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will fill the seat of gabrielle giffords. and a bill that would mandate an increase in oil and gas production equal to the amount leased from the strategic petroleum reserve. you can see the house live on c- span. the senate is in at 3:00 today as lawmakers continue to work out an agreement on amendments to legislation dealing with farm subsidies and conservation programs and food stamps. current farm bill expires at the end of september. at 5:00, consideration of lewis to be a u.s. district judge in south carolina. a vote is scheduled at 5:30. you can see the senate on c-span 2. in presidential politics, president obama is at the g-20 talks in mexico where world leaders are gathering to discuss issues surrounding the european debt crisis. the president will meet with the russian president before the summit and the mexican president. republican presidential candidate mitt romney is in janesville, wisconsin, this morning on this fourth day of his bus tour through six battleground states, including new hampshire, pennsylvania, ohio, iowa, and michigan. holding a campaign rally at manufacturing plant. he will be joined by scott walker. we will have live coverage starting at 10:25 eastern on c- span. it will also be available at c- span.org. the supreme court meets for a couple more weeks. they could release their decision this month regarding the constitutionality of the nation's health-care law. shortly after the decision is announced, we will open the phone lines to get your reaction. that will be live on c-span. also, you can hear the oral arguments in the health care law from the end of march. it's available at our website, c-span.org. at an event on friday with a better ginsburg gave no hints about which way the court has decided in the deliberations over cases related to the health care law. she said those who know don't talk and those who don't know talk. she indicated many of the court's decisions over the next two weeks might be close, including an indecency ruling for the fcc and an arizona immigration law. this is about 40 minutes. >> bank. i know you are excited about what is to come. i'm excited about this packed room. -- thanks. we know the place to be on friday night in d.c. [applause] i have a fabulous job. i and other special privilege, which iif i get to introduce peter rubin, who many of us consider to be the father of acs, feeling a little sibling rivalry, because he will be the father of another child. we should congratulate peter and jennifer hunt. -- and jennifer. [applause] peter is now an eminent member of the massachusetts supreme court. he was a constitutional law and criminal justice professor at georgetown university law center. he led a group of law students, scholars, and lawyers and acs to counter the right-wing and movements. i hope that you will extend a very warm welcome to our founding father justice peter rubin. [laughter] [applause] >> i hope you will then meet in joining caroline and all the staff for everything they've done to make this such a great event. [laughter] [applause] it is not often one gets to introduce a living legend. there's no legend greater than that of our next speaker. i have a wonderful experience of serving for many years on the georgetown faculty would justice ginsburg's late marvelous husband marty and it is a special privilege for me to introduce her, both because of her personal friendship and because of he r early and longstanding support of acs. justice ginsburg spoke at our first convention right in this room. now she honors us at parkton annual convention. acs has no better friend. i know all the members and friends of acs are grateful to you. even before she took the bench, justice ginsburg would have a profound impact on the shape of american law. she was the first woman to become a tenured law professor at columbia and as director of the women's rights project of the aclu she won landmark decisions in which she represented an appellate five of the six sex discrimination cases that she argued before the court, altering the course of american constitutional law and opening the past to the recognition of the equality of women under our fundamental charter. appointed in 1980 by president jimmy carter to the united states court of appeals for the district of columbia circuit, she was elevated to her seat on the united states supreme court by president william jefferson clinton in 1993. she has served there with distinction almost two decades now. on the high court she has written significant decisions like the united states versus virginia, requiring the virginia military institute to admit women. and a case that held at impoverished individuals cannot be denied the right to appeal the termination of their parental rights. justice ginsberg has also written important decisions in cases like ledbetter versus goodyear tire. in that case, the court held that lilly ledbetter's claim of paid as commission was barred because it expired 180 days after the decision to discriminate -against her was made. the theme of this convention is democracy at stake. perhaps most significantly, justice ginsburg dissented from the court pose a decision in bush versus gore, in which the court stopped counting the ballots to determine who had won the presidential election in florida and thus the nation. she was also among the dissenters in another case by know is of real significance to all of you, citizens united vs fcc, which allows corporate independent expenditures in elections based on the conclusion that such expenditures do not give rise to corruption or the appearance of corruption. in a recent statement accompanying an order granting a stay of the montana supreme court's recent decision, in a case that presents a challenge to citizens united, the justice wrote in a sentiment that many of you will agree, that the court should "consider whether in light of the huge sums currently deployed by candidate's allegiance, citizens united should continue to hold sway." as americans, we all accept the truth of dr. king's words, that the arc of a moral universe en bends toward justice. it requires the work of human hands working together. no stronger hands of been devoted to that task than those of our next speaker. because of her, we live in a better, fairer, and more just america than we otherwise would. ladies and gentlemen, justice ruth bader ginsburg. [applause] please be seated. that was a splendid introduction. the truth is i have had more than a little bit of luck in my life to be born when i was, to be a lawyer when the women's movement came alive in the late 1960's and early 1970's. and to lend whatever skills i had as a lawyer to help that movement along. i'd think many of you know that it is now clouds season at the court -- now flood season. [laughter] all i can offer is an impressionistic view of what life has been like at the court in this 2011-2012 term. in doing that, i will borrow heavily from the annual report i made to my circuit, the second circuit, at its judicial conference last week. some years ago a former law clerk turned law professor who perhaps is in this audience tonight ranked the justices by the number of laughs they provoked at oral arguments. [laughter] he rated me, his former boss, the least funny justice to talk. [laughter] i remained in my place with only two laugh lines, a public telling that rated justice scalia first among funny justices and just as prior next and the chief a distant third with 26 laps. it may be a promising sign that the new york times picked up my best laugh line this term. it was in the case concerning an act congress passed committing u.s. citizens born in jerusalem to designate israel as the birthplace shown on their passport. the president resisted the law, urging that it intruded on constitutionally on his foreign affairs product of. foreign affairs prerogative. he argued that all it did was to give parents a choice. your argument would be stronger, the justice suggested, if u.s. citizens born in jerusalem could similarly choose to list palestine on their passport. oh, they can, council responded, if they were born before 1948. justice kagan said, left to be very old to say palestine. [laughter] i intervened on behalf of persons of age 64 and older, mindful that next year i will turn 80, god willing. not all that old, i told my young -- [applause] in the past years, lawyers and journalists have paid attention to remarks from the bench concerning our workload, which some misguided commentators think is too light. you should stay with me this weekend. [applause] [laughter] justice brighter quipped, "i am not trying to get out of work." justice scalia volunteered, "i would like to get out of the work to tell the truth." arguing often proceeds so rapidly that it is sometimes hard to get a word in edgewise. justice kagan, as the junior justice, takes great care not to step on the questions of her senior colleagues. but one time she tried to enter the fray only to be silenced by louder voices. justice byron instructed counsel, go back to justice kagan, don't forget our question. many minutes. had minutes by then -- many minutes had elapsed by then. and justice kagan says i have forgotten my question. she sees what it means to be the junior