>> Good afternoon
everybody and welcome.
I'm Susan Collins, the
Joan and Sanford Weill Dean
of the Gerald R. Ford School
of Public Policy and I am
so pleased to see all of you
here with us this afternoon.
I would like to give a
special welcome to our speaker,
House Majority Leader,
Eric Cantor.
We are very pleased to have you
here with us this afternoon.
This speech was originally
planned for last February
but we were snowed out.
And so we are particularly
pleased to have been able
to reschedule an opportunity
to host the congressman to hear
from him and to be able to
engage him with some questions.
I would also like to
recognize some dignitaries
in our audience.
In particular, we are joined by
Regent Andrea Fischer Newman,
by Regent Andrew Richner and
by Regent Catherine White.
We are very pleased
that you could join us.
[ Applause ]
>> We also have with us
a number of elected state
and local officials and
it's a pleasure for us
to have them here with us
this evening-- this afternoon.
We have the president of the
university, Mary Sue Coleman,
and a number of university
leaders here with us as well.
Welcome to all of you.
Please, I'd like you to
note that after his remarks,
Congressman Cantor will
be taking questions.
I know a number of you have
already given your questions
to members of our staff
and there will be other,
there'll be opportunities
for that.
The questions will
be read by members
of the Ford School Community,
in particular Professors John
Chamberlin and Phil Potter,
as well as three of
our graduate students
who will introduce
themselves to you.
They are also following on
Twitter and those of you
who are watching
online, I invite you
to send along your questions
for the congressman as well.
Well, with that, for formal
introductions of our speaker,
it is my great pleasure
to welcome to the podium,
University of Michigan's
president, Mary Sue Cantor.
[ Applause ]
>> Mary Sue Coleman.
[ Laughter ]
[ Applause ]
>> Well, no, no, no.
This is just because last
night I was giving a speech
and I had a Freudian
slip as well.
So, Susan welcome to the club.
But thank you Susan for
hosting today's program
and for your leadership
of the Ford School.
The Ford School is one of
the nation's leading schools
of public policy and
just a few years shy
of its 100th anniversary.
As one of these university's
most distinguished graduates,
President Ford honored us by
allowing us to use his name
for this distinguished school.
I believed that he would have
appreciated today's program
and all that surrounds it.
He served as a member of our
faculty after leaving office
and like our speaker
today enjoyed interacting
with inquisitive students.
He was competitive as both
an athlete and a politician
and appreciated a
spirited battle
and he advocated the
importance of free speech
and diverse viewpoints.
His alma mater after
all was the birthplace
of the College Republicans
as well as Students
for a Democratic Society.
[ Background Applause ]
>> Few campuses can light flame
to such diverse political views.
The University of Michigan
has long prided itself
on this diversity and
that spectrum includes the
appreciation of and respect
for varying viewpoints
and political philosophies.
President Ford understood this.
Listen to his words.
Tolerance, breadth of
mind and appreciation
for the world beyond
our neighborhoods,
these can be learned
on the football field
and in the science lab, as
well as the lecture hall.
But only if students are exposed
to America in all her variety.
As a university, we take
seriously our obligation
to open the world to our
students, through course work,
study abroad, museum
collections and campus visitors.
Today, we welcome the majority
leader of the U.S. House
of Representatives,
Congressman Eric Cantor.
[ Applause ]
>> Representative Cantor is
in his 11th year in Congress
where he represents the
7th district of Virginia.
The 7th district
includes much of Richmond
where the congressman
was born and raised.
Prior to his election to
Congress, he served 9 years
in the Virginia House
of Delegates.
Congressman Cantor became
house majority leader this past
January after serving 2
years as minority whip.
He holds degrees from George
Washington University,
Columbia University
and William and Mary.
The congressman has once more--
has one more significant
accomplishment to his name
and that is being the parent
of a Michigan student.
His daughter Jenna
is a U of M sophomore
and I'm sure it is a thrill to
have her father visiting today.
We are pleased to
host this visit.
Please join me in welcoming
Congressman Eric Cantor.
[ Applause ]
[ Background Applause ]
>> Thank you!
Good afternoon!
Thank you President Coleman
for those very kind remarks.
Dean Collins, thank you very
much for the invitation.
I'm thrilled to be here.
