dingell, the former chairman, and joe barton, the then chairman of the energy and commerce committee, were able to vote for a bill because in fact it was bipartisan. yesterday more than 200 amendments were filed up at the rules committee. many of them republican. many of them bipartisan. mr. hill, democrat from indiana, myself offered a bipartisan amendment on nuclear. nuclear is one issue that is absent from this bill. don't ask me why. there's no greenhouse gas emission was nuclear. it really is a jobs bill. i got two nuclear plants in my congressional district. when they were both brought on line, 85% of the components were made in america. today a new nuclear plant 85% will come from someplace else because we turned the light from green to red on nuclear the last 20, 25 years. yet no amendment on nuclear in this bill n. this rule. -- bill, in this rule. i woke up this morning i saw my friend and colleague, mr. inslee, speaking on c-span. this bill was going to cost only a postage stamp. look at the paper this morning, gasoline will only go 2 cents a gallon. i hope they are true bu

and basically you had the energy and commerce committee democrats, the people who wrote this bill, going one by one, member by member, and trying to convince them what they had passioned out of committee was a bill that had taken their interest into account. that energy and commerce committee you would hear was a microcosm of the larger house because of how many cole and oil patch kelvin sampson crats were there. they had to make more to the farm state democrats. they probably got 20 democrats from rural america to go along with this bill because of the negotiations they did with colin porter son the agriculture committee chairman, and then whipping in the last couple of days of other bills. they called it a fishing poll bill. you saw nancy pelosi personally on the floor lobbying members. >> speaking of those who closed the aisle, there were tefrl. >> the republican number was higher than people thought. there were eight all together. mary, crist smith and another from new jersey were the ones we most likely expected. david reicher from washington state was probably one that jumped out.

agriculture committee is holding a hearing on the legislation reported out of the energy and commerce committee, the so-called cap and trade legislation. many of us know it as cap and tax or as massive new energy tax on the american people. the agriculture committee has wisely decided to hold a hearing on this complex legislation and, in fact, the secretary of agriculture has been answering questions from members on both sides of the aisle for the past 3 1/2 hours, as members are almost uniformly opposed to the legislation, regardless of their party status and have expressed grave concerns about the impact this will have on america's farmers and ranchers, that it will have on rural america and indeed, the devastating impact that it will have on our economy and jobs and our standard of living as a whole. and i want to bring to the attention to the members of the house some of the concerns that we have raised. the impact of this legislation will have on our economy and our very lives is extensive and we should make sure that not just the energy and commerce committee, but every committee in the h

subcommittee on the energy and commerce committee who has been a staunch supporter of this legislation and has looked after all the health matters that come before the congress, the gentleman from new jersey, mr. pallone, for two minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new jersey is recognized for two minutes. mr. pallone: thank you, madam speaker. i want to thank chairman waxman for his tireless work on this tobacco legislation. today is long overdue and he should be so proud of his -- the fact that this is finally passing today and going to the president's desk. as we pursue serious and historical health care reform, this legislation comes at the right time. smoking kills. smoking also is a major cause of cardiovascular disease, cancer, and a host of other illnesses. almost half a million americans die from their own cigarette smoking a year, and even more alarming, studies have estimated that more than six million children alive today will ultimately die from smoking. when president obama's call for health care reform, he cited the need to use our resources wisely and e

right now the bill that's gone -- that passed out of the energy and commerce committee is a national energy tax on every single american. it's -- we call it cap and tax. the supporters call it cap and trade. but what it is in reality is it has serious problems for states such as mine in west virginia. we rely on 98% of the energy generation in our state is -- 98% of that is generated through coal. well naturally we are the second largest coal producing state in this nation. we've powered america for generations by giving of our natural resources across this country. and i'm proud to say we have a proud heritage not only of turning the lights on in america but also of the coal mining jobs and the coal mining community and families throughout my state. but this bill picks winners and losers because the heartland of which i consider west virginia -- and we just heard the gentleman from florida talk about solar, but the heartland which has relied on fossil fuels for generations to keep our manufacturing jobs, we're going to be the losers here. we're going to be the ones who are going to

waxman: i'm pleased to yield to an important and distinguished member of the energy and commerce committee, the gentleman from north carolina, a minute and a half. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for a minute and a half. mr. butterfield: i want to thank the committee for giving me this time this afternoon. the house of representatives is ready to pass this legislation that will literally save the planet. you can call it a cap and tax all you want to. you can say the science does not support this legislation. you can say that the scientifics -- scientists are wrong but i say republicans are wrong on this issue. we cannot afford to wait any longer to pass this legislation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. chairman waxman and chairman markey should be commended for their extraordinary work in reaching a good compromise to allow this legislation to advance to the other body. it saddens me our republican friends weren't partners with us as we crafted this legislation. but democrats understand the mandate of the american people and we are moving forward. one of my roles as

