To the effectiveness of an organization. Humble servant leaders often discover that many of lifes challenges large and small find their rightful place in the larger context of selfless service. It is hard to sweat the small stuff when you are focused on a greater cause and a greater journey. Being a servant leader does not mean abandoning material comfort , or the pursuit of a comfortable life for your family. Servant leadership does require understanding these objectives and putting them in their proper context. Servant leaders understand that an endless pursuit of greater material gain or higher social status rarely leads in the end to personal satisfaction or fulfillment. There is a similar understanding that has long been part of monmouths mission. Quote, individual integrity, not appearance or social privilege marks the extraordinary person from the ordinary. The charge for the servant leader is to help, help others to see their own extraordinary potential and lead them in such a way that they are empowered t de its. Servant leaders understand what i call the human element. While for you all technology will grow in all processes will advance, there is still a substitute for the human element. Servant leaders understand implicitly and understand that only success can be achieved by taking advantage of the individual backgrounds of the many that you lead, and leading them in a common effort. Servant leaders pride selflessness and personal integrity and respect for inherent dignity, above all other things, and they find meaning and higher purpose in using their individual talents and their gifts to contribute to our common humanity. There is a wonderful afghan saying that goes, if you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together. If you want to go far, go together. Humbly leading and selflessly sacrificing for those you carry with you towards a greater goal. Sadly, in too much of the world today there are places where there is very little respect for humanity. As a marine of 38 years, i have seen evil up close. Al qaeda in iraq, the taliban in afghanistan, and the worst of them isil, now in the middle east. The extent of isils depravity is in stark contrast to the ideals i call on you to embrace. They are unspeakable acts, and what they espouse are a reminder that our own actions as individuals and as a society our humanity must be rooted in a set of unassailable values. In a world that is changing faster than ever before, you must decide what you stand for and anchor and discipline yourselves in a strong set of values. Some of you might be thinking if you have not adopted a value system by now, its too late but dont believe that for a second. One Month College has given you a basis in values you may not know appreciate, but im telling you you will cherish it in the years to come. As of tomorrow, this discipline will take on greater importance. He will enter a world that often seems unpredictable and at times unstable. You will find yourself buffeted and bruised by these realities. But by maintaining your personal balance, by remaining rooted in your values, by attending to your physical, intellectual, and spiritual selves, you will develop the ability to thrive and lead others. When i asked dr. Wyatt what he wanted me to talk about today he said, i will you to talk about five minutes. I want you to talk about five minutes. I was so inspired by the president , so inspired by the institution and you that i wanted to give you more. After today and as the years passed, i dont expect you will remember much of me are what i have said. Some of your cars are no doubt idling in the parking lot. Even as your memories of monmouth begin to fade, i challenge you to remember the three points i try to convey today. Be aware of your physicality and maintain your physical condition. Be masters of your profession. Be a servant leader, rooted and strong values. As you go about responding to these challenges, you will find no further than you have to look inside your own Monmouth Community for examples of how you should live and how you should act, and how you should think and act anew. Thank you for allowing me to be with you on this special occasion, on a day when your opportunities as students will sin become your obligations as graduates. On this day, when your journey as adults and citizens truly began, i congratulate you. For the graduates, i wish you the best in all your endeavors. For the college i wish for the wisdom for the leadership, faculty and staff, for the many assembled here i wish gods rich blessings for you on this wonderful day, now and always, and may god bless america. Thank you very much. [applause] certain provisions of the patriot act are set to expire tonight at midnight, including authorization for the nsas Data Collection program. The senate meets this afternoon at 4 00 eastern to resume debate on the house passed usa freedom act, which extends surveillance provisions all making changes to the nsas access to phone data. The bill was voted on in the senate last friday but fell three votes short of advancing. A bill that offered a twomonth extension of the nsas program also failed to receive the necessary 60 votes. Here is what the Senate Majority leader Mitch Mcconnell had to say last friday before the senate adjourned for its weeklong recess. Mitch mcconnell we are unable to clear any shortterm extensions. The current law expires at midnight on sunday. The senate will be back in session sunday afternoon, a week from sunday. Thank you, senator schumer. [laughter] we will be back in sunday, may the 31st, one more opportunity to act responsibly