It truly is always a treat
to be here in Ann Arbor.
Certainly as a parent
of a sophomore,
as a budding wolverine
that she is.
Also I'm glad to be
here as a strong admirer
of this institution, the
University of Michigan,
that is a world class center
of educational excellence
that I have seen over and again
throughout my visits here is an
institution based upon
the spirit of innovation
and American know-how.
A 38th President Gerald Ford,
for whom this school a
public policy is named,
said the world is ever conscious
of what Americans are doing
for better or for worse because
the United States today remains
that most successful realization
of humanity's universal hope.
It is that hope that
has always set us apart
and made America
such a special place.
But today, that hope
is challenged.
I come to you at a
very controversial time
in our nation's history.
A lot of us are asking
what the future holds
for you and for our country.
And in a much bigger way,
we're wondering what kind
of country do we want to be?
When I think about the kind
of country that I want,
when I think about
the kind of country
that I wanna leave my children,
I think about my grandmother's
story and how my family got
to America in the first place.
My grandmother and her family
fled religious persecution
to come here to America at
the turn of the last century.
Like so many of her
generation in Eastern Europe,
my grandmother faced a future
where no matter how
hard she worked,
no matter how much she study,
no matter how smart she
was, there were limits.
Just because of who she
was, who her parents were
and where she was born, there
was only so far she could go,
only so much she could do.
But our country is
not like that.
America offered opportunity.
My grandmother eventually
made her home
in a working class neighborhood
in my hometown Richmond.
As you can imagine in
the early 20th century,
the South wasn't often
the most accepting place
for a young Jewish woman.
Widowed by age 30, she
raised my father and uncle
in a tiny apartment above
a grocery store that she
and my grandfather had opened.
She worked day and night,
sacrificing tremendously
to secure a better
future for her sons.
And sure enough, this young
woman who had the courage
to journey to a distant
land with hope
as her only possession
lifted herself
up into the ranks
of the middle class.
Through hard work, her faith,
her thrift, she was even able
to send her two sons to college.
All she wanted was a chance.
A fair shot at making a
better life for her two sons.
And if she were alive today,
I know she'd be blown away
by the fact that her
grandson is not only a member
of the United States Congress
but is also the majority
leader of the U.S. House.
In deciding as a country who
we're going to be we need
to be sure that the opportunity
my grandmother realized is here
for all of us.
It really is about
that fair shot.
No matter who you are
or where you're from,
all of us should have
access to the opportunity
to earn the success
that we're after.
>> The basis upon which America
was founded and the basis upon
which America thrives
is providing people
with the equality
of opportunity,
not equality of outcome.
There is a ladder of
success in America.
However, it is a ladder
built not by Washington
but by hard work, responsibility
and the initiative
of the people of our country.
It is built by people like
Henry Ford who worked hard
and took risks to bring us the
home art symbol of innovation.
The American automobile.
My grandmother worked
her fingers to the bone
so that her sons could have
a better life than she did.
Her sons, my dad,
didn't disappoint her.
He respected her sacrifices
to send him to college.
He took that opportunity
and started his own business
in real estate with little
more than the drive to succeed.
Emulating my grandmother's
work ethic,
he was able to provide
a quality of life
for my mother, brothers and me.
Why? For the very same reasons
that inspired my grandmother.
He wanted a better
life for all of us.
It is this foundation,
hard work, faith,
family and opportunity
that provides each of us
with the prospects of
unlimited potential in America.
Each generation is able to
get a little further ahead,
climbing up the ladder of
success in our society.
How quickly you move
up or sometimes
down should be completely
up to you.
Much of the conversation today
in the current political
debate has been focused
on fairness in our society.
Republicans believe that
what is fair is a hand
up not a hand out.
We know that we all
don't begin life's race
from the same starting point.
I was fortunate enough to
be born into a stable family
that provided me with the
tools that I need to get ahead.
Not everyone is so lucky.
Some are born into extremely
difficult situations facing
severe obstacles.
The fact is many Americans are
coping with broken families,
dealing with hunger
and homelessness.
Confronted daily
by violent crime
or burdened by ramping drug use.
I was recently asked,
what does your party say
to that 9-year-old inner city
child scared to death growing
up in a life of poverty?
What can you do for
that little girl?
Well, we know there
are no easy answers.
