victor mendez is an extremely good choice as the highway administrator. he has been on the job exactly one year and three days. victor was here in october to help us kickoff the project. he oversees almost 3000 employees at the highway administration. it is no stranger to overseeing things. as director of the arizona highway department, he had a challenge their. he is a civil engineer. i always like to say -- since i am a civil engineer, too -- we can actually manage, and many of them do. they can think big. there is another example of someone not buying the traditional idea of what a freeway is, how people should move, and in doing a tremendous job to change the thinking in washington. that has been recognized by professional organizations around the country. he has been the president of many organizations. it is an honor for me to introduce him today as the first speaker in the program. victor mendez. [applause] >> thank you and good morning. how are we? nice and risk. i came from where it is hot and humid on the east coast, to hear. it surprised me. it

also, thank you to victor mendez, federal highway administration, u.s. dot, not only for the money, but for the partnership. butch, good to see you back on your feet again. these guys have been that almost every meeting of consequence on this, so the federal government has been very much engaged, working with us along the way. weasel -- we also want to acknowledge that come into my right. -- the gentleman to my right. before he takes off, he is a hard-working man. [laughter] this is just one of many complex and major projects that are underway in the bay area. i sleep better at night knowing that there are moving this forward because they do such a great job. all the people here in hard hats, vests, i want to the knowledge the hard work you do. you are the ones that take the raw materials and then turn them into world class projects that will stand the test of time, keep people safe, and keep traffic moving for many years into the future. thank you for the work that you do. we are here today celebrating a major milestone, getting the tunnel under constru