justice. the term has been very taxing. some have called it the term of the century. perhaps that explains why the funniest justice called council's argument extraordinary no fewer than 10 times. some of us think that justice scalia's extraordinary is perhaps becoming rather ordinary. [laughter] there was the decline offset by a decision issued in cases decided without full briefing or any oral argument. summary dispositions already no. 10, more than twice the number issued at this time last year. too many? i will leave that for you to judge. opinions have been released to date in 58 of 80 argued cases. one petition was dismissed post argument as improbably made. 21 cases remain to be announced before the judges scatter for the summer. the court the5-4 or 5-3 with one justice recused in nine of the 58 cases so far handed down. in comparison to that, 16% sharp disagreement record, we agree unanimously on the bottom line judgment in 26 or 42% of the already announced cases and in 20 and 26 opinions as well as judgments wre unanimo -- were unanimous. as one would expect, many of the most controversial cases remain pending. so it is likely the sharp disagreement rate will go up next weekend the week after -- next week and the week after. i will describe some of the most watched cases. united states against jones, which presented a 21st century fourth amendment question. if police attach a gps tracking device to your car and then use it to track the car's movement on public streets over several weeks, have you been searched within the amendment? the court pose unanimous answer was yes. justice scalia observed the framers would have been aghast at the thought of a constable hidden beneath a coach recording ever turn the course made. [laughter] the tracking device physical invaded private property for the purpose of obtaining information, explained. he said attachment of the device was within the the amendment. physical search was not the motive. justice a little said the long- term monitoring of the car trip on his reasonable expectation of privacy. -- justice alito. the ninth circuit was on the losing side. chief judge got to the heart of the matter, "there's something creepy and un-american about this behavior." he wrote " to those of us live lived under a totalitarian regime, there is an eerie feeling of deja vu. the meaning of the fourth amendment was again at issue in florence in burlington county. florence concerned the practice of subjecting all those arrested to strip searches before admitting them to general inmate quarters in new jersey. lawrence was arrested for fetid to pay a fine, wrongly as it turned out, because he had paid what was due. transferred from one jail to another, he was stripped searched twice. after all charges against him were dropped, he sued the jails in which the searches occurred, seeking damages. by the time his case reached the supreme court, eight courts of appeals had already held searches of persons arrested for minor offenses were not permissible absent reason to believe the person was believed to been concealing contraband. the third circuit disagreed and upheld the routine practice at the jail. justice kennedy writing for the court affirmed the third circuit's decision. the strip searches at issue struck a reasonable balance, the majority held, between inmate privacy on the one hand and prison safety and administration on the other. justice breyer dissented, joined by justices sotomayor, elena kagan, and me. a strip search, in our view, is inherently harm, humiliating, and degrading, ruining individual privacy and human dignity. if they suspected he was concealing drugs or present a security risk otherwise, it was not constitutional. a third case, fcc against fox television stations, asked indecencye fcc's policy violates the amendments. retired children of this world eagerly await the decision. [laughter] it's beyond my comprehension how the sec can claim interest section -- the fcc can claim jurisdiction over bad words spoken on foreign soil. in fox 1, we held the fcc did not violate the administrative procedure act when it argued its longstanding indecency policy to regulate the broadcast of fleeting expletives. i dissented. the court remanded the case to the second circuit to consider in the first instance the constitutionality of the fcc's newly minted fleeting expletive policy. the court of appeals did so and struck down the broadcast indecency policy in its entirety, not simply as applied to a fleeting expletives. the policy, the third circuit panel concluded, was a void for vagueness. during the argument in fox 1, speculation abounded where the council for fox television used , but he did not. counsel for abc television first reported that there had been nine seasons of nine"nypd blue" episodes that had displayed but buttocks. then he pointed to all the bare buttocks carved into the courtroom walls. [laughter] adjustor worth perhaps a thousand words. the fourth case on my list will be argued next term again. royal dutch petroleum company. it originally presented this question, can corporations be sued under tort statute? the second circuit felt that they cannot. in the case argued the same day , we argued that under a much newer and differently worded law, corporations are not amenable to lawsuits. respondent raise an alternative grounds for it. the alien tort statute should not apply at all to conduct occurring in a foreign nation was the argument. some of the justices showed a keen interest in pursuing that theory. soon after argument, we ordered the parties to a brief under what circumstances the alien tort statute provided a claim for relief for violation of the law of nations occurring outside the united states. next, a pair of cases. both presented this question, does the 6 amendment by it to effective assistance of counsel extend to the negotiation and consideration of the offers that the defense rejected or? allowed to or justice kennedy writing for the majority held that the sixth amendment right does attach. frye had been charged with driving with a revoked license. the prosecution offered a choice of two to bargains. one of them was a recommended three years suspended sentence plus 10 days in county jail. the other, 90 days to be served on a lesser charge. but his attorney did not tell him that the offers had been made by the prosecution, so both of them laughed. he later pleaded guilty without any pitch agreement and was sentenced to three years in prison. ineffective assistance of counsel causes the failure to accept a plea offer, the majority held, and further proceedings then lead to an outcome less favorable than the offer plea-bargain, a defendant may be entitled to remedy. in defense, justice scalia pointed out that many countries used american-style plea- bargain and those foreign systems and year to the admirable belief that the lot is the law and those who break it should pay the penalty provided, he said. as anyone in our founders noted that justice scalia is not to [unintelligible] next, a pair of cases, miller against alabama, and jackson, prompted by the court's 2010 opinion in graham against florida. graham held that the eighth amendment's prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment barred life without parole as a sentence for juvenile convicted of a non homicide crime. the present these questions further, does life without parole, canada imposed on a 14- year-old who is convicted of homicide? does that violate the? the amendment's and --does that violate the eighth amendment? and doesn't violate the eighth amendment when the sentence is decreed under a mandatory sentencing scheme that allows no consideration of the child's age? finally, two cases that attracted the largest headlines of the term. i will mention the case argued on the very last day of the term. arizona against the united states. in april, 2010, arizona enacted legislation titled support our law enforcement and safe neighborhoods act." its provisions are designed to discourage and deterred the unlawful entry and presence of aliens and economic activity by persons unlawfully present in the united states. arizona described its policy as attrition through enforcement. before the law took effect, the u.s. sued arizona, alleging that the federal immigration and nationality act covered the field. the district court finding that the united states would likely defeat on merit, preliminary allowed enforcement of the arizona act. the ninth circuit and the state petition for review urged that arizona law complement's and does not conflict with federal law. one indication of the importance of the case, five states attached similar legislation in bills modeled on the arizona scheme have been introduced in most other states. last, but not least, affordable health care case. no contest since the court allowed the new breeds and argument in citizens united has invited more attention. there's a line outside the supreme court that formed three days before oral argument commenced. some have described the controversy as unprecedented. they may be right if they mean the number of press conferences, paris circles, protests, counter protest going on outside the court while oral argument was under way inside. arguments consumed more than six hours spanning 3 days. remarkable