the democrats' climate change, quote, compromise, unquote bill passed by the energy and commerce committee is still a job killer that will hit every american with a national energy tax. this plan will have a devastating impact on the price at the pump and utility bills across the country. one estimate for a similar proposal found that families would pay more than $3,100 a year in extra energy costs. representative john dingell said it best. nobody in this country realizes that tax and trade is a tax and it's a great big one, end quote. even the president admitted that his energy plan would cause energy prices to "necessarily skyrocket," and that the costs will be passed on to consumers. various estimates suggest anywhere between 1.8 million and 7 million american jobs could be lost. manufacturing jobs will relocate to countries with less stringent environmental regulations like china and india, inflicting grader harm on american families and small businesses while doing even greater damage to the environment. the american people know we can do better. republicans also support a clean envir

to the white house, freshmen and sophomores primarily, and basically they had the energy and commerce committee, democrats, going one by one to members trying to convince them that what they had passed out of the committee about a month ago was a bill that had taken their interest of the microcosm of the larger house because of how many coal and oil house democrats were there. a lot of concessions were made. then they had to make a lot more to the farm state democrats, probably got 20 democrats from rural america to go along with the bill because of the negotiations with david pierce, the minnesota democrat anding a cum tour -- agriculture chairman its was an opportunity, i think, as markey called it, a fishing pole expedition of some kind where he was able to personally get some republicans as well. >> speaking of those who crossed the aisle, there were party switchers. a number of republicans voted for the bill. 44 democrats voted against it. what about those party switchers? >> the republicans, 8 altogether, mary bony know mack, chris smith from new jersey, franklin bianda from new jersey we

the senate commerce committee, on which i've served, held no fewer than ten hearings on issues ranging from thousand implement the tobacco settlement, to protecting children from the health risks of becoming a smoker, to reviewing marketing and labeling restrictions that were under consideration at the time. 1997, senator mccain, who then chaired the commerce committee, introduced the national tobacco policy and youth smoking reduction act which contained many of the very same safeguards as the measure currently before us. while on the one hand it's irrefutable that protecting youth from the harms of smoking and ensuring tobacco products are manufactured under high standards was the correct course of action in 1997, how is it conceivable that it has taken 12 years to get this right? why after the first warnings 25 years ago by the surgeon general on the hazards of smoking has that message not been translated into law? so why is congress taking this action now? what has changed since 1997 to prompt this renewed action? for one, there's been a justifiable drumbeat of outrage over fraudul

but the house version came out of a compromise in the energy and commerce committee. it was announced the same day after they met the white house with president obama. he has played a big part of that compromise. >> what will you watched more closely now as this legislation winds its way through the process this week and beyond? >> my eyes will be on what people they do it with. if it becomes part of the war supplemental, we are looking at how it will move. if it is a stand-alone provision, it will be clear sailing with a small exception of the group of feinstein and collins. they've matched with others several times and the planning to continue. the house version will ultimately move. >> thank you for being with us. >> thank you so much. >> the cash for clunkers bill, the last of 17 bills on the schedule today when the house gavels in momentarily for legislative business that we expect this afternoon.

today, senate and house health committees reviewing it, tomorrow the house commerce committee looks at the business aspect while the ways and means committee reviews the tax provisions. you can follow committee coverage at c-span.org. at 2:30 eastern today, the senate health committee continues going through president obama's health care plan. s the fifth day that the committee is going through the bill line by line and making changes. you can watch live coverage of the markup on c-span3. the house came in this morning, debated five bills and has recessed until 6:30 p.m. eastern time for votes on those bills debated this afternoon. tomorrow, members consider nearly $46 billion for the homeland security department next year budget. that's a 7% increase over this year's spending. also this week, defense department programs and policy, some newspapers reporting that speaker pelosi wants to bring climate change legislation to the floor on friday. live coverage when the house returns here on c-span. >> there's still time to get your copy of c-span's 2009 congressional directory with informa

