he is joining us from somerset. welcome. >> good to be with you. >> we have to reporters with us to help us with questioning. >> good to be with you. i wanted to ask, the vice president went to the hill to jump-start talks on how to fund the government through the end of the year, dispatched by president obama. you were not in the meeting. i wonder if you expected to be invited or does that tell you anything about the pace or tenor of the big initiations going on right now? >> i am glad the president is involved finally. i think it is very helpful to have the vice-president on the hill, his old stomping grounds. this was an elected leadership meeting on the part of the house and senate and i am glad they're at. >> do you think they're likely to make progress bridging the divide between house republicans who have asked for $61 billion of cuts from the budget and democrats here have said they want a freeze for this year's budget or maybe $10 billion under that? >> that's just it. we did not know what the senate has in