really appreciate it. i think you have done a great service for your country. today, several members have said they would vote no, and these members of a great patriot and great people. they have been constructive participants in this effort. people like co

if you look at the reduction commission, alan simpson and that was a lot of bad stuff in there. i am very nervous that unless we get moving aggressively, raising the retirement age of social security and cutting benefits and cutting back on education, et cetera, that is going to be the deficit reduction rather than progressive taxation doing away with corporate tax loopholes. i'm afraid we will be on the defensive and that concerns me about this bill. not only was it not a good bill, but it sets the tone for more and more retreat in the coming two years. we go out to the american people and rally them and ask them, how many people want to see substantial cuts in social security and more tax breaks for the rich and cut backs in education? that's the approach we have to take, i think. >> unless that's done, everybody will see those things and say we don't want them and it will be too late to do anything about it. senator, again thanks for your time tonight. it was an extraordinary thing to watch on friday. thank you for upholding democracy. >> thank you very much. >> let's turn to

if you look at that deficit reduction commission, alan simpson -- that was -- there's a lot of bad stuff in there, and i am very nervous that unless we really get moving aggressively, raising the retirement age of social security, customering social security benefits, cutting back on education, et cetera, that is going to be the mantra for deficit reduction rather than progressive taxation, doing away with corporate tax loopholes, going after excessive military spending. i'm afraid we're going to be on the defensive, and that is what concerns me about this bill. not only was it not a good bill, it sets the tone for more and more retreat in the coming two years. our job and the president's job go out to the american people, rally them, ask them, how many people want to see substantial cuts in social security? how many people want to see more tax breaks for the rich and cutbacks in education? that's the approach that we've got to take, i think. >> and unless that's done. everybody will see those things and then say, we don't want them, and it will be too late to do anything about it. senat

so the argument on behalf of them, and i talked to the co-chairs, erskine bowles and alan simpson saying that more than offsets that. >>guest: we don't know. lower rates and simpler rate would spur the economy in a big way. unfortunately, our deficit is so bad that nobody is willing to entertain that without other tax increases somewhere else. i look at it as how big the pie is, the government pie used to be about 20 percent of g.d.p. and now it is nearly 25 percent of g.d.p. and i want to shrink the government pie back down to 20 percent or 18 percent and in doing so expand the private sector and that is where the jobs are created. so i don't want to do anything that increases money that government will get. i would rather accept less benefits, for example, rather than punishing those who make $ 200,000 a year by having them pay more social security taxes up to $200,000, reduce the benefits of those would make a lot of money in retirement and have means debting in order to allow us to have a system that is solvent without racing taxes. >>neil: but isn't that at least on social security,

alan simpson and erskine bowles, both reminding people of the urgency of this is critical.thcare plan will continue. that is where republicans see cost savings, if we're able to repeal that. >> chris: but that isn't going to happen until at least 2013 with the new president. didn't they accept that because otherwise nothing gets done? >> i don't think so. i think frankly, you will see the republican congress after january, the house, anyway, begin to repeal some sections of it. obviously, the president has a veto. need the president republican to get the whole thing repealed but you can't just assume it's a given as a basis for going forward. the other interesting thing the commission did is recognize how important is it to cut taxes and get the economy going. interesting that they recognize something at odds for the policy. need for fundamental tax reform, lowering the top rate. >> chris: juan? >> the president has cut taxes, payroll taxes and he wants to cut taxes for people earning less than $250,000. i think he -- couples earning less than the $250,000. with the majorit

senator from wyoming, alan simpson. ten months, we met and considered all of the possibilities for us to move toward a more stable fiscal picture in america. our goal was simple: to reduce federal spending, reduce the deficit by $4 trillion over ten years. it took us ten months to come up with a proposal, and yesterday 11 out of the 18 members of the commission voted in favor, as i did. i will tell you that i had my reservations about some of their provisions but i did not quarrel with the goal. unless we are serious about budget deficit reduction, america's economy will be in peril, borrowing 40 cents out of every dollar that we spend and borrowing it from countries like china, which as a result have leverage on the united states economy which we should not ever accept as normal. it is abnormal and dangerous. i left that commission hearing yesterday voting to cut $4 trillion over ten years to come to the floor of the senate, where the republican side of the aisle, the republican senate leader, mitch mcconnell, has a pr