But I believe that
child needs a hand
up to help her climb the ladder
of success in our country.
She also needs some
guarantees in life.
She needs to know that the roles
are the same for everybody.
That although she may have to
work harder than many of us,
she needs to know that
she has a fair shot
at making it in this country.
She also needs the advantages
of a solid family around her
and a community that encourages
her to learn and work hard.
She needs some semblance
of stability.
The question for us is how
can we help provide that?
Stability starts in the home
but it can also extend to places
of learning, especially
for those children facing
the toughest circumstances.
We need to ensure access to
the best schools available.
If that is a public
school, great!
Some say charter schools help
to provide greater stability
and I wholeheartedly agree.
In fact, President Obama
has also expressed support
for charter schools.
Earlier this year, the House
of Representatives passed the
bipartisan Empowering Parents
through a Quality
Charter Schools Act
that encouraged states to
support the development
and expansion of charter schools
while streamlining the federal
funding to reduce
administrative burdens.
In California, parents have
bonded together to ensure
that schools are
being held accountable
and can transfer their
kids to better schools
or even start a new
one where it's needed.
Kids in many cities actually
line up for lotteries
for open slots at
better schools.
No child should be
forced to stay
in a school that is failing her.
We should give that
little girl a hand
in attending a better
school providing a chance
at greater stability thereby
increasing her opportunity
for success and happiness.
We also need to be concerned
about helping parents.
Take the single mom living
down the road in Detroit.
After she puts her kids
to bed and rests her head
down at the end of each grueling
day she may be wondering
if her job will still
be there in the morning.
She's probably stopped
dreaming about moving
up the ladder just about now.
She's more likely just
worrying, hoping, praying,
she doesn't fall
down or off of it.
We need to find a way to
restore her faith that moving
up the ladder, even slowly, is
still possible in this country.
That mom sacrifices most of
her life for her children.
She lives paycheck to paycheck.
Maybe she works two or even
three jobs and has to worry
about how she can take her sick
child or parent to the doctor.
Maybe she like to attend a play
that her little girl
is performing
in in school but has to work.
What is this working mom to do?
How can we provide both her
and her children just a
little bit more stability?
When asked, many working moms
say what they need most is just
a little bit more time
to be with her kids.
We should find ways
to encourage employers
to provide working parents
the flexibility to attend
to their children's needs.
One option is to allow private
sector workers the ability
to negotiate with their
employers to choose
between comp time
or overtime pay.
A benefit that federal,
state and local government
workers have had for years.
Does this solve all
the problems?
Of course not.
Maybe with a little
hope and a helping hand
that makes life just
a little easier,
that single mom can send
her children to college.
Maybe one day, her children
will be like many of you.
As students at Michigan, most
of you will be much
better positioned than most
to land a job of your
choice after graduation.
But for the majority of
young people in this country,
small businesses will
give them their start.
These employers are
the restaurant owners,
the healthcare providers or
the auto parts distributors,
small businessmen and women
are the key formula for success
and opportunity in America.
Each one of them took a risk
and did whatever they
needed to make it work.
They dipped into their
savings or borrowed
from family to start
their dream.
They committed countless
hours and determination.
They committed their lives
in pursuit of that dream.
They may employ just a
few people but each one
of these individuals is able
to start building a better life
for their families just
because one person took a risk.
We should make it easier
for people to take a risk
and to start their dream.
This week, the House
of Representatives
will be moving a bill
to ease regulations
on access to capital
so we can give these
risk takers a hand
up to achieve their dream.
In America, happiness
is defined as a pursuit.
And that definition
comes from our founders
in the declaration
of independence.
Pursuing both happiness
and independence derived
from the ingenuity and grit
of the American people not
the American government.
America is a special place
different than any other
on earth and here's
an illustration.
Last year I received a letter,
actually from a recent Michigan
grad who was taking a year
to work in the U.K. He
was amazed how differently
entrepreneurs are
regarded in Europe.
How opportunity seem limited.
How existence seems somewhat
dull and how hope was missing.
The friends he met said they
couldn't even imagine an
entrepreneurial hotbed like
Silicon Valley existing
in Europe or how
they would handle
such an amazing chance
to advance.