in modern times. but recall that in one of the cases, homicide in the health care briefs in maryland, oral argument in 1819 went on nine days over the course of two months. the three cases challenging the constitutionality of the health care act present efforts are questions. first, does congress have the authority under article one of the constitution, either the commerce clause or the power to tax and spend for the general welfare for the individual mandate? second, if the individual mandate requires a penalty for insurance companies, if that is unconstitutional,? must in turn,? or may the mandate be chopped like a head of broccoli? [laughter] does the expansion of medicaid exceed congress oppose the spending power? fourth, the big question inviting the answer everyone is waiting for. sthe federal courts lack jurisdiction have the individual mandate? that prohibits any person from suing the federal government to get a collection of any tax. to accommodate an audience enormous larger than our courtroom will hold, we released same day audio recordings of the arguments. although our deliberations are private, that has not dissuaded the media from publishing a steady stream of rumors and accounts. my favorite among press pieces wisely observed at the supreme court "those who know don't talk and those who talk don't know." [laughter] nevertheless, rumors circulated that the opinion session on may 24 would reveal the outcome of the health-care cases. riemer followers attended the session, anticipating the announcement of the momentous decision. they got their just deserts. they learned from the only decision announced from the bench that day, section 8b of the real estate settlement procedures act does not prevent all unearned fees, it bars unearned fees split between two or more persons. [laughter] i have spoken on more than one occasion about the utility of dissenting opinions, noting in particular that they can reach audiences outside the court and propelegislative or executive change. peter mentioned a most fitting example, the dissent that i summarized on the bench in 2007 in lilly ledbetter against goodyear tire. the case involved a woman who worked as an area manager at a goodyear tire plant in. in her starting salary in 1979 was in line with the salaries of men performing similar work. but over time her pay slipped so that by the end of 1997 there was a 15% to 40% disparity between her pay and the salaries of her 15 male counterparts. she filed charges of discrimination with the eeoc and eventually adjuring resolved her title 7 rights, favorably awarding her back pay and damages. the supreme court nullified the verdict. lilly ledbetter filed her claim too late, the court held. the court said it was incumbent on her to file charges of discrimination each time goodyear fail to increase her salary commensurate with the salaries of her male peers. in annual pay decision not contested within 180 days, the court ruled, became grandfathered beyond title seven to repair. wrote fors ruling, i the dissenters, ignored real world practices, t that title seven was meant to govern. men are receiving more for the same work and she might not have known that you would likely lose such a case because the defense would say that it had nothing to do with her gender, she just did not do the job as well. a case that cannot be made when somebody has been on the job giving good performance -- getting good performance ratings 20 years it. but if you wait until your case is fully baked, then the disparity is steady and large enough to enable you to mount a winnable case, you would be late. now the ball is back in congress's court. the legislature may act to have title 7 read accurately. so the court's decision was overruled, a decision i considered entirely out of touch with the real world of work. [applause] the corp. posted first opinion of the current term did not receive. similar receive -- did not receive similar attention. the smith case. surely smith was convicted of shaking her 7-week-old grandson to adapt and was poorly represented at trial. her sentence was 18 years to life. the ninth circuit on habeas review held there was no convincing support of the states. that the infant died of shaken baby syndrome. the supreme court had promised remanded the case to the court of appeals, admonishing the ninth circuit each time. the third time around, the board of appeals struck out, the supreme court's ruling reversed the circuit pose a grant of habeas release, and told the court of appeals not to tamper with the state court conviction. justice byron and justice sotomayor join my dissenting opinion. we said the summary disposition of this case was a misuse of the court's discretion. what is now known about shaken baby syndrome cast grave doubt on the charges leveled against smith and and contradicted evidence showed that sheet presents no danger whatsoever to her family or anyone else in society. -- uncontradicted. made an application with california governor jerry brown. on april 6, governor brown commuted her sentence to time served, noting significant doubts about her guilt. [applause] it was the governor posted first grant of clemency in his current term. justice at last prevailed. don't you agree? [applause] thank you. you.yk [cheers and applause] >> we had hoped to go live to wisconsin, where presidential candidate mitt romney is making a campaign stop. he is on a five-day six date bus tour. he is being joined by congressman paul ryan of wisconsin, governor scott walker at a manufacturing company in wisconsin. janesville, wisconsin. we're having some technical issues we need to are out. we will try to get that straightened out and go to that as soon as possible on c-span. in the meantime, on the weekend, delaware state attorney general, the eldest son of vice president joe biden, spoke at a north carolina democratic party fund- raiser. he spoke about the economic progress and foreign policy successes that occurred under president obama and worry about money policies would have on seniors, veterans, and public service employees. was in the ohio national guard. >> governor, that has? a nice ring has? -- that has a nice ring to it, governor. i look forward to: you governor now and again in november. [cheers and applause] it is an honor to be back in north carolina, an honor to be hosted by your state, an honor to be sitting next to your incredibly effective and truly one of the real leaders in the u.s. senate, senator hagan, it who my dad knows well but did not have the privilege of actually serving with. i think he kind of passed in the night, they worked hard together and succeeded four years ago to make sure that senator hagan was elected. i see why. your lucky to have this senator. glad to be with you. [applause] good toman, it's also be with you. i hope you all did not think my dad was going to be here. i am beau. when the congressman was elected first in 1986, my dad came down for him in chapel hill and he brought his eldest son along to look at chapel hill at it and look at a couple other institutions i will not mention in north carolina, duke, davidson, and spent time with you and it's good to see both of you. i did not have the good sense to apply -- >> we will leave this event and bring it to you after this event with mitt romney, which we will now bring you live coverage in janesville. live in janesville, wisconsin with republican presidential candidate mitt romney on his bus tour. >> it's good to be with you. >> i don't think governor romney will wrap himself in that blanket today. it's great to be back in monterey, great to be back in janesville. for me this is the big city. i grew up in a small town, so we used to come over here on friday s pizza at they' mall. i'm honored to be here today with the man i hope is the next president, the 46 presidents of these united states. [applause] when i grew up, we were proud of our leaders, particularly those who had the experience. when you think about governor romney, he has experience and so many levels. he has the experience as a businessman, who helped to start and reform so many companies, many of which are household names. then he went a decade ago as an executive to take an olympics that was on the verge of an absolute a disaster, he turned it around and made it a source of tremendous pride. [applause] [cheers] as a governor, something i am affectionate for, because as a governor, the buck stops with you. as this case as governor, a state that had inherited a lot of dead, he turned it around and still found a way to cut taxes time and time again to get his economy going in the state. would that not be nice if we had a president who thought like that? [applause] most important, his father. he has five grown sons antidote's after 18 grandchildren, which i think is one of the most important jobs out there. we know how important it is. he has the experience we need. that is important because now more than ever, for those grandkids and our kids and grand kids in the state and across the country, we need someone to stand up and lead and to turn this country around. [applause] we know how important it is when you can make a change when it comes to leadership. think about it. the less than two years ago the 44th governor of wisconsin was still in office. at