i want to thank alan simpson, my co-chairman. i would not be here today without him.ou have never been as high as this guy is every day. on my most optimistic day, i am not as high as he is. we walked out of our first meeting and i said, those guys we just met with think we are crazy. are we crazy? he said, no, we are going to get this done. that is the kind of partner he has ben. thank you to the wonder twins, to captain paygo, all of you have been great. if you had not helped us push this forward, america would not have had a chance to focus on the perils of this deficit. i also want to thank my two new friends. senators, i could not respect you more. my old friend, dick durbin, thank you, sir. i have been honored to serve with you. the godmother of fiscal irresponsibility taught me my first thing about the -- fiscal responsibility thought meet the first thing about the budget. i really, really appreciate it. i think you have done a great service for your country. today, several members have said they would vote no, and these members of a great patriot and great peo

responsibility and reform and particularly the leaders of this group:er kin bowls and -- erskine bowles and alan simpson, great patriots. they've come forward with some recommendations. in their preamble they make it clear none of us likes every element of the plan, but they put forward a plan that i think is a starting point for us. and we intend to use these next few months, frankly, we intend to use the run-up to the vote we will have to take on the debt ceiling around april of 2011 to make real progress. let me subscribe to several of the statements made in the preamble. they say we cannot play games or put off hard choices any longer. i think the american people know that, and they expect leadership from their elected representatives in the house and senate in that regard. the report in the preamble goes on to say the american people are counting on us to put politics aside. that's what we're trying to do on the floor today with a bipartisan representation. pull together and not pull apart and agree on a plan to live within our means and to make america strong for the long haul. it's been pointed o

captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2010] >> co-chairmen alan simpson and erskine bowles have a news conference to take questions about the report. the commission is expected to vote on friday. >> thank you very much. this has been an important day. this effort started a number of years ago. senator gregg and i laid al a proposal for our colleagues. we took it to a vote in the senate. we got a firm majority, 53 votes, but we did not get 60. the plant was then put in the lap of the president. he went forward with an executive order commission, largely along the lines of what we proposed. ours is a statutory commission. it would have been stronger. we regret that did not get put in place, but we are pleased that we had this executive order commission and that a plan has been put before the american people to get our debt stabilized and reduced overtime in a very important way. i believe the defining -- i believe it is 8 defining moment for the country. we are on a course that is unsustainable and puts the country at great risk. i do not think there is any

erskine bowles from north carolina, alan simpson, former senator from ayatollah, chaired it. did a great job. it was inspired by kent conrad, our colleague from north dakota, senator judd gregg of new hampshire. they were the ones who asked for this commission. they went to work for ten months and today we voted on that commission report. i voted "yes." i left that deficit commission to take that short one-minute subway ride over here to the capitol to emerge in the senate chamber and to try to understand how two buildings so close to one another can be so far apamplet because here on the floor of the united states senate, the debate is on whether or not we should extend tax cuts for the wealthiest people in america. doing that will add dramatically to our national debt. just to put it in perspective, senator mitch mcconnell's proposal for tax cuts for the next ten years will cost us $4 trillion. does that number sound familiar? that's the amount of deficit commission was told to eliminate in spending and create in revenue over the next ten years. all of the work of this comm

erskine bowles and alan simpson have given this country a viable gift by raising the profile of this very real challenge we face the nation. i believe that this commission has done good work with limited resources and limited staff. i think is going to end up being a historic document, because it appears we have a three elected democrats and three elected republicans endorsing at least going forward with this commission report. 14 is just a number. but i think you have done more than just read a number. you have inspired us to do what we need to for generations. i got an e-mail from my son did this morning, and for a father in this business, there's nothing better. he said, "thanks. thanks for your grandchildren." >> that has to make you feel good. chairman spratt. >> first of all, i want to associate myself with the comments made by my colleague, with whom we began our congressional careers 28 years ago dealing with this very problem. i associate myself with his comments, beginning with the indication that he supports the plan. so do i.. subject to a number of caveats, because there

reason the extent of how ludicrous they are in washington never really hit home to me until the alan simpson commission issued their findings. well before they asked for a vote on it. included in the report, as you remember, was the idea that we were going to raise the retirement age to help save social security to the age of 69 in the year 2075. 2075. and you had nancy pelosi and richard trumka going on tv saying this is an assault on the middle class. the year 2075. >> it's all pie in the sky. >> 65 years from now. >> this is juggling. >> richard, and god bless him, i love him, nancy pelosi were all angry because my son jack who is 2 years old would get social security when he was 69 years old. whereas a 10 or 11-year-old would still be getting it -- these people are not serious. >> no, they're not. >> they're actually trying to scare senior citizens and saying they're coming after your social security. let me tell you something, if somebody sal live 60 years from now that's 70, 80 years old, they probably will have saved up enough money. it's just ridiculous. >> that's what we're talking