He wrote, starting a business,
even if you fail in the process,
is a badge of honor in
the U.S. But in Europe,
entrepreneurship is often
frowned upon and consequently,
the best and the brightest
are afraid to take a risk.
Even though they are very smart
and educated, when I ask them
about their career path,
no one ever mentions
starting a business.
Think about it.
In America, starting a
business isn't something that's
only possible.
It's something to be expected.
However, today, that is
now being questioned.
People in this country have
become afraid to take a risk.
Many have lost their
optimism about the future.
They're frustrated.
And the core of this
frustration stems from a belief
that the same opportunities
afforded
to previous generations
no longer exist today.
In a recent poll, 82
percent of Americans think
that their children will
be worse off than they are.
What happened to the hope
of surpassing the
success of your parents?
What happened to the unyielding
American exceptionalism
and the sense that in America,
impossible dreams are possible?
There are politicians and others
who want to demonize people
that have earned success in
certain sectors of our society.
They claim that these
people have now made enough
and haven't paid
their fair share.
But pitting Americans
against one another tends
to deflate the aspirational
spirit of our people
and fade the American dream.
I believe that the most
successful among us are
positioned to use their
talents to help grow our economy
and give everyone a hand up the
ladder and the dignity of a job.
We should encourage them
to extend their creativity
and generosity to helping build
the community infrastructure
that provides a hand
up and a fair shot
to those less fortunate
like that little 9-year-old
girl in the inner city.
These groups of innovators
are the leaders of companies
that create lifesaving drugs for
our sick parents and children.
They take risks like Henry
Ford did to create companies
that employ our families, our
neighbors and our friends.
They are also the
social entrepreneurs
who support the charter schools,
the opportunity scholarships,
the private job training
programs, the community centers
and other elements of community
life that provides stability
and constructive
values to children
and their families
who are struggling.
They are trailblazers
like Steve Jobs.
A man who started with an
idea in his garage and ended
up providing iPads and
iPhones to millions
and changed the world.
Job building and community
building are what successful
people can do.
Through his example, you can
see that American needs more
than just a jobs plan.
We need a Steve Jobs plan.
In a Steve Jobs plan,
whether you are a republican
or a democrat doesn't matter.
In a Steve Jobs plan,
no American regardless
of their condition believes
that they are unable to rise up.
And in a Steve Jobs plan,
we don't believe that those
who succeed somehow take away
from those still working
their way up the ladder.
Why? Because those who earn
their success not only create
good jobs and services
that make our lives better
but they give back and help
everyone move just a little bit
further up the ladder
and everybody can win.
So instead of talking
about a fair share
or spending time trying to
push those at the top down,
elected leaders in Washington
should be trying to ensure
that everyone has a fair
shot in the opportunity
to earn success up the ladder.
The goal should be
for everyone to meet
in the middle of the ladder.
We should want all
people to be moving up
and no one to be pulled down.
How do we do that?
It cannot simply be about
wealth redistribution.
You don't just take from the guy
at the top to give to the guy
at the bottom and expect
their problems to be solved.
A recent survey of over 500
successful entrepreneurs found
that 93 percent came from middle
or lower class backgrounds.
Most of them were the first
in their families to
launch a business.
And those at the very top
of the very first members
of the Forbes 400 list
published 29 years ago,
less than 10 percent remained.
So people are moving
up and down the ladder.
They're just not
moving up fast enough.
That is precisely why we must
ensure fairness at every level
of the economic ladder.
We must ensure that those who
abuse the rules are punished.
We must ensure that the solution
to income disparity is
increased income mobility.
We must give everyone
a chance to move up.
Stability plus mobility
equals agility.
And in an agile economy,
in an agile society,
people are climbing
and succeeding.
So income mobility is the key.
But for too long, indicators
in our country reflect a
sagging rate of mobility.
Too many people are
not moving up.
So our efforts should be
geared toward figuring out how
to accelerate income mobility.
From how we help those
who are unemployed,
to ways to encourage
entrepreneurs and startups,
to encouraging the best
and brightest to stay here
in America, there
are many solutions
that will help people
succeed and grow the economy.
As Americans, we
care about everyone.
We should want everyone
to be successful.
We want everyone to
see the path forward.
Now our country faces
big challenges.
We've always been a country
of risk takers and innovators.