that time the state had lost more than 100,000 jobs. unemployment rate was over 9% at the peak. our state had a budget deficit of $3.6 billion, one of the biggest ever. we were in real trouble. we made a change in the state, elected a new governor. because of those changes, because of a republican governor and republican legislature, if we are able to transform things so that we have a budget surplus -- [cheers and applause] we have a budget surplus for the first time ever and a set money aside in the consecutive years for the rainy day fund. and there's been more than 41,000 new jobs created in the private sector. the unemployment rate is the lowest it has been since 2008. leadership matters. [cheers and applause] we were able to show in wisconsin that you can turn things around. we have turned things around in wisconsin. it's time to elect a leader who can turn things around for america. we need a leader who is going to put jobs first, believes in america and. we need a leader who understands that success in government is not measured by how many people are dependent on the government. we need a leader will understands that just the opposite is true. success in government is how many fewer people are dependent on government. not because we push them off but because ultimately there are more jobs in the private sector to put those people back to work. [cheers] we need a leader who believes in more freedom and more prosperity, a leader believes in america and believes that our best days are yet to come. we need a leader and that leader is governor mitt romney. let's give him a warm wisconsin walk helcome. [cheers] >> thank you. thank you. quite a welcome. i would ask you to sit down but there are no chairs. come on, guys. shall we turn on the air conditioning, too? isre's a group outside that even larger than the group in here. believe it or not. and so, let's ask them, can we hear you outside? [cheers and applause] those guys are great. what a kickoff in janesville. what an honor it is to be here. thank you so much, dan, for the blanket, just what we needed this morning. and thanks for bringing so many friends. i think president obama assumed from the beginning that wisconsin was going to be is it. but we are going to win wisconsin and we will get the white house. it has a lot to do with his record, with what has happened over the last three and a half years. people in this country are having a hard time. these are challenging times in america. and because of his failed record, his campaign is having a hard time deciding what to do about, because they would like to talk about the economy and it would like to do about his "werd, butthis time they're goh would hope to change the subject." but we will not let him do that. we will talk about the economy and jobs and getting america back to work. after he was elected, and with all the promises he made it, he went on the today show and said, if i cannot turn the economy around in three years, i will be looking at a one-term proposition. we are here to collect. up and so, for the last several months he has been putting out the idea that everything is going just fine, saying the private sector is doing fine. then 23 million americans that are out of work or stop looking for work or are underemployed began to speak up. people of lost their homes began. people who have seen the incomes in america go down as well. the median income in america is adopted% in the last of all your years, even as gas prices have doubled -- the median income in america has dropped 10% in the last four years. we are not calling to let him turn the one-term proposition into an eight-year proposition. now he tries to tell people that his policies are actually working, just that it's taking longer than we had all been promised. i can tell you that i know he is a very eloquent person and is able to describe these policies in great detail and in some respects to you that night is day and day's night, but people know better. if you have a question about that, if you wonder whether obamacare and dodd-frank and massive budget deficits and his energy policy, if you think those things might make things better, just go talk to a business person. talk to dan or business people in your community, whether they make things or sell things or distribute things. ask them have the president's policies made it easier for you to hire people and to grow? i know what they are going to say, because i saw a survey done the other day that was done by the chamber of commerce a year ago that they ask small businesses what has obamacare done? three-quarters of them said it made it less likely for them to hire people. if your priority is jobs, if you have to get rid of obamacare -- and i will. [cheers and applause] obamacare has not help create jobs. how? about -- how about dodd-frank? i met with a small business owner who says you cannot make a small business successful by shrinking your employees year after year. in these tough times he has had to cut back. but he now wants to grow the business and has found some new customers. but when you grow a business there are two ways to bill to finance it. you have to be able to have the money to have the people get paid and to build a larger facility. so you get that from profits your able to reinvest or by the bank to be alone prepare not making loans to small businesses these days because of dodd-frank and the overregulation of washington. they're making it harder for banks to make loans and to put people back to work. then you have your other sources, you could invest the profits that you get. i heard someone laughed. these small businesses, the president wants to take more their profit in taxes. most small businesses are taxed not as corporations but as individuals. they don't pay the corporate tax, they pay the individual tax rate. he wants to take that from 35% to 40%. think about what it means to an entrepreneur starting a business or trying to expand. they know that if they're lucky enough to make a profit -- and it's not easily -- then the government wants not just 35% but 40%, making it harder for you to grow. my priority is putting americans back to work. that is job one. [cheers and applause] now, the president gave a long speech last week. you may have seen it. oh, you did not see it. anyone here see the holding it? not many people. it was 53 minutes and the laid out his plans, i guess it. one of the things he said i agreed with. he said that everyone in america deserves a fair shot. and i agree. people ought to know -- [applause] if they are willing to work, they've got an education, they have the right kind of values, take personal response ability, have the blessings of family, if the people in this country ought to know they have a fair shot of being successful and fulfilling their dreams of getting a good job and providing for the family. let me ask a couple questions. do you think that when the president spends trillions of dollars more than we take in and passes those debts on to the next generation, that those kids, those people in the next generation, are they? going to get a they? -- are they going to get a fair shot? how about when he uses your tax money to guarantee loans for businesses that happen to be owned by his campaign contributors, people like solyndra and tesla? the that give you and other small entrepreneurs a fair shot? how about when the kids in washington who have scholarships to be able to go to the school of their choice, inner-city schools performing also that the kids are standing four deep in line going to charter schools, he took that away, did that gives those? kids a those? i'm convinced that if you look in the american people today, you said they're having a hard time under this president, they're not getting a fair shot. how about soldiers coming back from conflict if expecting to come back and get a job but instead they're in the unemployment line, does that give them a fair shot? how about people over this country working hard and over the last year's they have made tough choices and they are tired of being tired, yet the president keeps telling them give me four more years and i will solve this, are they getting a fair shot? if there's ever been a president who's not been able to provide to the american people a fair shot, is this president's. that is why we will replace it him with someone will go to work and get us working again. [cheers and applause] how are you going to do that? first, i am going to make that my number one job. i'm going to go into office and not push it aside to the congress and say to nancy pelosi and harry reid -- well, they will not be leaders at that point anyway. i am not going to push them over to them and say, you take care of the economy while i get? do the things i want to do like obamacare and dodd-frank and cap-and-trade. that's wrong? . and i will focus my attention on getting americans back to work. and then, there's a long list on what has to be done to make an economy strong. if they're only one button to press to put everyone to worth k with good jobs, anyone could press that, but there are many things to do to get the economy strong. number one, if i would take advantage of our energy resources. gas, coal, oil. [cheers and applause] if i have to build it myself, i