and not allow in this program to expire. This is a high threat period, and we know what is going on overseas, we know what has been tried here at home. My colleagues who would really want this lot to expire, we have got a week to discuss it. We will have one way to do it. We had better be ready next sunday afternoon to prevent the country from being in danger by the total expiration of the program we are all familiar with. Unless there is objection, i understand there is not an objection, we will pass the highway extension on a voice vote tonight and we will be back in session sunday. Would my friend yield for a question . Mitch mcconnell i yield. We would be happy to cooperate in passing that. I do say this. For those of us living in the west, we cannot get back here sunday afternoon. Its a difficult for us to get back here on a weekday before 5 00. I hope on a sunday we would not be expected the senate to come in for session. I am protecting the western part of my caucus, which is pretty big. MichMitch Mcconnell i just tried to get a shortterm extension in order not to put us in this position, but we are left with this option only, and we will work with the democratic leader about the actual time but the law expires at midnight. I doubt there are many of us who are comfortable with that, maybe a handful. We need to act responsibly here on behalf of the American People. As always, watch the senate live today when it gavels in at 4 00 p. M. Eastern on cspan2. The Brennan Center for justice recently held a symposium on intelligence oversight of that included former senator gary hart and former Vice President walter mondale. They talked about their prior work on the Church Committee which was established in 1975 to oversee intelligence operations. They also offered their views on how some of the changes they championed have played out in subsequent decades. This is an hour and 20 minutes. Good morning, everyone. My name is mike german. Im a fellow with the Brennan Center for justice and New York University law school. I welcome you to todays symposium on strengthening intelligence oversight. This year marks the 40th anniversary of the creation of the Senate Select committee to study governmental operations with respect to intelligence activities, more simply known as the Church Committee after senator french senator church. This is one of a series of activities the Brennan Center has undertaken to recognize this anniversary. We published a report called what is wrong with the pfizer court. They will be leading two panels this afternoon on judicial and executive Branch Oversight intelligence activities. We also published a report on strengthening congressional oversight, signed by 18 Search Committee staffers. They have nametags on, so feel free to talk to them throughout the day. It also contains a forward written by two Church Committee members. The senator from minnesota and thenVice President walter mondale, and senator gary hart of colorado. Finally, the Brennan Center chief counsel, rich schwartz who was chief counsel of the Church Committee has written a new book called democracy in the dark the seduction of government secrecy. The purpose of todays symposium is to examine how the intelligence reforms studented as a result of the Church Committee investigation 40 years ago have fared and how they might be improved. When the Church Committee issued its report, it warned that its recommendations for reform would be tested over time and that new National Security threats would arise that could be used to justify new departures from American Values in the rule of law. And so we have it that chaos and cointel pro and shamrock and minaret were replaced by stellar wind and x key score, by talon and the fusion centers, by black sites and enhanced interrogation techniques. Were hoping that a new generation of intelligence overseers can benefit from the wisdom generated from the Church Committee investigation and be inspired by the decades of Public Service our guests have dedicated to strengthening our democracy. Its my honor and privilege to welcome Vice President walter mondale, senator gary hart and Brennan Center counsel rich schwartz. [applause] thank you. Thanks, everyone, for being here. I thought that id like to start by kind of knocking down some of the myths, and one of them that i think was persistent during my time in the government as an fbi agent was that the Church Committee investigation took place during a period of tranquility and that in our Current Situation the threat is so high that we should put off any kind of comprehensive investigation so as not to distract those who are working to protect us from their important mission. But here are just a few of the things that were going on. The United States army had withdrawn from vietnam and the north Vietnamese Army started its final assault on saigon. The ca myrrh rouge took over in cambodia. The king of saudi arabia was assassinated. The red brigades Red Army Faction and Japanese Red Army engaged in bombings throughout europe, the middle east, ira and the volunteer force were killing dozens in Northern Ireland and britain. A twa flight was bombed from tel aviv to jfk killing 88 people. Cia station chief Richard Welch was assassinated, two fbi agents were killed at pine ridge indian reservation, a bombing of croatian nationalists at Laguardia Airport killed 11 people, and a bombing in downtown [inaudible] and so with this dynamic threat environment going on, how is it possible that the investigation began, Vice President mondale, and whiestles it necessary why was it necessary, and why did you want to be a