We need Washington to
remember that and to believe
in innovation and the kind
of innovative excellence
and leaders who are
here at Michigan.
When this happens, more people
will be moving up the ladder.
Victor Frankl who wrote
Man's Search for Meaning,
one of the most influential
books
of the 20th century had
a vision that I share.
On the East Coast of America
stands the Statue of Liberty.
But on the West Coast,
said Frankl,
should stand a statue
of responsibility.
In my vision, when these
two statues join hands,
the American people
create a bridge
that spans the whole country.
A bridge of opportunity.
And on the pillars
of that bridge,
we must erect our
ladders with those
who are successful
extending their hands
to those who wish to climb.
It is students like you,
the successful leaders
of the future, who
can be the designers
and builders of our ladders.
It is you who can determine
the dimension, the durability
and the direction of
America's ladders.
Each of you will move on from
U of M and on to the workforce.
Many of you will take a
risk and earn success.
>> And who knows, some of you
might forever change the world
like Henry Ford and
Steve Jobs did.
But as you do, don't forget
that we want everyone
to be moving upward.
As you do, hold out your hands
and help pull others
up the ladder.
Help them move up in your
school, in your community
and in your workplace.
That's who we are as Americans.
We should all be committed
to America's rising.
Thank you very much!
[ Applause ]
[ Cheers ]
[ Background Applause ]
>> Thank you!
Thank you!
Thank you!
Thank you very much!
>> My name is Alex
Barber [phonetic].
I'm a graduate student at
Ford School and [inaudible].
Recently the majority
of economists reported
that the extreme [inaudible]
support would be detrimental
to our economic [inaudible] in
the near term while realizing
that in the midterm we need
to address the deficit.
How do you respond to this?
>> Well, you know, I think the--
the situation in
our country is this.
We've got two crises.
We've got a deficit crisis
that's been in the works,
in the making for several
decades and we've got jobs
and economic growth crisis.
And the goal should be
to try and solve each
without hurting the other.
And so the deficit
crisis is caused
by annual deficits we're racking
up with the federal government
that exceed a trillion
dollars annually.
We cannot continue to
sustain that kind of spending
because at some point, the world
investors will stop granting us
loans to exist.
So, some of the issue is how
do we go about trimming the fat
that has garnered--
grown in Washington
without damaging the
prospects for growth
that I just spoke about.
And so, we've got to
strike the balance.
We believe very strongly fiscal
prudence is needed right now.
And you do that by making
sure that reform sets
in in Washington, that we don't
just continue to allow things
to operate the way we
are and we try and do
so without taxing those
people that we're looking
to to create jobs and get
economic growth going again.
[ Noise ]
>> My name is Caroline
Masters [inaudible].
I'm also a graduate
student at Ford School
and I'm reading you a
question from Twitter.
You talked about charter
schools as a mechanism
for providing stabilities
so that people can move
up the economic ladder.
But is there a chance
that charter schools
will become a mechanism
for segregation widening the
achievement gap between those
who can move through them
and those who cannot?
>> I think where we have seen
charter schools succeed most is
in areas of socioeconomic
challenge and that's
where the need is greatest.
Because as I indicated before,
people who can afford to move
to areas where the public
schools are good are gonna
do so.
The problem is we leave behind
children who are trapped
in failing public schools.
So we need some reform to
the public school systems
for sure in this country.
Charter schools have
provided to be a great way
to affect that kind of reform.
And as I indicated, evidence
across the country seems to be
that parents are signing
up because they want what
is best for their children.
And so, I don't believe
that the data is there.
Certainly, we always wanna guard
against a potential outcome
such as you suggest, but I think
the evidence is pretty strong
that charter schools
in many areas
of the country offers the only
hope for children to receive
that quality education.
You know, I'm a big fan of
the public school system.
All three of my children attend
the public school system all the
way through K through 12 and
now, one here at the University
of Michigan, one at the
University of Virginia.
And I've got another still
in the public school
systems in Virginia.
So if it can be a
public school, great!
If not, we ought to not
look over those kids
who desperately need our help.
>> My name is Maureen
Dodge [phonetic]
and I'm also a graduate student
of the Ford School
of Public Policy.
Last Thursday, the
Bertelsmann Foundation,
Germany issued a report
on social justice in
31 OECD countries.
The United States
rated 27 on the list.