i'd now like to yield three minutes to a fellow member of the energy and commerce committee and a champion of vision issues, mr. green of texas. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas is recognized for three minutes. mr. green: thank you, mr. speaker, members, and i'd like to thank my colleague who is a diligent hardworking member of our energy and commerce committee for sponsoring h.r. 366, celebrating the decade of vision and the national alliance 40th -- of the national eye institute's 40th anniversary. i strongly support the national eye institute which serves as the lead n.i.h. institute to save and restore vision. n.e.i. research has contributed to the development of several critical therapies and interventions that are helping to slow the progression of vision impairment. in some cases these therapies are helping to restore sight for individuals who may otherwise have lost their vision. treatments for diabetic retinopany saves us billions annually. it is resulting in treatments that is slowing vision loss. starting next year the first wave of the 78 million baby boomers w

but the house version came out of a compromise in the energy and commerce committee. and it was announced the same day after they met at the white house with president obama. so in theory he's played a pretty big part in that compromise. >> what will you be watching most closely now as this legislation winds its way through the process this week and beyond? >> it seems as though it's got the support to pass. my eyes will be on what bill will they do it with. like i said before if it becomes part of the war supplemental there's a whole lot of mess it would create with how it will move. if there's stand alone versions in the house and certainly the cincinnati seems as though it would be clear sailing with the small exception of the group with feinstein and collins that may attempt to negotiate. i know they met with senator state on several times and are hoping to come to some type of compromise as their house colleagues did. but it would seem that stabinau's version is going to move. >> josh voorheis of environment and energy daily. thanks for being with us. >> thanks s

i am henry waxman, chairman of the energy and commerce committee and i'm pleased to join with my colleagues and our respective committees and will have jurisdiction of this health-care matter in presenting a draft proposal from which we seek a further comment by the public and our colleagues as we fashioned the legislation. the draft is a very practical one and it is a uniquely american proposal. and builds on what works and fixes what needs to be fixed. first, we encourage the retention of insurance provided by employers which is the way most people have their insurance. in other words, as the president has said on many occasions, if you have insurance and get it to keep its various secondly we are going to address difficulties individuals and small businesses based in the current market. today people can't get coverage if they have a pre-existing medical condition. secondly, to many people are charged higher premiums even if they can get insurance because of their health status and small businesses go into a completely dysfunctional insurance market when they try to get insurance for

michael morris, has been a frequent participant with us in hearings before the house energy and commerce committee as we have structured our climate change control legislation. he supports the legislation that we have bought from the committee. he is encouraging that that measure passed the floor. he is well aware of what costs will be entailed in how the costs can be met. and american electric power has taken a real lead among utilities across this nation and in fact around the world in demonstrating the state of the art technology for carbon dioxide removal from the combustion process. in fact, on one of its facilities in west virginia, american electric power is on the verge of installing a new technology known as controlled ammonia. this application can remove the carbon dioxide and prepare it for storage underground. at that facility, they also have an underground storage cavity. at the same time that the co2 is removed, it will be permanently sequestered. this utility is leading the way, the largest coal user in the united states, showing that this can be done. it will be done in a way that

the ranking member of the energy and -- the ranking member of the energy and commerce committee. >> thank you, madam speaker. i rise in strong support of the forbes' amendment. this is not -- of the forbes amendment. the majority party which controls the rules committee ruled out of order and didn't make it in order on the floor either the republican leadership comprehensive substitute or the energy and commerce committee comprehensive substitute. so they did rule in order mr. forbes' substitute and i will guarantee you, this is better than the base bill. it doesn't wreck the economy. it does include and account on the ingenuity of the american people through an incentives package to unleash the productivity and the innovativeness of our folks in the united states to find new solutions to our energy and environmental problems. but it doesn't have this boondoggle cap and trade program that will wreck the economy, deindustrialize america and make us a second rate economic power. it is not a comprehensive substitute but it is darn better than the base bill. vote for it. the speaker pro tempo

this week the senate commerce committee held a confirmation hearing in which he addressed the expansion of broadband in the u.s., media ownership rules, and the so-called fairness doctrine. >> host: well, the senate commerce committee this week held nomination hearings on julius general caw sky to be the new fcc chief, and joining us to talk about that, andrew feinberg and fawn johnson of dow jones news wire. mr. feinberg, before we review the hearing itself, give us a little background on julius genachowski. >> guest: well, the guy's been everywhere. he's been at the fcc, he's been in the private sector on both the entertainment side, he's been with venture capitalists actually right here in washington with launch box digital which is a d.c.-based start-up incubator, and he's sort of been a tech con cigly yea to the obama campaign all the way through, and now he's probably going to be our next fcc chairman barring anything horrible or strange. >> host: fawn johnson, given his background what do we know about him now, and where do you think he'll take the fcc? >> guest: well, we know he