along the lines of what erskine bowles and senator alan simpson just came up with.other than that, i don't know what the white house has on its agenda. they seem to have gotten a lot of it. what they didn't get in the last two years they got in the lame-duck, and there were policy options in the white house who were busy churning out other things. tax reform could be one of them. a freestanding tax reform bill, but on the other hand, the democratic congress was receptive to the president's agenda. i mean especially the house of representatives has the ability to sort of move. one thing you could maybe fault the administration for was moving on climate change or energy legislation, but nancy pelosi sure got that through the house to the consternation of some people who aren't going to be a member of the next congress. does that come back in some form but then you have to sort of say, what is the republican agenda in the house? the gavel is going to pass from, i mean it is very symbolically passed from nancy pelosi to john boehner. it was the other way around four yea

leaders of the presidential panel, erskine bowles and alan simpson, saying the compromise ignores the cancer of national debt and they are frustrated it was announced just days after their plan was put forward. guest: i completely agree. host: you said you do not think the tax cut -- extension of the tax cuts would have impact on the deficit. guest: if you look in the past, the way the congressional budget office -- they are very good people but they are do what they are told. e way they are supposed to score, there term, how much a tax decrease caused the government is at is called a static modeling. they assume that people don't change their behavior when tax rates go up and down but i am a cpa, a master's in taxation and i used to prepare tax returns and you do, when the tax rate moves around, the first thing you do is sit down mu your client and say let us figure out how we can avoid this, how we can compensate for this, whenever. when tax rates go up, people make adjustments, when they g down, they make adjustments. of the look of the last major decreases, 2001 or 2003 or go back

leaders of the presidential panel, erskine bowles and alan simpson, saying the compromise ignores the cancer of national debt and they are frustrated it was announced just days after their plan was put forward. guest: i completely agree. host: you said you do not think the tax cut -- extension of the tax cuts would have impact on the deficit. guest: if you look in the past, the way the congressional budget office -- they are very good people but they are do what they are told. the way they are supposed to score, there term, how much a tax decrease caused the government is what is called a static modeling. they assume that people don't change their behavior when tax rates go up and down but i am a cpa, a master's in taxation and i used to prepare tax returns and you do, when the tax rate moves around, the first thing you do is sit down much your client and say let us figure out how we can avoid this, how we can compensate for this, whenever. when tax rates go up, people make adjustments, when they go down, they make adjustments. of the look of the last major decreases, 2001 or 2003 or

captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2010] host: erskine bowles and alan simpson, of president obama's deficit commission. do you think the commission is off to a good start? here are the numbers to call -- good morning on this thursday, december 2. the deficit commission will vote tomorrow on the plan. it needs the support of 14 members before it can go to congress. let us take a look at some of the latest news reported from "the wall street journal." this story -- "deficit plan wins backers." the piece begins -- are question for you is, is the deficit commission off to a good start? to get a better sense of what is actually in the final plan, unveiled just this week's, let us go to "the wall street journal" where they detail the commission's proposals and what the elements are. increase the gas tax to 15 cents a gallon, freeze pay for federal workers, a lemonade in school interest subsidies in federal student loan programs, shifting to five day delivery, cut congressional and white house budget by 15%, eliminate all congressional earmarks, and change the medicar

who elected alan simpson? will this one have any impact at all? >> i think it is already had an impact on the debate. i think people focusing on and we mention some of the issues earlier today that is corporate and personal tax restructuring as well. i think as you mentioned they have, and they have gone in the past and i think one of the issues that continues to regurgitate is the issue of the mortgage deduction, the issue that never seems to sit well with anybody i ever speak to. but i do think it has again not the way to forcing us to vote on something. they didn't quite get there but they have the weight of presenting issues for debate and discussion. i think it has been taken very seriously given as ron has mentioned just be overall growth of the deficit. the route question is going to be, do people love their tax breaks for them to hate the deficit? and i think that is what we are focused on right now. i think politically speaking. there is no question though from a responsible sense i think we all share, that we will have to deal with the i