We ranked 28th in income and
quality and the bottom third
on key indicators of
equal opportunity.
The study notes that
social justice
and economic performances are
by no means mutually exclusive.
Northern Europe, Northern
European countries
in particular demonstrate
that the opposite is true.
This study paints a
very different picture
of the American dream
that you have presented.
It would appear that the
American dream is alive and well
but living in Scandinavia.
What role does the pursuit
of social justice play
in your party's efforts
to confront the economic
and budget crisis
facing our country?
[ Applause ]
>> You know, social
justice is bout fairness.
Fairness is making sure that we
afford opportunity for everyone
to pursue their happiness.
And again, I see there's a lot,
there's several folks
who've stood
up to say tax the rich,
that's somehow fair.
And again, I spoke to
this just earlier saying
that many people
today including some
of our elected leaders
think that some on the top
of the income scale have made
enough and that all we have
to do is redistribute
that wealth
and we're gonna create the
American dream for more.
I think economic data would
indicate that doesn't work.
Something else is amiss and what
I would say is amiss is the fact
that we don't have enough
jobs and opportunity
for the middle class
in this country.
And we need to focus on how we
return to where we can allow
for wealth to be distributed.
But it's not by having
government take from one
and give to another, because
that's not gonna work.
We need to make sure the rules
are the same for everybody.
We need to make sure that
the concentration of power
and the ability to
allocate capital coming
out of Washington is limited
because we've seen the dangers
of allowing Washington to
pick winners and losers.
The government's role
in this country is one
to ensure a quality
of opportunity.
That means certainty of
rules and their application.
That means more opportunity
for all,
not necessarily equal outcomes.
And again, I spoke earlier
about the fact that all
of us don't start in the same
place and the proper role
for government is to identify
those who are struggling
and to allow them a
better sense of stability
so they could get
back on that track
to pursuing their happiness
through earning their success.
That's what this
country is about.
[ Applause ]
[ Cheers ]
>> Between 1981 and 1993,
the republican administration
has tripled the debt
and between '01 and '09,
republicans doubled the debt.
Why should we trust a
republic administration now?
[ Applause ]
[ Background Applause ]
>> I don't-- I don't
wanna miss the opportunity
to at least put the facts out
there and the occurrence of debt
over the last 3 years far
exceeds that which was incurred
of the periods you mentioned
but let's not go about blaming
because there's enough blame
to go around on all sides.
[ Inaudible Remark ]
>> Let's-- again-- again,
to be constructive--
to be constructive here
is the goal, right?
So if we're gonna
solve problems,
if we're gonna solve problems,
we all have to accept the fact
that there's too much spending.
And yes, too much spending on
the republic administrations,
too much spending on the
democratic administrations.
Too much spending,
too much spending
on our democratic controlled
Congress, too much spending
on a republican controlled
congress before.
But things have changed now.
The urgency is upon us.
We can no longer afford to incur
trillion dollar deficits off
into the future.
And that's the math
does not lie.
>> We cannot, we cannot afford--
we cannot afford to continue
this route which is again why
as you've seen the
republican majority
in the House has insisted
that we begin, that we begin
to turn the corner and to
begin to solve problems rather
than continue to kick the cane.
[ Applause ]
>> I have a question
from our audience.
Looking back at your
career in public service,
would you please
discuss one instance
where you've experienced that
you've learned a lesson from.
>> Well, I think any of the
parents here would agree
with me, you learn lessons
everyday as a parent.
But you know, listen, we
have, we have instances
that throughout the legislative
process where you have
to continue to be able to
look towards the future
and you need everyone to
help solve the problem.
In a legislative body,
that means in Congress,
you got 435 people that
you need to work with.
And I think probably
the most recent
and probably topical lessons
that we're learning
right now has to do
with the debt ceiling debate.
And what has come
through over the last 8
or 9 months throughout
that debate is there's a
real divide in Washington.
That the two signs really
don't see eye to eye as to how
to correct the problem on
the deficit and frankly,
we don't see eye to eye on
how to grow the economy.
So it's really taxes
and the issue
of the deficit caused largely
by healthcare entitlement
that we can't yet
come together on.
But what I've learned
throughout this process is,
there is a tremendous
amount of progress
that can be made sort
of in the middle.