i want to thank the ways and means committee and the commerce committee for working with me to harness billions of dollars over the life of the bill to have transportation that reduces carbon foot painting and things that will make a difference for a country that emits more carbon with its transportation than china, india, and europe combined. we have an opportunity to protect the planet, but unless you're prepared to lead, china and india will continue to pa lute -- pollute more and more. s the first step in this leadership and i urge the courage to vote yes on this legislation today. thank you and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back his time. the gentleman -- mr. camp: i yield two minutes to the gentleman from georgia, mr. lender. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. linder: i thank the gentleman for yielding. i want to ask unanimous consent to submit a statement from the record -- for the record but i'm not going to read that statement. i want to respond to the gentleman from connecticut who said we need honesty in th

waxman: i'm pleased to yield to the vice chairman of the energy and commerce committee, the gentlelady from colorado, ms. degette, for 90 seconds. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for a minute and a half. ms. dedegette: i ask unanimous consent to revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. ms. degette: thank you, madam speaker. rye rise in support of this environmental legislation, probably the most important the body has ever considered. i will say to my friends who say it's not enough, we have we need to remember how important it is for us to put together a framework in place so we can assure energy independence and create jobs. in colorado, madam speaker, in 2004, our voters passed a renewable energy standard. the first time that it was done in any state by ballot initiative. industry opposed it universally, but yet it passed 53% to 47%. that standard was 10% by 2015, we exceeded that standard by two years. two years late every we came back to the college slayture and doubled that and industry supported it. when people see the wonderful framew

we have a food safety markup going on right now in the energy and commerce committee so i'm going to excuse myself to go petition participate in that markup. >> when leader boehner and whip cantor asked roy blunt to pull this working solutions group together, we agreed to build on works and fix what's broken. we said the serious health care reform plan needs to let americans who like their health care coverage keep it. and we need to protect americans from being forced into a new government-run health care plan that will eliminate health coverage that 120 million americans currently receive through their job. this is a major contrast with the democrat plan which c.b.o. tells us will shift millions of americans out of their existing , often employer-sponsored, health care. by and large, our employer-based health care system is a success and most employees are happy with the health coverage they receive. my hope is throughout this process because of my role on the education and labor committee has been to develop on the success of the employer-based coverage. there are commonsense ways

the speaker pro tempore: in lieu of the amendment recommended by the committee on energy and commerce printed in the bill, the amendment in the nature of a substitute, consisting of the tech of h.r. 2998 modified by the amendment printed in house report 111-185 is adopted and the bill is considered read. after three hours of debate on the bill, as amended, with 2 1/2 hours equally divided and control by the chairman and raking minority member of energy and commerce, and 30 minutes equally divided and controlled by the chairman of and ranking member of the committee of ways and means, it shall be in order to consider a further amendment in the nature of the substitute printed in part b of the report if offered by the gentleman from virginiaing mr. forbes, or his designee, which shall be considered read, shall be debatable for 30 minutes equally controlled by an opponent and a proponent. the gentleman new york -- the gentleman will control 30 minutes of the bait. the gentleman from california. mr. waxman: i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days to rhett rhett

. >> members of the house commerce oversight committee questioned the head of gm and chrysler today about the decision to close dealers. see the full hearing tonight at 8:00 eastern on c-span. >> the government funding of colleges, directed the colleges, and their students is really a 1950's thing or early 1960's thing. >> hillsdale college has never accepted government funding. today, not even government- backed student loans are permitted. >> title 4 is nearly -- is several hundred pages long. we have a lawyer in town that tries to keep the government from giving us money. he said there was not any use for it. >> sunday night at 8:00 on c- span's "q&a." listen to c-span radio or satellite radio. you can also download the c-span podcast. >> the special envoy on climate change said that the talks with china did not achieve any breakthroughs. he did say the two countries would continue to discuss the issues leading up to a climate change summit in copenhagen, denmark later this year. his remarks will be followed by the daily briefing with spokesman philip crowley. he talks about efforts to

