1 00:00:00,28 --> 00:00:04,58 People don't believe this. Congressman Peter Welch. 2 00:00:09,41 --> 00:00:11,80 Thank you. I'll give you 3 00:00:12,18 --> 00:00:18,72 a hero. Thank you very much. You know that 4 00:00:19,69 --> 00:00:25,32 the early song was really quite beautiful the birthday song. 5 00:00:27,11 --> 00:00:33,89 Let me let me put it I think so. The second. Story you know you're. 6 00:00:35,38 --> 00:00:39,26 This at the second on your birthday sort of put it this way you sing like we 7 00:00:39,27 --> 00:00:46,27 legislate but I think. It's pretty bad I'll 8 00:00:46,28 --> 00:00:51,65 tell you. We are all right we're going to do it might check your make sure 9 00:00:51,66 --> 00:00:58,42 everything is OK I think they're good place to go. When it's W B T and the other is 10 00:00:58,43 --> 00:00:59,21 scared to take 11 00:01:00,19 --> 00:01:05,86 a. Look at now track please OK thank you well first of all it's really delightful 12 00:01:06,29 --> 00:01:09,48 to be here and Mary Morrissey and I had 13 00:01:09,49 --> 00:01:12,80 a wonderful visit at the veterans' home in what 14 00:01:12,81 --> 00:01:19,49 a magnificent is the to Sion and it's just moving to be in the presence 15 00:01:19,50 --> 00:01:23,93 of the dedicated staff who reminds me of the person talking about the teachers you 16 00:01:23,94 --> 00:01:27,97 know the the the staff who really show up for work every day with 17 00:01:27,98 --> 00:01:32,10 a bounce in their step wanting to serve these veterans and then the veterans and 18 00:01:32,11 --> 00:01:38,76 their stories for more work to Vietnam we met one man who sits in his 19 00:01:38,77 --> 00:01:45,49 wheelchair outside all the time and he actually was on the scene when they 20 00:01:45,79 --> 00:01:47,28 are soldiers first came into 21 00:01:47,29 --> 00:01:52,27 a concentration camp in Germany and you know it just reminds you. And not just of 22 00:01:52,28 --> 00:01:54,58 the service but of our history as 23 00:01:54,59 --> 00:01:58,39 a country so it was just Mary thank you for helping arrange that it was 24 00:01:58,40 --> 00:02:04,43 a very moving experience for me. That the second thing I want to say is I love your 25 00:02:04,44 --> 00:02:11,02 four way test and I really do it's just you know I've been in Congress eleven years 26 00:02:11,03 --> 00:02:17,73 now and it's been good times in good times. The good times are always 27 00:02:17,74 --> 00:02:18,45 when there's 28 00:02:18,46 --> 00:02:23,24 a consensus among the people who are there that the job is to get something done 29 00:02:23,87 --> 00:02:29,58 and getting something done is not whether it's to your advantage it's it is it will 30 00:02:29,59 --> 00:02:34,53 it's the four way test is going to be good for all and that allows you to step back 31 00:02:34,54 --> 00:02:39,40 and have some you military where it's not just about prevailing on your point of 32 00:02:39,41 --> 00:02:41,70 view it's about having 33 00:02:41,78 --> 00:02:47,02 a fundamental commitment to having at the end of the day an understanding of taken 34 00:02:47,03 --> 00:02:47,62 what is 35 00:02:47,66 --> 00:02:54,42 a step forward and we're kind of stalled in Congress now and that is really 36 00:02:54,43 --> 00:03:00,87 really. Unacceptable to the American people because our job in Congress 37 00:03:01,37 --> 00:03:06,22 in many ways is very very simple even if the issues sometimes are complex our job 38 00:03:06,26 --> 00:03:11,61 is to pass public policy that allow you back home to be successful in doing your 39 00:03:11,62 --> 00:03:16,48 work that's really what it's about and there's nobody who ever has 40 00:03:16,49 --> 00:03:18,84 a right answer you know it's 41 00:03:18,85 --> 00:03:23,28 a process that you've got to go through where I'll take health care as an example 42 00:03:23,45 --> 00:03:23,96 we passed 43 00:03:23,97 --> 00:03:29,69 a health care bill I think you can prove the status quo but it needs changes all 44 00:03:29,70 --> 00:03:34,84 right what we've been arguing about the past several years