If we begin to try and set aside
differences, agree or disagree.
Reasonable people can do that.
I think that many of us know.
That's how you conduct
your life.
That's how you conduct
your business.
I love to say, my wife of
22 years is here with me.
And believe me, we've learned
how to raise a family coming
as two different individuals
to this unit of ours
as the household agreeing
to disagree, everyday.
But yet, being able to move
forward with the ultimate goal
of providing a constructive
and stable environment
for our children.
That's how it's done and
the same can be learned
in Washington.
And as we face the
challenges that are upon us
with the debt ceiling deadlines
and the necessity for us
to curb spending and to grow the
economy, we can deliver on that.
>> How do you reconcile your
position with states rights
and the constitution
with your support
of the Defense of Marriage Act?
[ Applause ]
>> See I've always been very
straightforward about this,
I just believe in traditional
marriage between man and woman.
So I think obviously a
very controversial subject
but something that I believe in
and obviously there are a lot
of others that perhaps
feel differently.
[ Inaudible Remark ]
>> Well, I would again say that
we all no matter what we are,
who we are, what the background
in this country should allow
for equal opportunity to earn
the success that we're after.
That's what this country
is about and I think that's
where we all need
to stay focused.
[ Inaudible Remark ]
>> Again, in the audience.
>> Answer the question.
>> Answer the question.
[ Simultaneous Talking ]
>> State and in some cases
localities have flexibility
in how they administer
income support
and of course development
programs, what are some examples
of programs that you
think embody the ideals
that you talked about
[inaudible]?
>> Well one of the issues
that we're confronting
right now is how to deal
with 14 million plus
people unemployed.
And in fact, there are 4 million
people in this country equal
to the size of the
population of Kentucky
that have been unemployed
for over a year.
So it's a huge issue
and how do we deal
with unemployment benefits
in that environment
by helping promote
access to a job.
Because I don't think people
really want just an unemployment
check, they want a job.
And so how do we relate some
of the federal benefit
program to getting a job?
And there are some states
out there, Georgia for one,
who has a program called
Georgia Works and there is sort
of a hybrid situation where an
individual can have some type
of apprenticeship or a position
while also receiving benefits
under unemployment
benefits program.
Again, this is exactly I think
the direction that we need
to go, the kind of flexibility
that was taken advantage
of at Georgia that perhaps we
can see on a national level.
And it's really a place
where both sides can agree.
When the president addressed
Congress a few months ago,
he actually mentioned
some progress
that we can make together on the
unemployment benefits program.
[ Applause ]
>> I'm John Chamberlin, member
of the Ford School faculty.
You spoke a few moments ago
about working in the middle
and I wonder if you could
tell us what the middle looks
like to you in terms of coping
with the cost of healthcare,
the availability of healthcare,
where do you see
how there the work
that both parties could engage
and what does the
future look like?
>> Sure. Well, I think when
you talk about the middle
in healthcare, we all start
with the notion that we care
about people's healthcare.
I mean no one wants anyone
to be sick but it happens
and we wanna try and
provide a solution to that.
So we do need to
be able to afford
as a country the social safety
net that's there for the people
who can't afford to
take care of themselves,
and that's the priority.
How we get there means we've got
to have an affordable
delivery system while
at the same time allowing
for access to most of us
who are enjoying the world's
best healthcare in the world,
in the world's best healthcare.
And I will say it today,
even though there are plenty
of problems with our system,
if you're sick anywhere
in the world and you can afford
it, you're gonna come to America
to be cured and to be treated.
[ Inaudible Remarks ]
>> You will come in fact to
Ann Arbor to come be treated.
So, we know we've gotta system
that's able to produce quality.
It's just expensive and too out
of reach for too many people.
So the middle is about
how we can control costs
and how we can get to a place
where more people can
access the program.
Unfortunately, the healthcare
bill that was passed a year
and a half, two years ago
went in the opposite direction
and the budget folks in
Washington have validated
that the Patient Protection
Act does not do anything
to curb cost.
And there are and public
option would be the worst
because what you would have is
even more government centered
care without the ability for
patients and their doctors
without patients and doctors--
[ Applause ]
>> -- to be the critical
decision makers.
You don't want, you don't
want third parties deciding
for you what best
the treatment is.
[ Simultaneous Talking ]
>> And you want patients.