in lieu of the amendment recommended by the committee on energy and commerce now printed in the bill, an amendment in the nature of a substitute consisting of the text of h.r. 2998 modified by the amendment printed in part a of the report of the committee on rules accompanying this resolution shall be considered as adopted. the bill as amended shall be considered as read. all points of order against provisions of the bill as amended are waived. the previous question shall be considered as ordered on the bill as amended on any further amendment thereto to final passage without intervening motion except one, three hours of debate with 2 1/2 hours equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the committee on energy and commerce. and 30 minutes equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the committee on ways and means. two, the further amendment in the nature of a substitute printed in part b of the report of the committee on rules if offered by representative forbes of virginia or his designee which shall be in order without i

later, the senate commerce committee considers nominations for the federal communications commission. that is set at 2:30 p.m. eastern. next, the treasury secretary will speak on the economy and the government's effort to eight the financial markets. he was interviewed by an editor at time magazine. this is half an hour. >> our guest this morning has been described by president obama as a treasury secretary who faces the most daunting tasks at this time. the president is right. in just under five months, the treasury secretary has led their unprecedented effort to rebuild the the financial system to restore trust. that process as we all know is in the middle of going on right now. he is taking on our economic crisis with energy and intelligence, so i put my money on him. we all have put our money on at the treasury secretary. [laughter] leading this morning's discussion is one of our most thoughtful journalists. he is the 16th managing editor at time magazine. he is committed to journalism excellence. he is leading our 21st century reinvention of the time brand. in conceiving this int

i congratulate chairman max men -- waxman for passing the bill and the commerce committee. the other committees have their jurisdiction to weigh in on. that is the process we are involved in. when we're finished, it will go to the floor. >> there are bipartisan discussions in the senate about an idea of looking at creating a privately run cooperatives instead of a public auction. i was wondering what you think of the concept. is it something you might be able to -- >> i think that members have been very clear about what their concerns might be about a public auction. i agree. it should be sound, it should be an administratively self- sufficient . it should be a real competitor with the private sector and not have an unfair vantage. when you say the words public auction, if that is the term we are using, you have to say right next to it, level playing field. there is strong support for a public auction in the house and a great respect for the concerns that have been raised within our caucus. we will address them. >> given that it is going to be very complicated for people to

the ranking members from all the committees involved, work force committee, energy and commerce committeebudget committee, ways and means committee have been actively working. they have been very involved in the discussion we have been having. what has happened over the last few weeks is we have become more and more specific. the administration has become less and less specific. their eight principles are now three. the website has a lot less information than it did two months ago. one of the frustrations for our side has been with the administration. we keep counting on the door saying we have good ideas, we want to be a part of this process, but we agree with the goals. the door is never opens up for us. on the senate side, the outside groups were told if you were caught talking to republicans, you're going to be penalized as this discussion goes forward. i think the concern here is that our friends on the other side know particularly when it comes to a public auction that this idea of a government takeover of health care to simply will not fly with the american people. the american med

markey for the masterful job that they did in passing the bill through the energy and commerce committee. now, other committees have their jurisdiction to weigh in on and that's the process where we're involved in. and when we're finish and ready we will go to the floor. >> there are bipartisan discussions in the senate about an idea looking at creating privately run cooperative instead of a public option. just wondering what you think of the concept, and given the concerns among your moderate members of it is it something you won't be open to? >> not instead of a public option, no. in our caucus i think members have -- know that members have been very clear about what their concerns might be about a public option. and i agree. it should be actuarily sound. it should be administratively self-sufficient. it should be a real competitor with the private sector and not have an unfair advantage. when you say the words public option, if that is the term of art we will be using, you have to say right next to it level playing field. but in our house there's strong support for public option and g

chairman waxman of the commerce committee, chairman markey of the energy security and climate change committee, congressman rangel of the ways and means committee and chairman petersen of the agricultural committee. we thank you for their leadership. madam speaker, no matter how long this congress wants to talk about it, we cannot hold back the future. in order to move on with the future, i want to yield back my time, i submit my statement for the record and urge my colleagues to vote for this important legislation. when you do, remember these four words for what this legislation means jobs jobs -- jobs, jobs, jobs and jobs. let's vote for jobs. >> the house then went on to pass the energy and climate change bill. dara in samuelson joins us on the phone. what did the democrats have to do? >> they were working the hallways and the house floor. president obama called members and invited members to the white house. you had the people who wrote this bill going one by one and member by member to try to convince them that what they had passed out of the committee was a bill that had taken