. >> let's listen to erskine bowles and alan simpson, they are chairing the debt commission. >> tom coburnproved to me he's a man of his word and man of integrity. he probably does want to go further but we can only get so far. >> let me say, look, we wouldn't be where we are without tom coburn. he's been great. i can't believe the caricature that's been made out of him. this guy is a responsible leader and he's right, i can tell you that. it's a step in the right direction. we're not at the end of the rainbow. we have a lot of serious, tough choices to make in this country. >> wow, are you used to hearing such praise? >> well, you know, i have a reputation -- in washington, you get a reputation based on negative rather than positive. it's nice to hear the praise but the point is we have big problems and it's not about individuals, it's about the future of our country and we ought to be focused on that and i think erskine would agree, this is just a starting point. even if this bill comes out and gets passed by congress, it is not close to enough to get us out of the problem we're in. >> a

and you saw the reaction of erskine bowles and alan simpson, after working eight months trying to drive an issue to get us back on course, to create a future for us that will allow us to control our destiny rather than someone else to control our destiny. and really, this is just a drop in the bucket. this amendment to the waste, the duplication, and the fraud. you know, we're going to run trillion-tkphrar deficits as far as the -- trillion dollar deficits as far as the eye can see with no grownups in the traopl say we ought to stop doing it, we're going to stop doing t. what are some of the things in this amendment? a cut in the executive branch and the congressional budget of 15%, a freeze on the salaries and size of the federal government, limiting what the government can spend on planning, travel and new vehicles, selling unneeded and excess federal property, stopping unemployment benefits to people who are millionaires. by the way, we are sending unemployment benefits to people who are unemployed but have assets in excess of $1 million. collecting unpaid taxes currently in excess o

the point i believe that the chairman of the president's fiscal commission, erskine bowles, and alan simpson, were make. if i might, mr. president, i'd like to remind my colleagues today of the history of the bush tax cuts for the wealthiest americans. those tax cuts were passed after we experienced one of the strongest economic environments in our history. those who supported tax cuts for the wealthy believe that because we had begun to reduce our long-term debt we could afford them. they believed those tax cuts would stimulate our economy further and create millions of new jobs. in the words of then-vice president cheney it was a time when -- quote -- "deficits don't matter" -- unquote. i did not support the tax cuts for the wealthy in 2001 or 2003. for much the same reason i don't support them today. i voted against them as a member of the house of representatives. now, i sincerely wish that those tax cuts had effectively spurred sustained job growth. i do. but, unfortunately, the next decade saw a decline in our economy like we haven't seen since the great depression. banks fraild, forec

the point i believe that the chairman of the president's fiscal commission, erskine bowles, and alan simpsonwere make. if i might, mr. president, i'd like to remind my colleagues today of the history of the bush tax cuts for the wealthiest americans. those tax cuts were passed after we experienced one of the strongest economic environments in our history. those who supported tax cuts for the wealthy believe that because we had begun to reduce our long-term debt we could afford them. they believed those tax cuts would stimulate our economy further and create millions of new jobs. in the words of then-vice president cheney it was a time when -- quote -- "deficits don't matter" -- unquote. i did not support the tax cuts for the wealthy in 2001 or 2003. for much the same reason i don't support them today. i voted against them as a member of the house of representatives. now, i sincerely wish that those tax cuts had effectively spurred sustained job growth. i do. but, unfortunately, the next decade saw a decline in our economy like we haven't seen since the great depression. banks fraild, foreclo

alan simpson is the vice president of policy and common sense media who is a close partner of the fcc. his background combined experience as an advocate for children and education issues as well as work within media organizations. it is good to see you. dane snowden is from ctia and is charged with overseeing the association's policies for efficacy in children. thank you for coming today. steven is the chief executive officer of the family all mine safety institute. his mission is to make the online world safer for kids and for their families. steven has been a very good host for the fcc may times. i guess we will get right into it, if that is okay with everyone. if anybody in the audience has questions like to sublet, jordan or roger are here somewhere and you can get -- like to submit, jordan or roger are here somewhere and you can get your question to them. alan, when i have a young child, how do i know when to give my child a cellphone? how do i know they are ready? what should be part of that decision-making process? what do you suggest? the fcc is not in the business of telling

to alan simpson, who was the perfect choice to be a cochair because he would say all the wrong with saying said before he would sell the right things. -- say all the right things. [laughter] to erskine bwoles, -- bowles, the president chose to individuals who had the courage of their conviction to try to move forwa. enormous applause for what you have done in helping us stay together. i stated my office till the wee hours this morning. unfortunately, i kept my staff with me as well. i always try to figure out of there was a way i could get to yes. for all the reasons that i think my friend and colleague dick durbin said he is a yes, i think is appropriate for all of us to want to be a yes. i am going to be a no, but i want to make it clear that everything that he said earlier, it is important to have the courage to say we have to do something, to say that he won a seat at the table. those are the reasons i will say no. the seat at the table is important. it will not just be this table. it will be the table and the senate and the house and the white house and every kitchen table in this cou