mr. ron ni ering.n ron niering and i am a proud conservative. it is wonderful to be back at cpac again and as i look around the room, it is abundantly clear there are more conservatives in this room than in the entire city of san francisco. we are here to talk about california and the california model and what that has become. the mere mention of california and those images of the best that america has to offer, the innovation of silicon valley, the agricultural powerhouse of the central valley, the defense and aerospace sectors in los angeles, the creativity of the music industry, the life science at the center in san diego, defense centers like miramar and vandenberg air force base and camp pendleton where we send soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines into combat to protect free around the world, natural wonders like yosemite and the sierra nevada. california is home to so much that makes american who we are. today, california is failing to live up to the full potential of persistence. the reality is

mrs. ford that day and took a tour of the white house. actually, it is one of the pictures and the book --Ñian extraordinary circumstances, ñrand mrs. ford d not say anything about it -- is when the pictures in the book, extraordinary circumstances. -- it is one of the pictures in the book. i found this picture, and in the fourtrds' bedroom, -- there was the suitcase, and that was the suitcase she took to the hospital with her, and i will never forget, as i was very close. they treated me as a member of the family. when president ford got the word that she had to have this operation, he cried, and i did not photograph that. it was a really private moments, but they were extremely close. -- it was a really private moment. i was brought up by a mom and a dad who were together. i learned a lot from them as a couple and as family people. i think a lot of the photographs really reflect that. certainly the clintons with their daughter, that is pretty much the mix. >> right over here. >> what was security like? what about secret -- the secret service? and did they ever want to crop the photographs?

Ñi >> thank you, guys. thank you. thank you very much. thank you. everybody please have mr seat. thank you.ep it relatively brief, some opening remarks and then open it up for questions. first of all, i just want to thank harry reid. [applause] i recently said he's got one of the toughest jobs in washington -- managing an institution that by its very nature is, let's face it, you guys are a little difficult to manage. i've been a part of this caucus. i really don't think anybody could have done a better job under more trying circumstances than harry reid. and i think he deserves a huge round of applause . [applause] now, let me start by saying we always knew this was going to be a difficult year to govern -- an extraordinarily difficult year to govern. we began 2009 with a financial system on the brink of collapse, an economy bleeding nearly 700,000 jobs per month, a $1.3 trillion deficit, and two wars that were costly in every sense of the word. we knew that solutions wouldn't come easily or come quickly. we knew that the right decisions would be tough and sometimes they would be unpopular

Ñi>> as i mentioned in my statement, there are concerns that this joint venture might cause a domino effect in the industry. some critics fear the deal will create competitive pressures. mrcooper, in your opinion, this joint venture goes through, how will the media and entertainment landscape change over the long run? >> as i said in my testimony, the great fear is that you create a merger wave for all the other entities look at the advantages that comcast has gained and say i have to get as much of a similar advantage as i possibly can, particularly because there is this market division between cable operators, so the cable operator elsewhere will say i have to have the same deal. you create a situation in which everyone is seeking to gain maximum leverage through that sort of integration. >> i have other questions, but i will yield back my time right now. >> i would suggest to submit in writing. >> mine is a follow on to the question, under the fcc's public interest test, you will be asked to determine is this transaction in the public interest, and is it convenient to promote convenience and necessity. what about customers who do not have comcast or are not served in