on the energy and commerce committee, john dingell helped force compromises with the auto industry.ick boucher developed ideas that will provide a future for coal. mike doyle addressed the concerns of the steel industry and other trade vulnerable industries. the chairman of the ways and means committee worked with us to make sure that the interests of low-income families are fully protected. and the chairman of the agriculture committee made sure the legislation addresses the concerns of farmers and makes them part of our energy future. the need to act is clear and urgent. there is a national security imperative to act. this legislation at long last begins to break our addiction to imported foreign oil and put us on a path to true energy security. there is a scientific imperative to act. the evidence on global warming, on the consequences of carbon emission is overwhelming, and we have based our bill on the science. and there is a moral imperative to act. we have obligations to protect and preserve the environment for our children and the generations that follow. and there is an eco

i want to thank the energy and commerce committee, henry waxman, his colleagues, and everyone such as charlie rangel, the chair of the agricultural committee for their many ongoing contributions to this process. i want to express my appreciation to nancy pelosi for her leadership. we know what this is so important. the nation that leaves in the creation of a clean energy economy will be the nation that leaves the 21st century global economy. that is what we seek to achieve. we want a bill that will open the doors to a better future of this nation. i urge members of congress to come together and pass it. the last issue of want to address is health. congress is considering various health care proposals. this is a complicated issue. i am very optimistic about the progress they are making. like energy, this is legislation that will be paid for. it will not add to our deficit over the next decade. we will find the money through savings and efficiencies through the health-care system, some of which we have already announced. we will insure that the reform we pass will bring down the cost of

chairman waxman of the energy and commerce committee, chairman markey of the energy security and climate change committee. congressman rangel, chairman rangel of the ways and means committee. and chairman peterson of the agriculture committee. we thank them for their leadership and for giving us this opportunity today. madam speaker, no matter how long this congress wants to talk about it, we cannot hold back the future. and so in order to move on with the future, i want to yield back my time, submit my statement for the record, urge my colleagues -- urge my colleagues to vote for this important legislation. when you do, just remember these four words for what this legislation means -- jobs, environment and energy daily is joining us on the phone. that vote was close. guest: they were working in the hallways, they got involved early this week it, and remembers to the white house. basically, you had energy and commerce democrats going one by one, trying to convince them that what they had passed out of the committee was a bill that had taken, you would often hear was a microcosm because o

the senate, it -- commerce committee later on at 2:30 on c- span3. those hearings will be live at c-span.org. >> discover an unfamiliar sight of our nation's first president as we are live from george washington's mount vernon estate. join our 3 our conversation sunday to like it, live on in depth. >> how is c-span funded? >> i have no clue. and >> i would say donations. advertisement for a product. >> how is c-span funded? 30 years ago america's cable companies created c-span as a public service, a private initiative, no government mandate, no government money. >> there will be a debate today looking at the war supplemental bill. what is the debate behind it? >guest: when barack obama was in direct for the g-20 a while back, she promised $800 billion in aid to the -- he promised $800 billion to the imf. they could say they were voting for the war, but in order to do that, the republicans decided they were not going to vote for it, and they are not, at least that is what they have said now, that meant that the progressive members of the congress, had

commerce committee. the first of two hearings and one of today and one next week to discuss aviation safety with the discussion of airlines. we will receive testimony from eight faa's, ntsb come apartment of transportation inspector general and the independent safety experts, mr. o'brien that i have just mentioned is not here he is stuck in traffic but will be here momentarily. on june 17 we will hear from other witnesses including airlines and pilots. let me begin at the the subject of safety by saying in this country i think we have a remarkably safe system of air travel the safety record is extraordinary. does not my intention to alarm about considering taking a flight on a regional carrier or any airline, but we do have a responsibility to examine airline crashes when they occur and do what we can to prevent future accidents. we have all heard the story of the tragic crash and february this year continental connection flight 3407 from buffalo york station york it was a bombard your/eight both of priv

the senate commerce committee considers nominations for the federal communications committee. that will be live at 2:30. both hearings are also on line. >> discovered an unfamiliar side of our first president. we will be live from mount vernon estate on the assent of george washington. join our conversation on sunday, july 5. >> how is c-span funded? >> i have no clue. maybe some government grants. >> advertising for products. >> public money, i am sure. >> how is c-span funded? 30 years ago, it was created by a public service. no government mandate. no government money. >> "washington journal" continues. host: our guest joining us from new york is neil macfarquhar, author of the books "the media relations department of hizbollah wishes you a happy birthday: unexpected encounters in the changing middle east ." welcome. guest: great to talk with you. host: give us the sense of your history in covering the middle east. guest: i grew up there. i often call it taxes on the mediterranean. i was in an oil compound. after college i went back and studied in cairo. i became a correspon