will get that pipeline down here from canada to get oil. there's been an extraordinary blessing to this country. the energy resources we have, we are an energy rich nation. someone learn how to do something unusual. if we don't just drill into the earth by going vertically and tapping into a pocket of oil or gas. we built -- drill vertically and then horizontal appear then we can force the gas and o out by forcing in liquid. we have 100 years of natural gas supply and low prices for. i want to take advantage of that, because i know if we do take advantage of our energy resources, we will have manufacturers grow and others come back to america, because manufacturing uses energy. and homes use energy. i saw an article the other day in the washington post and the study that they cited said that america could be the number-one energy producing nation in the world within 10 years. i want that energy because i want those jobs here. we're going to bring employment back up in america, thanks to energy. else i'me's something going to do. that is, i'm going to get rid of this huge overhang. ask a small business why they are uncomfortable hiring new people and they will talk about one piece of legislation that gives them heartburn. they don't know what's coming. they don't know what it will do on tell it is passed. i will do something to give as a big dose of certainty. i will repeal obama care and we will get done -- that done at the beginning. [laughter] [applause] [applause] when people think about taking their life savings and investing to start a small business and perhaps some big foreign corporation wants to build a big factory here, one thing they think about is whether america will hit a greece-like wall. the path we're on now is leading us to greece. i want to make sure no one ever wonders about that and i understand the dollar will be worth something down a road and we will have a strong and stable foundation fiscally. to do that, i will finally get america on track to have a balanced budget just like your governor here. [applause] discounts. this makes a difference. this makes a difference in the lives of our citizens that are without work or underemployed. a lot of people are having hard times these days. i go back to what the president said. it's so hot in here the building is sweating. [laughter] there are people around this country having hard times. some of the folks i spoke with this morning describes the fact that they are working but working at jobs -- we talked about -- someone mentioned that their spouse has been working in our military for almost 40 years. he worked his way up and is doing well and comes back to go to work in the work force and is now only able to work in a job that requires heavy lifting, making $8.50 per hours. it is a huge reduction in compensation for their family. people are having a hard time. the unemployment numbers understate the difficulty happening in this country. i wish the president would get out and talk to people. he would understand out of touch he was when he said the private sector is doing fine. it is not and it needs help and i will get it for them. [applause] and so what i am talking about doing is getting help for the people who need it most in this country. it is also getting help for the next generation, for our kids. they deserve to know the future is bright. you deserve to know that your kids will enjoy a better future even then we have enjoyed and that will happen again in america. there's the whole cost of liberty and freedom america's strength is so essential to that. i was in great britain and number of months ago and got the chance to meet tony blair and david cameron and other leaders of great britain. one of them said to me if you're lucky enough to be elected president of united states, you have the chance to visit other countries and go to their capitals and you will undoubtedly have rehearsed all the mistakes they think america is making. as you hear that, don't forget this -- the one thing we all fear the most is a week america. american strength, military strength, economic strength, strength and our homes, american strength is the best ally the east has ever known. the world wants a strong america. [applause] i was actually in san diego on memorial day speaking about our military strength and saw a number of the veterans. i saw a number of our armed forces today, it is a navy base and marine base is there as well. i got the chance to introduce some of the veterans. one of the people i introduced was a man who was the look out on the uss tennessee on the attack at pearl harbor. he said he saw the pilot coming in and his eyes locked on the pilot of one of those aircraft coming in and dropping armaments on our ships. he was injured in the attack but went on to serve for 33 years in the u.s. navy. i had in stand and he was recognized. there are not as many world war two veterans around as there used to be. they cannot stand quite as tall and straight as they used to. the torch that have been holding for the world and for us they cannot "-- hold quite as high. it is our turn to seize that tour. it is the torch of freedom, liberty, opportunity, and hope. it is not america's torch but it is america's duty and honor to hold the torch for the world. this is a critical time for america. our ability to all the torture -- our ability to hold the torch we need good schools again. our schools are falling apart. you will be the deciding voice in wisconsin. help me win the presidency and keep america of a shining city on the help. thank you so much, you're the best, thank you. [cheers and applause] ♪ [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2012] ♪ ♪ >> mitt romney on his five best state tore a battleground states, campaigning in wisconsin and he has never stop in davenport, iowa and will wrap up his bus tour tomorrow with three stops in michigan. ♪ ♪ ♪ >> mitt romney campaigning in janesville, wisconsin and as another step in davenport, iowa. he will wrap up his bus tour tomorrow with three stops in michigan. if you missed any of this event, go to our website, c-span.org/ campaign 2012 where you will find campaign appearances from the candidates and more. now to an event with the delaware state attorney general, beau biden, the eldest son of joe biden where he talked about the economic progress that has occurred under present obama more about the impact that the mitt romney policies would have on seniors, veterans, and public service employees. [applause] >> governor -- governor, that has a nice ring to it, doesn't it governor? in my state we call the lieutenant governor, governor and i look forward to calling you governor now and calling you governor in november, governor. [applause] i see why you are going to get elected. it is an honor to be back in north carolina. it is an honor to be hosted by your state. it is an honor to sit next to your incredibly effective and truly, truly one of the real leaders of united states senate, senator hagen who my dad knows well the did not have the privilege of serving with. i think they passed in the night. they worked hard together four years ago to make sure that senator david was elected. i can see why he worked so hard. you are lucky to have this senator. it is good to be with you. [applause] it is also good to be with congressmen bryce who did not remember me. a lot of people did not remember me. i hope you did not think my dad was going to be here. i am the third. i am beau. i had to remind congressman price when he was elected in 1986, and dad came down for him in chapel hill and brought his eldest son along to look at chapel hill. and look at other institutions that i won't mention in north carolina. duke, davidson -- and it is good to see both of you. i did not have the good sense to apply to chapel hill, though. i probably would not have gotten in but is good to be with you, congressman. i am sorry that your attorney general is not here. i know he is campaigning hard to get reelected. i guess he does not have an opponent, does he? surely, one of the deans of the attorney general's in america and a good friend of mine, i have followed his lead on a number of fronts. i appreciate the party inviting me. i want to thank you, congressman miller for being mc and for your service for this country. i'm sad to see if you leave it -- leave the congress by now lowboys will continue to be heard in the state and nation. you have an advocate for many important things for the america and the middle class. it is an honor to be with you tonight. [applause] it is also an honor to be with the young democrats and all the democrats and i have been with media and democrats. rufus is a friend of mine, rufus edmondson and works with a lot of ag's. senator irvin took my dad under his wing in 1972 and called taught him a few things. it was good to be with you, rufus. he introduced me to one of the senior democrats in the room. a woman named mrs. goolidge. >> gullidge. >> 91-years old, is an honor to be with you from union county. [applause] mary starkey is in the room and moved here from delaware. i want to start by thanking you not just for inviting a book for what you did for the president of united states in 2008 and for the vice president. [applause] you elected the first democrat this state has seen