is whether to just 45 00:03:34,85 --> 00:03:40,07 repeal everything we've done rather than improve it and the big area in health care 46 00:03:40,08 --> 00:03:45,28 that needs improvement is we've got to get the cost down. And when we've just been 47 00:03:45,29 --> 00:03:49,51 locked in this debate where it's an all or nothing situation and we voted like 48 00:03:49,52 --> 00:03:54,59 sixty five times to repeal health care in then there's no replacement and we get 49 00:03:54,60 --> 00:03:58,98 back and you're seeing what's happening in Washington now we're continuing this 50 00:03:58,99 --> 00:04:00,78 debate on health care but there's not even 51 00:04:01,02 --> 00:04:07,18 a concrete alternative that's out there as to what we will replace it with you know 52 00:04:07,19 --> 00:04:12,35 that's the aspect of what's going on now that I find very alarming because in the 53 00:04:12,36 --> 00:04:13,36 leadership if you can have 54 00:04:13,37 --> 00:04:19,08 a policy you've got to have something specific. The people can react to whether 55 00:04:19,09 --> 00:04:20,57 it's in health care or there's 56 00:04:20,58 --> 00:04:24,34 a lot of interest in trying to get tax reform but you've got to give that some 57 00:04:24,35 --> 00:04:29,88 definition you know what does it really mean so that I can react to it so I can 58 00:04:29,89 --> 00:04:35,15 explain it to you so you can react to it and we're just bouncing from topic to 59 00:04:35,16 --> 00:04:38,20 topic without coming together to have 60 00:04:38,21 --> 00:04:43,13 a roll up the sleeves kind of conversation about what are the steps we can take to 61 00:04:43,14 --> 00:04:43,56 move us 62 00:04:43,57 --> 00:04:49,14 a step forward now there is some hope. You know one part of it because this is an 63 00:04:49,15 --> 00:04:54,43 example of the way I think we should be working. In the Affordable Care Act is one 64 00:04:54,44 --> 00:04:59,97 component of it that is called the individual market. So if you may be in it but 65 00:04:59,98 --> 00:05:04,38 probably most of you aren't the individual market is for about seven to nine 66 00:05:04,39 --> 00:05:09,40 percent of Americans and it's about seven to nine percent of mark of the Vermonters 67 00:05:09,67 --> 00:05:13,23 and they buy directly from an insurance company and depending on their income they 68 00:05:13,24 --> 00:05:16,90 get subsidies but it's broken. And 69 00:05:17,19 --> 00:05:20,27 a number of us on the Democratic side are will never acknowledge that 70 00:05:20,28 --> 00:05:25,43 a part of the Affordable Care Act is not working let's fix it I mean what major 71 00:05:25,98 --> 00:05:31,02 endeavor whether it's running your school or running your local business or raising 72 00:05:31,03 --> 00:05:32,89 your kids you make 73 00:05:32,90 --> 00:05:36,96 a decision but then you would just based on what's happening right if you take 74 00:05:36,97 --> 00:05:41,49 a look at it this part's work and let's do more this part needs adjustment let's 75 00:05:41,50 --> 00:05:47,96 fix it so we could address that in the Senate Senator Alexander 76 00:05:48,45 --> 00:05:48,61 who's 77 00:05:48,62 --> 00:05:53,64 a former governor and very practical person from Tennessee Republican is working 78 00:05:53,65 --> 00:05:54,67 with Senator Murray 79 00:05:54,76 --> 00:06:00,38 a Democrat from Washington and they've identified the problem they've proposed 80 00:06:00,39 --> 00:06:04,80 a concrete solution and there's forty of us in the house twenty Democrats and 81 00:06:04,81 --> 00:06:09,87 twenty Republicans who got together because we're both sides fed up with just the 82 00:06:09,88 --> 00:06:16,20 standoff right and we've advocated for the same fix to the individual market that 83 00:06:16,21 --> 00:06:21,78 we have being proposed by Senator Alexander and center Mari and then we've had 84 00:06:21,79 --> 00:06:27,22 governors bipartisan governors including our own Governor Scott signing on 85 00:06:27,23 --> 00:06:31,41 a letter some Democrats some Republicans to us in Congress saying hey