the subcommittee on energy and environment of the house energy and commerce committee held a hearing on allowance allocation policies in the waxman-markey climate change bill. one of the witnesses who volunteered to testify before the subcommittee was david solkal chairman of mid-america holdings company based in my state of iowa in the capital city of des moines. we're all very well aware that there are very divergent opinions on the so-called cap and trade program advocated by chairman waxman and subcommittee chairman markey. hearing witnesses are typically invited to share different positions and offer different perspectives on prospective policies. that was the case with the mid-america c.e.o. his company supports the cap on emission reductions in the bill but strongly opposes the trading component. in his testimony, he made clear his position that the trading mechanism in the waxman-markey bill, will impose huge costs on customers. the costs will come in two ways: first, to pay for emission allowances which will not reduce greenhouse gas emission and then for the construction of

and i know something about it because i was on the energy and commerce committee and we worked a lot on the telecom subcommittee and know that's something that will help enpower so many of our citizenry. if they have acsession it cuts down on other incidentles. sand going back to green jobs, cutting our dependency on foreign oil. making sure we can retool and retrain workers. and hopefully those jobs will stay in america and be a sustaining crotch of new jobs that will help -- crop of new jobs to help people say in the middle class. >> on behalf of the los angeles times and steve of the cleveland plain dealer thanks for joining us on "newsmakers". >> thank you. >> as we continue the kferings, let me follow conversation, let me follow up to your question on california. what are you sensing and what role does labor have in >> the administration is really retsents. that's what wear hearing. they're really retiscent. they think it's going to up up a pan dora's box. we saw what happened with bailout money to the private sector and they are just not interested in deling into that area. the

after discussions between energy and commerce committee's , and the administration, we have developed a reasonable proof -- provisions that involve the president and congress in taking action no more than necessary to ensure that this important legislation is a trade neutral for our energy industries. we want to see a meaningful international agreement. if we are unable to do so through an international agreement, this legislation ensures the u.s. will avoid carbon leakage in its energy intensive and trade industries. there are some critics who may be heard today who claimed these changes make the bill acceptable to trade challenges. they are wrong. the world trade organization and the u.n. environment program issued a report today that confirms that wto rules do not trump environmental requirements. i yield back the balance of my time. >> as a candid, the president stated that under his energy plan, in electricity rates would not necessarily skyrocket. he is being honest with the american people. the unemployment rate is almost 10%. many americans will be out of a job and a paycheck

three weeks ago, the energy and commerce committee passed the american clean energy and security act of 2009. this landmark legislation on which the house will soon vote will revolutionize our nation's energy policies creating millions of clean energy jobs, saving consumers billions of dollars in energy costs, and unleashing trillions in new investment. the 21st century grid will play a central role in this revolution. reeling the country's best wind, solar, and geothermal resources to market, enabling the electrification of our transportation system, and multiplying energy productivity through smart grid technology. the bill recognizes this role by establishing a new framework to plan the grid of the future. we tasked the federal energy regulatory commission with establishing a national grid planning principles which it will use to support and coordinate regional planning processes across the country. within three years, the commission must report back to congress on the results of this effort, together with recommendations for further congressional action if necessary. some believe

the commerce committee worked so hard. senator rockefeller was ill. he badly injured himself. senator dorgan stepped forward, get it out of that committee, so we could do this. it's good for every state. tourism is good for new hampshire, it's good for nevada, it's good for north dakota, it's good for wyoming, it's good for idaho. the republicans killed our ability to save half a billion dollars, they killed our ability to create 40,000 new jobs. and tourism is a trillion-dollar industry in this country. the republicans killed this legislation. mr. dorgan: madam president, if the senator would yield for a question? mr. reid: i would be happy to. mr. dorgan: madam president, last thursday the majority leader and i stood in that aisle and the question was going to be under what conditions would this travel promotion act come to the floor of the senate, and we said, do you know what? tell us what amendments you ne need, tell us which amendments you wish to offer and we'll give you some. and so it ended up five amendments on their side, three on ours, just as a start. it wasn't goi

on wednesday, the house commerce committee will deal with tax conditions. the senate is meeting right now, and senators are continuing debate on a bill to create a commission to encourage former -- tourism in the u.s.. later this week, home security -- homeland security spending. live senate coverage on cspan2. the house is here on c-span. members return tomorrow at 10:30 a.m. eastern for speeches, and noon for a legislative work. the cost of living adjustment and better disability pay, beginning wednesday federal spending for homeland security and interior departments, as well as environmental programs. also, a defense program policy. >> there is still time to get your copy of cspan22009 congressional directory, with information on house and senate members, the cabinet, supreme court justices and the nation's governors, plus district maps and how to contact caucuses and committees. for $60.95. on line or call us. >> people in iran taking to the streets in protest. here's what the state department had to say about this. >> the sermon given by al teller, the