You don't want insurance
companies being the primary
decider either, that's for sure.
So we can find the middle here,
we can all agree that's patients
and their doctors that should be
the important piece building a
successful healthcare.
>> My name is Phil Potter and
I'm an assistant professor
at the Ford School
of Public Policy,
and I have a foreign
policy question.
You've been a strong
supporter of the state
of Israel throughout your
career, can you tell us,
do you believe that
support for Israel is
in the U.S. strategic interest?
>> First of all, there's
no doubt in my mind
that Israel plays a huge role
in the strategic security
interest of United States.
It is our only democratic
ally in a very tough region.
And over and again, it
is demonstrated its will
to continue to stand up
and fight in the same war
that we're fighting
in this country.
You know several months ago,
we observed the 10th
year anniversary of 9/11.
I think that reminds most
of us that we are at war,
that there is an enemy
out there that seeks
to destroy everything
that we're about.
We're about freedom.
We're about human progress.
We're about rights of
minorities, rights of women.
Freedom of expression,
the freedom of the press,
transparency of the judiciary.
These are the things
that we're about.
These are the things that
Israel is about in a region
that does not share
those values.
In a region that has
players with dictators
and regimes intent on
destroying those of us
who stand for those values.
>> So from a strategic
standpoint, Israel is critical
and from a moral and
value standpoint, America
and Israel start and
end at the same place.
And as we go forward, we must
through our policies look to see
that Israel's security is
maintained and its ability
to secure its population
is inextricably linked
to the security of
the United States
and our interest in that region.
[ Applause ]
>> Another question
from the audience.
Why are you in support of
reducing or getting rid
of pell grants when they help
many middle class college
students like myself
go to college?
[ Applause ]
>> So, I think the underlying
and your direct question
allegation, I don't know,
is it accurate but
let me just say this.
The underlying issue
around with pell grants
and other programs fulfilled
is an increasing cost
of higher education
at this country.
We need to focus on that.
We need to focus on whether
that's gonna be a priority
and certainly, I think
we're talking with some
of the administration
earlier today.
The investment in
higher education has an
infinite return.
For parents who want their kids
to have the critical thinking
ability, we do anything to try
and afford the access to
that quality education.
And as budgets squeezed, there
is nowhere else perhaps for some
to turn but to raise tuition.
And across the country, this
is becoming a real problem.
And so, it's not
just pell grants,
it's much larger than that.
How do we deal with
the situation as it is
and put incentives in place
for better management,
for more efficient use of
facilities, there are any number
of issues that this university
and others deal with to try
and accomplish the goal that
I think is behind the question
which is to reduce the overall
cost to a student so that he
or she can have the benefit
of a quality education.
[ Applause ]
>> Unfortunately, we're
almost out of time.
We'll just have one
last question
for you from the audience.
>> Do you think the Occupy
Wall Street protesters have any
legitimate concerns?
If so, what are they?
[ Applause ]
>> Those involved in the Occupy
Movement are frustrated just
like many, many Americans
are frustrated right now
and why shouldn't people
be frustrated given the
ailing economy.
And what I've said before is
the ire really should be focused
toward the policies that have
been coming out of Washington
that have really provided
the platform for the lot
of the activity and results that
those are frustrated to see.
And so, with that frustration
and again, my message today is,
let's not pit one
against another.
Why is it that there is
part of the society okay
and part of it not okay?
That's not who we
are in this country.
This country is an
aspirational country.
We are built on the
hope that all
of us will reach
the American dream.
And again, it goes to the
core I think of my message
and that is we shouldn't root
for anyone to be torn down.
We should encourage, implement
policies that allow for wealth,
mobility, not just the
wealth redistribution.
It doesn't work.
We've seen that, we've
seen that in Europe,
we've seen that elsewhere
in the globe.
Simple wealth redistribution to
accomplish what we're talking
about which is to even out
the wealth distribution
doesn't work.
We want increased wealth
mobility and those--
that should be our focus.
So again, frustration, yes.
Ire and hatred towards
certain people is not something
that is constructive and I
don't think is reflective
of the majority of
American people.
Thank you very much!
[ Applause ]
[ Cheers ]
[ Inaudible Remark ]
[ Background Applause ]
>> Congressman Cantor.
[ Applause ]