look let's do 86 00:06:31,42 --> 00:06:37,77 the Alexander Murray fix you know this makes sense so that's an example of how if 87 00:06:37,78 --> 00:06:39,39 you try to work together in 88 00:06:39,40 --> 00:06:45,79 a concrete way not just talk in rhetoric and ideology but individual market what 89 00:06:45,80 --> 00:06:52,11 are the problems with it and address them concretely then you can make progress and 90 00:06:52,11 --> 00:06:57,91 . My hope is that we can ultimately be successful in making this reform it Middle 91 00:06:57,92 --> 00:06:58,33 East to 92 00:06:58,34 --> 00:07:04,84 a small part of the Affordable Care Act but in my view we've got to break the fever 93 00:07:05,24 --> 00:07:10,70 and the fever is we're just sort of shouting back and forth at each other without 94 00:07:10,71 --> 00:07:17,35 making any concrete progress to start solving problems. And we can do it but 95 00:07:17,54 --> 00:07:21,92 what I'm inspired by these days because some people ask me Peter how do you do it 96 00:07:23,03 --> 00:07:27,99 but you know Marion I served in the state house I've been in Congress eleven years 97 00:07:28,00 --> 00:07:34,12 now and it's tough it's tougher now because we're just not 98 00:07:34,69 --> 00:07:37,85 having that ability to work together that you need in 99 00:07:37,87 --> 00:07:43,71 a legislative body. And we've got to get back to it and my conviction is that we've 100 00:07:43,72 --> 00:07:44,89 got to bring more of 101 00:07:44,90 --> 00:07:49,31 a Vermont way of doing business to Washington in order to start making progress and 102 00:07:49,32 --> 00:07:50,01 I'm seeing 103 00:07:50,05 --> 00:07:54,13 a number of my Republican colleagues who share that point of view and it's this 104 00:07:54,14 --> 00:07:58,45 forty person group twenty Republicans twenty Democrats who are calling the problem 105 00:07:58,46 --> 00:08:03,52 solvers they just know that bottom line when we come home we've got to be able to 106 00:08:03,53 --> 00:08:09,34 report some progress or some substantial effort to make progress to the people that 107 00:08:09,35 --> 00:08:16,14 we work for and I work for you. So that's that's the mission that's the challenge 108 00:08:16,59 --> 00:08:22,04 but what does inspire me while we're trying to find our way in Washington is it's 109 00:08:22,05 --> 00:08:26,21 extraordinary what's happening back here at home with good people like you in this 110 00:08:26,22 --> 00:08:27,73 room what's going on 111 00:08:27,74 --> 00:08:32,45 a head start taking care of those kids what's going on at the Veterans 112 00:08:32,46 --> 00:08:37,41 Administration where people show up for work and sound like they're getting rich by 113 00:08:37,42 --> 00:08:40,36 any means but they've got a bounce in their step because they're making 114 00:08:40,37 --> 00:08:43,40 a difference in the lives of these people who made such 115 00:08:43,41 --> 00:08:49,51 a sacrifice for us where I see some of these folks I was at an event up in 116 00:08:49,52 --> 00:08:54,25 Burlington where some of our folks who are involved in the farm to school the 117 00:08:54,26 --> 00:08:59,06 school nutrition programs are just teaching kids about good nutrition and 118 00:08:59,07 --> 00:09:01,43 introducing them to 119 00:09:01,58 --> 00:09:06,63 a food that's healthy and tasty right and that's 120 00:09:06,64 --> 00:09:13,01 a challenge but they take it on and I believe that in order for us in 121 00:09:13,02 --> 00:09:18,54 Washington to start being more helpful to folks here at home the biggest challenge 122 00:09:18,55 --> 00:09:23,91 we face is recognizing on both sides that we really have to work together and I've 123 00:09:23,92 --> 00:09:28,68 always known that instinctively again I go back to my early time in the legislature 124 00:09:28,68 --> 00:09:34,29 . Here and in Montpelier but we have it we have 125 00:09:34,30 --> 00:09:38,79 a wonderful ethic here in Vermont that we've got to hang on to you know when I was 126 00:09:38,80 --> 00:09:42,89 the Senate. One of the senators I was a