it passed in our energy and commerce committee by a bipartisan vote, more than two- thirds in the houseas well. if you bring in an old car, into a dealer to buy or lease a new car, if that vehicle is less than 18 miles per gallon in dubai a car that will be better than 4 miles per gallon better, you'll get your $3,500 or $4,500 off. host: does the money come from the federal government? guest: it will be a direct transfusion from the government to the dealer. they will scrap the car, and keep some parts it is expected to be in a supplemental appropriation bill. it will probably get to the president's desk in the next week or two. the president supports that provision. host: let's get to some calls. we have tom, from toledo, ohio. caller: good morning. i have a statement. i am and ex-auto maker. back in the 1980's robert wanted to put the saturn brand ford. it is now for so. at the time the uaw gave up a performance bonus that we were entitled to at the time. it was in order for roger smith to start of the saturn plant which is now up for sale. the union has already given more than ample

she's been the one kind of pushing the chairman of the house energy and commerce committee henry waxman all along this process from the get-go she's probably responsible for henry waxman sitting in the energy commerce and -- spot. that was a decision made right after the election last november that pretty much kickstarted this entire process to try to move this bill through. she's someone from san francisco who's been a big environmentalist her whole career. this is an issue that environmentalists have been trying to get on the agenda on capitol hill for a long time, for many many years. and they've faced opposition for eight years under the bush administration. this is poised to be the first ever house floor vote on cap and see -- cap-and-trade bill. >> the climate change bill itself, cap-and-trade and what else are the key aspects of this bill? >> cap-and-trade is probably the biggest piece. it's an overall cap on united states greenhouse gas emissions, the declines over the next 40 years allows companies to buy and sell permits that allow them to pollute more than they're required to

bob rush of illinois chairs the commerce committee on consumer protection. this is 2 1/2 hours. >> good morning. today is a joint hearing of the subcommittee's on commerce, trade, and consumer protection and communications technology and the internet. i want to welcome all of you to this hearing, and i want to just give you some advance notice that in about 20 minutes, we will be called to the floor for a series of votes. some have estimated to be -- we are scheduled for about 27 votes on the floor, which is certainly going to extend the hearing. we ask that you be patient with us. we will try to conduct this hearing and be mindful of your time, but our actions will be dictated by the house schedule and the votes on the floor. i now want to recognize myself for five minutes of opening statements. as i indicated, today, the two subcommittees, commerce and consumer protection, are combining our commitment to privacy -- and resources to conduct the import hearing on behavioral advertising and consumer protections. i want to just take a moment to think the chairm

we had it with us that came before the energy and commerce committee before the energy subcommittee who testified that his utilities -- and he represents a number of large utilities in the mess -- in the midwest -- could meet the caps set in the bill by the deadline. what he objected to is that the cost of doing it under this bill will be roughly double the cost of just doing it by having them meet the standard. the reason for that is the so- called cap and trade structure says first you as a utility that limits, for example, carbon dioxide, must buy permits from the government to continue to limit what you are remitting now. then as your base grows, york to buy permits to continue to in that what you're gross costs. then, beside that, you have to spend additional money to essentially get rid of the carbon dioxide. the first step of that, buying the permits from the government, does nothing to reduce carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere. it just costs money, and that money goes to the government. and of course there is a lot of discussion of what the government will do with that

tomorrow, house and senate health committees take a look on wednesday, the house commerce committee reviews the plan as well as the ways and means committee which deals with the tax provisions. you can follow committee work@c-span.org and this week on washington journal, senator john mccain talks about iraq, iran, afghanistan and domestic issues. that's tomorrow morning at 8:00 eastern. he's followed at 9:00 by cbs news and thursday, the original head of the homeland security department, former pennsylvania governor tom ridge, that is live at 9:00 eastern here on c-span. >> richard branson who started virgin atlantic airways speaks about aviation. mr. branson a vehement opponent of the proposed merger of british airways and american airlines was at the national press club where he spoke for an hour. goip. >> good morning, welcome to the national press club for our speaker breakfast. i'm donna -- a reporter with "usa today" and president of the national press club. we're the world's leading professional organization for journalists and are committed to a future of journalism by providing inf