part of it . I think you begin by looking at seymour hirshs story, got an explosive headline in the New York Times that contained the list of abuses and dysfunction in the intelligence agencies, a list made up by the agency itself that had leaked and told the nation that we were really in trouble. And if you look at these problems that youve cited, one of the reasons why we had to reform and make the agencies more responsive was in order to deal with the threats that were apparent to the security of our nation. And i would say that there was a general agreement to to that. I remember i was on the floor when john pastorly stood up and moved the creation of what is now known as the Church Committee on the grounds that this couldnt continue. Im convinced that Mike Mansfield saw right away that this had to be dealt with. So i think what we did could be explained because it helped prevent symptom of the abuse some of the abuses in the past some of the mistakes of the past that cost us dearly but also because we had to straighten this out. And only an outside committee within the control of the senate could do it. And why did you want to be on it . Wow. [laughter] well, you know, i had followed this stuff as a senator. I had been attorney general in my state. Id dealt with some of these issues. I sensed that something was really wrong without being in on the inside, and when i heard john give that speech, i went to mansfield, and i said when youre setting this committee up, would you look at me . And he said, yeah, i will, senator. Great. And, senator hart, you were a freshman senator, only three weeks on the job at that point. How did you handle this kind of and given a prominent role as well as a drafter, primary drafter of the report. How did you handle that kind of responsibility so quickly . Well, i was not only a freshman senator, it was my first month in the senate, and i had barely met the other senators by this time. The answer to your first question is, why do it now, is why hadnt we done it before . First article of the constitution requires the congress of the United States to oversee the operations of executive branch. All of them. It does not exempt National Security. And from 1947 and the passage of the National Security act, beginning of the creation of whats been called the National Security state which then incorporated this began to incorporate cia and expand very, very rapidly, there had been not only virtually, but had been no congressional oversight. So historically the question is between 1947 and 1975 why hadnt Congress Done its work . And we could spend a profitable hour discussing how most members of congress didnt want to know in fact, said senior members of the senate had sate i dont want to know. Well, thats not what the constitution says. You have to, you have to know whether you want to or not. So this was all overdue. And what did that experience teach you as a young senator about how the Government Works . [laughter] well, i still tell student audiences that im the last islist. So when idealist, so when im gone, there are no more. [laughter] and it was a hugely disillusioning experience, i would say particularly not just the surveillance that went on under particularly the previous administration, but what came to be or what we discovered as the assassination plots. And then even worse, the use by the cia of the mafia to carry out or try to carry out those plots against fidel castro. Well, this opened up so many dark currents under our government. I characterize it as a sewer under the city on a hill. And for a 37yearold firstterm, firstyear senator this was a great disillusionment. But i think what in a way the work of the committee and a willingness on a bipartisan basis to make fundamental changes in the broadlydefined intelligence sector was a triumph of democracy. And a tribute to the 11 members of that committee and probably one of the best congressional staffs thats ever been put together in the history of the republic. And, fritz, you were the chief counsel of that staff. But you didnt have any intelligence background when you were asked to do that job. How did you gain the trust of the intelligence agencies . Well, how did we, and i dont think im very important in that. But we got it by, first, being determined. That was absolutely necessary, and senator mondale had a great remark in which he said, you know, well just get extensions so they cant outlast us, and then showing the bipartisan nature of the committee, john tower said Something Like hallelujah, god bless you or Something Like that. And then also, so in addition to being determined, show that you can reliably handle secrets, because there are legitimate secrets. And i think our committee did that extraordinarily well. We had, essentially, no leaks. And we made reasonable agreements with the executive branch about keeping certain things, keeping secrets. And in contrast, the House Committee foundered and faltered and failed because they never were able to reach those refused to reach those accommodations with the government. And, Vice President mondale its always hard to keep politics out of politics, and this was an investigation by politicians. What did you do to relieve any concerns that there was going to be politicization or partisanship in the investigation . You know, i think there ought to be a separate study of how this committee worked and how it was established and how it approached its activities because we did achieve, i think, a general acceptance as a committee that was truly bipartisan and was working with everybody to bring these results about. And i would st