in a long time. i know you will do it again in 2012. you have a lot of biden's coming through. it is not just because we have the best candidates for president and vice president but because we have the best round game i have seen in modern presidential politics. you've got field offices and the state for obama-biden and the governor all across the state in a way that is incredible. that is why this campaign will win because of the people in this room, because of what you did, the ground game you brought to this state on like that has been seen in my lifetime. you will repeat that effort here in 2012. i was in favor last month for a great event -- [applause] -- fayetteville had a shopping center registering voters, getting people to make phone calls and talking to their neighbors and knocking on doors. this campaign is a grassroots campaign for governor is as well as the president. that is why we will do so well and when the state again in november because of you. [applause] let me get right to it. i want to talk to you tonight, not surprisingly, about this election. not just as an attorney general or a veteran like many of you in this room. let me thank all the veterans. thank you for what you do and thank-you center for what you do on their behalf in the united states senate. i'm not here talking as an attorney general or a veteran. i'm here to talk to you as a parent, a father of two young kids who i will race on to tomorrow. i want to talk to you as a parent. and about the choice that north ians and all the choices you face in the fall. we have onehoice that can keep us moving forward as the governor mentioned or moving backward. ladies and gentlemen, as president obama said, this election is a make or break moment for america pause middle- class. i said and from the ibw and they made me attorney-general harry unions have made the middle class what it is. amen is right. [applause] as the president said on thursday, we need an economy that is not built for the top down but from growing the middle-class that provides letters of opportunities for folks who are not yet in the middle class. at stake is not simply a choice between two candidates and two parties but between two pats for our country. that is what the president said on thursday and i hope you all for -- all heard it. you should check at his speech on youtube. i have seen firsthand from the perch i am honored to have as the son of the vice president, the ladders of opportunity president obama and vice president died in our building -- vice president joe biden and the paths of their building. as a veteran, talks to the senator about this briefly earlier this evening. i am often asked about president obama's record as it relates to veterans. this state has sent some men to serve our country and kept our freedom around the world. i am asked about what this president has done for veterans. let me tell you, that's why i was at that great event for veterans for obama-biden. three things about this president -- he understands what it means to be commander in chief. he understands when, where, and how to deploy our forces. when, where, and how to deploy our forces -- look at what he has accomplished as a commander in chief. he has toppled a libyan leader named moammar khaddafi without shedding 1 ounce of united states blood. [applause] he has crippled al-qaeda and after 10 years of a lot of talk, we finally got osama bin laden because of this president paz leadership. [applause] second, this president of united states understands what it means to be commander-in-chief because he knows when, where, and how to redeploy. these families in north carolina knows what that means. it means when to bring our troops home and where to send them. he understands this. that is exactly what he has done. the end of the war -- he ended the war in iraq and brought our troops home. [applause] like he said he was going to do. that's what leaders do. best of your senator does bridge she went to washington and has done exactly what she said she was going to do. he began the process to hand over authority to the afghans and he knows like your senator knows that our nation needs to focus on building our own nation. third, president obama knows that his obligation does not just end with sending more is to battle or bringing them home. he understands the words of george washington and what he meant when he said," the willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war no matter how justified shall be directly proportional as to how they perceived the veterans of earlier wars were treated as and appreciated by their country." that's what george washington said then that is what this president understands. president obama understands the obligation we have to those who have served especially when they --e home into the family's and the families of those who have not come home from a decade of two wars. those fallen angels come home for my state. through dover air force base. i checked every day and i make sure i know how many fallen angels have not come through. as of today, 6407 of our best and brightest have lost their life on the battlefield. most of them came for my state. thousands of amputees -- and of a congressman here tonight, senator hagen have visited them at walter reed and here in this state. thousands more with traumatic brain injuries, tens of thousands with ptsd, posttraumatic stress disorder. this president understands what it means to take care of this generation of veterans as they come home. he has put his money where its mouth is. that is why along with senator and the congress and congressional delegation of the democratic party from 2009 to this day to day, this president has increased benefits for veterans more than any administration has in 30 years. [applause] he made veterans benefits available to half a million people who otherwise did not qualify. he enacted with the support of your delegation a tax credit to incentivize employers to hire veterans. we are returning some of the most capable people in america disabled and otherwise whether it fits within their mos or not, we have the most talented generation of folks returning home lucan fills many jobs and now have incentive is asian programs because the president and your delegation want to hire these veterans. michelle obama and my mother embarked upon a mother -- a program called joining forces to help mobilize private companies working hand-in-hand with the private sector to create 50,000 jobs but thus far with a commitment to create an additional 160,000 jobs. thanks to this president, our president, and your delegation opposed 9-eleven gi bill, veterans can get his re- education of public institutions and other benefits to cover vocational and on the job training and apprenticeship programs. it is a credible program which mr. hagen took advantage of when he can out of the navy and is better now. and ase of your wife president. when it comes to mr. romney, when it comes to mr. ron a's record to as it relates to veterans, there is no comparison. i believe campaigns are about arm -- being armed with the facts. when mr. romney was briefly governor of the commonwealth of massachusetts, and i wondered why he never ran again, i've never met a successful politician that did not run again. it makes you think, doesn't it? one of the reasons was that the polls say he is 15 points down when you're out. you don't have to clap for that. i'm going off script. his record as a veteran -- when mr. rahman became the government up -- the governor of the commonwealth of massachusetts, one of the first things he did was proposed to cut veterans' benefits to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars. but for his general assembly which is controlled by a different party, that would have happened in massachusetts. even of more concern at least to me, mitt romney supports what i call the romney-ryan budget. these folks are true about what they're saying and the cuts again -- they intend to pursue. they're telling you exactly what they will do. they will take an ax to the budget to the tune of 17% and 20%. where the axe will fall if you believe them is take out their number and the budget would cut veterans' benefits. by a $11 billion. they mean what they say, folks. these are the facts. i think most damningly, mr. romney took the case last veterans day to propose to a group of veterans that we voucherize the va and know that is code for privatized. medicare and sells security, paul ryan proposed and he made he wants to propose a voucher for a soldier or veteran returning home to fort bragg. there will be and should be a debate about what the role of government is. we will have that debate here in north carolina. we will have and as united states senate and we will have that in this national election. ladies and gentlemen, there should be no debate that it is the sacred role of the government to provide for the veterans their final breath. [applause] my grandfather had a saying --" don't tell me what your priorities are. don't tell me what your priorities are -- shamir budget, governor, and i will tell you what your priorities are. " these folks mean what they said. say. that is not the only example of the stark choice we face in november and this state and across this country. as the attorney general my state working with your incredible attorney general ray cooper, we have seen were presented with one of the central issues we face that both congressman and a governor alluded to. our president understands that the devastating impact this has had a middle-class where we literally have lost billions upon billions of daughter -- dollars in equities in our homes. true catastrophe within each of the homes that are now under water, it is estimated that one out of four american homes are under water. it is because of this man made crisis. it was born out of an industry called mortgage-backed securities. ladies and gentlemen, our president understands that. mr. rahn is simply does not get it. our president joined 49 other attorneys general republican and democrat led by your attorney general roy cooper, working for a landmark $25 billion settlement with five of the nation's largest servicing banks. it sounds like a lot of money and it is and it is a good step toward accountability and toward providing relief needed by homeowners. what was mr. romney's answer to that? he went to the epicenter of the more risks-housing -- mortgage- housing crisis in nevada. the single most impacted stay in our nation. he said let the foreclosure crisis hit rock bottom. that was his answer. that is his answer today. he simply does not get it, ladies and gentlemen. his plan to deal with the house in manufacturing prices reveals about what the future of our economy and economic recovery would look like if it were in his hands. when it comes to crime, i'm the chief prosecutor my office. a prosecutor ever been from misdemeanors two murders in my state. our president understands that we have the lowest crime rate in our nation's history because we put more police on the streets of our small, medium, and large cities and towns. it is through a program called the cops program. what 100,000 officers on the street paid for in coming out of money from the federal government. do you think things get sicker because it just happens? it is because we put police of this is on the streets of our cities. what does mr. romney think is a good area for slashing costs? police officers and firefighters. at least he is consistent. he said before a debate that he likes to fire people. he means a recess, ladies and gentlemen. on education, the issue of central importance in this state -- our president know that kids needs need strong schools and teachers to stay on and go down the right path. mr. romney has made teachers public enemy number one. my mom is a teacher. i don't take too kindly to that and you don't either whoever yelled the back of the room. none of you do. [applause] he would drastically slash spending on education as they're doing in the states. mitt romney plans to cut more jobs for police, firefighters, and teachers. he put 14,500 massachusetts teachers, cops, and librarians out of work by slashing investment in local aid, a practice he wants a repeat nationally. it always amazes me that when economic crisis hits, republicans say the first people in need to go are those we need most. the people responsible skate by. he simply does not get it. you know the consequences of cuts like and you know how much we need those jobs here and in north carolina. keep our country moving in the right direction. speaking of jobs -- let's not forget that this president has created more jobs as president of the united states in 3.5 years than george w. bush years did in 80 years. [applause] -- did in eight years. [applause] the economy was hemorrhaging 800,000 jobs per month. since the spring, this president has had 27 consecutive months of job growth. 27 consecutive months. our president has graded five times more jobs in massachusetts in his 3.5 years as president than mitt romney did in his four-years of -- as governor of that state. mitt romney's term as governor of massachusetts, he was 47 tons of creation. i can't wait to look at his record and for the american people to understand what it is about. under mr. rney, mass. falls into a 44 place in economic growth and 35 in household income. to be fair, he helped the state reached first place in one area and that is per capita debt. mr. romney, a campaign of this responsibility, let the citizens of the commonwealth of massachusetts with more debt per person in need to tell your neighbors about this. he let the citizens of the commonwealth of massachusetts with more deaths per person than the residents of any state in the nation. ladies and gentlemen, we have a choice to make in november. i note as the father of two young children whose lives will be impacted by this choice, not only with regard to was available to the generation but also the americans that will -- the america of they will inherit from us. do you know that moving ahead into the future literally cannot be powered by old technologies like fossil fuel? beingow's technologies is invented right here in north carolina as they speak. you know that medicare and sells security are less apply to our aging population so you understand the consequences of deep cuts. you know the choice between looking backward and counting the failed policies of the past that have devastated the middle- class and crashed our economy. we're continuing the process for a better and stronger america than the president has put this in. ladies and gentlemen, there are three simple yet powerful that is that have defined this presence policies in his first term. we will -- he will continue to do so when you realize sham. hard work pays off. responsibility is rewarded and everyone gets a fair shot. ladies and gentleman, that is what this president stands for. that is what the democratic party in north carolina stands for. i believe that is what united states stands for. that is why this choice is so clear and that is why i will work so hard to make sure that governor dalton becomes governor go dalton and present obama is elected to a second term. thank you, god bless you, and god bless our troops. you'll see a lot of my family in this state. i look forward to this state and coming back. [applause] >> thank you general biden. this is from the north carolina democratic party might thank you for your parents and giving us your inspiring keynote. this basket is filled with food manufactured here in north carolina and after you have finished the food, you'll still have the basket. if you want to consider applying to the university of north carolina at chapel hill or davidson -- you mentioned a third school but -- your knowledge of geography is enough to remember where you get this basket. thank you for being here. >> thank you, congressman burwell of north carolina and i love coming to the south. i get called a general when i come below the mason-dixon line. i do good about myself i know i'm not a real general the bank for calling me bad. [applause] \ >> beau biden looking at the successes of the obama administration. president is in mexico where world leaders are discussing the debt crisis. the president met with the russian president vladimir putin and mexican president jose calderon. both chambers are in this week. the house begins legislative business at 4:00 this afternoon with a number of land bills. both are scheduled today at 6:30 and tomorrow, the swearing in of rep elect run barbour. also a bill of a mandate in increase in oil and gas productions equal to the petroleum reserve. the house here is on c-span. the senate is in -- is in at 3:00 as the work on an agreement to an amendment of the rigid legislation dealing with farm programs. the current five-year farm bill expires the end of september. at 5:00, they'll turn to consideration of mary geiger lewis to be a u.s. district judge in chicago. see the senate live on c-span 2. flore republican congressman alan west is out and about today. he is at the conservative black forms are in bad economic empowerment in the black community. that is set for 1:00 p.m. eastern. also today at 1:00 p.m. eastern, the senate armed services committee ranking member john mccain will speak at the american enterprise institute and talk about the situation in syria. that is live on c-span 3. >> we are in an incredibly important era the future of software industry's and other businesses will be successful. we will need to take account of what is happening internationally. we have to find a balance that allows information. >> tonight, on the industry's next step fighting hainan pride -- online privacy and improving cyber security at 8:00 eastern. on c-span 2. >> the house natural resources subcommittee recently held a hearing to look at the epa efforts to overhaul the previous call mining project in west virginia. the agency says the profit will jeopardize the health of appalachian communities and provide -- and polluted borders. a judge overturned it said there were overstepping their authority. the obama administration is now appealing that decision. >> the committee will come to order. we will hear about present obama efforts against the mining industry. i ask unanimous consent to include any other member's opening statements in the hearing records of submitted to the clark by close of this business day. during no objection, so ordered. i also ask unanimous consent to have congressman david mckinley of west virginia's first district on the day to anticipate today's hearing. no objections? so ordered. i now recognize myself for five minutes. today, we will hear an update on the ongoing legacy that is the spruce call mine in logan county, west virginia. this saga is one of the most disappointing legacies of federal bureaucracy in american history. this is the story of how one agency, the environmental protection agency, can attempt to single-handedly decide to retroactively pull permits which destroys jobs rankles very kauai. and tries to do this with consequence \. inre's a lack of confidence permitting with the federal government. if an agency can retroactively veto issue permits, then how can any company contractor or concessionary have confidence to invest in america when there permit is not worth the paper it is printed on. fortunately, u.s. district judge amy jackson found that the epa's actions were not justified by the statues. even with such a starch projection by the courts, the obama administration is committed to war on coal and is appealing this decision. this appeal will consume tax dollars and time in our courts and for what? to destroy good, important jobs for americans? that is the goal of this administration appeal. the want to destroy jobs and expand the power of the epa to a extralegal new power to revoke permits. we certainly hear discussions about certainty and how domestic investment require certainty in order for investors to create jobs. should the administration when this case and grant the epa the power to retroactively revoke permits, it would destroy all certainty in permitting for prices crossed the united states. this would be terribly destructive for the american economy. unfortunately, this permit is not the only one the epa has withdrawn that has cost jobs and destroyed the livelihood of hard-working americans. in 2009, the epa with to the permit issued to the desert rock and is a plant on the navajo nation. that $4 billion investment would have created thousands of jobs generated plenty of revenue for the indian maize and supplied power to hundreds of thousands of homes in the west. one added bonus would have been the electrification of a broad section of the navajo nation where people currently live without electricity. that permit was withdrawn by the end today the administration pause or on call can be found throughout the country. east, west, appalachian at rocky mountains, logan county west virginia, and farmington, new mexico. americans should be deeply concerned with this trend and the minister is an ongoing effort to retroactively pull permits, destroy jobs, and hurt the economy. we will hear from folks today your interested in talking about other topics rather than the reckless disregard for law demonstrated by the epa in this instance. there will be distractions about selenium, water quality, and the general process of mining but none of that is the topic of the hearing today. today is about it reckless administration and an agency that believes it is a bubble law. as bay -- they are above the law. i will now recognize the ranking member from new jersey for five minutes. >> thank you, mr. chairman. mountaintop removal mining can be one of the most destructive practices on earth for the help of local communities, our climate, and our environment. according to the environmental protection agency, since 1992, nearly 2,000 miles of appalachian st. 7 filled with debris resulting from now on top removal mining. strange and appellations are being buried -- streams in napoli's are being buried every year. mounts up -- styreams in appalachia are being buried every year. the spurs-covered area roughly seven times the area of the national mall, to give you a sense of the scale. it would be one of the largest individual surface mines ever organized in west virginia and weighs from a mining operation woodbury more than 6.5 miles of a couple of streams that represent some of the last remaining, least disturbed high- quality stream in the region. the epa has concluded that this mine will transform these had water streams from high-quality habitat into sources of pollutants. since the bush administration approved the permits for the spurs mine in 2007 which may have been unwise van, additional peer reviews and sign to get permission has become available. according to the epa, "it reflects a growing consensus of the importance of had water streams and a growing concern about the adverse ecological effects of man top removal mining." we increasingly understand the facts, the impact, that this sort of mining has on our environment and help local communities. this morning, a scientific understanding of the impact of this mine and others like it -- i beg your pardon -- is mounting scientific understanding of the and pacs led the epa to withdraw the permit under the clean water act. the coal co., a subsidiary of arch-cole, appeal the decision. in reading the clean water act test, it seems clear that what is really a logical is the court's interpretation of the statute and the epa authority. the epa has appealed this decision and agree to an expedited schedule to resolve the appeal and remove any uncertainty that the chair refers to. the majority may claim that the effort to protect the environment and health of trinity's in appalachia from mountaintop removal might not mind are evidence of a larger attack on the coal industry but the reality is that the threat to call use right now in today's the kauai is not coming from the administration. is coming from the market. domestic natural gas production including from shale formation has caused u.s. natural gas prices to plummet. low natural gas prices are good for american consumers. they're good for american manufacturing and four other american industries such as agriculture and steel. falling natural-gas prices have, as one might expect, had an impact on our electricity makes. over the last four years, the amount of electricity produced from coal has fallen from roughly half to a little more than 1/3. meanwhile, over last five years, we have added more than 41,000 megawatts of natural gas generation. as a nation. we have ordered more than 36,000 in the ships. shift. american electric power abandon plans to ask state regulators in kentucky to approve a 30% increase in electricity rates for consumers to pay for $1 billion retrofit plans. in operation. our domestic natural gas production is an all-time high. that is a fact and that is was going on here. utilities are increasingly moving to natural gas and renewals to generate electricity. the majority continues to support a destructive, mountaintop removal mining. it is a process that produces a product that companies are not choosing at this time. it makes no sense. i yield back. >> thank you. whenever the chairman or ranking member of the full committee are here, they are invited to give a five minute statement also so we will now recognize rep hastings. >> thank you very much. thank you for your courtesy. there is no question that over the course of president obama's term in office, he and his administration have taken aim at shutting down coal production and coal-fired electricity plants across the country. these direct attacks on america's hard-working call families have threaten tens of thousands of jobs and promised to increase the cost of energy for many of america's a time when they can least afford it. while some of the administration -- well some of the demonstration against col coal mining have been slow to organize, others have been more bold and director of the obama administration's epa decision to retroactively withdraw a previously issued a permit was certainly a bold and direct assault on american coal production. a federal court ruled courtepa "exceeded its authority"under the clean water act. and that such action required " magical thinking." after such a strong rebuke from the epa reckless decision making, the obama administration is appealing the judge's ruling and once again trying to inflict economic damage on an already struggling region. there's a great opportunity for call money families desperate for job creation. it is an opportunity for more american energy production that will help support other american industries. unfortunately, this administration has tried everything to take this opportunity away from these hard working american families. this hearing was supposed to give committee members on a question that will play obama officials about the magical thinking. unfortunately, the obama administration officials that were invited to testify refused the invitation and refused to send anyone in their place. we have heard a lot about openness and transparency from this administration. it is very disappointing to see high ranking officials or any official for that matter from his administration ignored the opportunity to keep the public informed. i would like to thank the second panel that will be called for taking the time out of their busy schedules to be here today to answer questions about this important topic. i just wish the obama administration had shown the same courtesy. i would like to take a moment to express how sad and we were to hear of the passing of your hear of the passing of your
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