Democrat Phil Scott was 127 00:09:43,67 --> 00:09:47,74 a member of the Senate at that time and I played a senate president I played 128 00:09:47,75 --> 00:09:54,38 a major role in who was the chair of various committees. And we made Governor Scott 129 00:09:54,39 --> 00:09:58,01 then Senator Scott the chair of the Institutions Committee it's 130 00:09:58,02 --> 00:10:02,88 a big money committee important committee when I tell that to my colleagues in 131 00:10:02,89 --> 00:10:05,43 Washington they think I literally need to have 132 00:10:05,44 --> 00:10:10,29 a mental status exam right why would you appoint somebody from the other party and 133 00:10:10,30 --> 00:10:13,74 then they say oh you're a nice guy it has nothing to do with being 134 00:10:13,75 --> 00:10:18,08 a nice guy it has to do with getting something done you know Phil was the right 135 00:10:18,09 --> 00:10:20,64 person for that job he had 136 00:10:20,65 --> 00:10:25,97 a real seat at the table in the Republicans at that time in the minority have 137 00:10:25,98 --> 00:10:31,62 a seat at the table and work together in it so it's about getting things done it's 138 00:10:31,63 --> 00:10:32,28 not about being 139 00:10:32,70 --> 00:10:38,40 a nice person or not it's just what you need to do in order to make progress so I 140 00:10:38,41 --> 00:10:43,82 finding myself. Focusing as much in Congress right now about trying to fix the 141 00:10:43,83 --> 00:10:50,18 process trying to create some trust among people who don't see eye to eye and come 142 00:10:50,19 --> 00:10:54,64 from different parts of the country where they see it differently because unless we 143 00:10:54,65 --> 00:11:00,66 get that process to work then whatever the issue health care tax reform the 144 00:11:00,67 --> 00:11:06,02 environment we're not going to be able make progress on that. It's tough with this 145 00:11:06,03 --> 00:11:10,19 president because things change so much in terms of what that foot the daily focus 146 00:11:10,20 --> 00:11:16,05 is in that's a challenge because anybody who's running an organization works in 147 00:11:16,06 --> 00:11:17,40 a business raises 148 00:11:17,41 --> 00:11:21,42 a family you've got to have an idea what you're trying to do and then you've got to 149 00:11:21,43 --> 00:11:25,07 commit to it indeed got to sustain it day in day out you've got to have some 150 00:11:25,08 --> 00:11:30,45 constancy of purpose OK. And you also have to have the ability to be flexible 151 00:11:30,49 --> 00:11:35,24 because your best laid plans sometimes don't work out and that requires enough 152 00:11:35,25 --> 00:11:39,81 modesty enough humility really to step back and say hey this isn't working there's 153 00:11:39,82 --> 00:11:43,51 no harm in that when we're just direct about it when you're responding to reality 154 00:11:44,11 --> 00:11:49,10 but if it's just ideology in you impose that irrespective of the facts or 155 00:11:49,54 --> 00:11:56,27 ultimately that's going to lead to failure and conflict so. People ask me Do I like 156 00:11:56,28 --> 00:12:01,00 my job I do like my job it's I don't like the times are in because I think we've 157 00:12:01,01 --> 00:12:07,09 got to get our democracy functioning better and I think it's dangerous when the 158 00:12:07,10 --> 00:12:14,09 Congress. In Washington is not able to take constructive steps on these major 159 00:12:14,10 --> 00:12:17,98 policy questions that have to be addressed. So that's 160 00:12:17,99 --> 00:12:22,87 a challenge and I have to go very candidly but it's still such 161 00:12:22,88 --> 00:12:26,67 a wonderful state to represent where we've got here in this state 162 00:12:27,17 --> 00:12:32,49 a lot of folks whether they're in Rotary or not living by the four way test so 163 00:12:32,53 --> 00:12:38,10 thank you for what you do and I'm going to continue doing everything I can to try 164 00:12:38,11 --> 00:12:44,90 to restore. Some Vermont. Way of doing business to the 165 00:12:44,91 --> 00:12:47,01 United States Congress thank you. 166 00:12:53,85 --> 00:13:00,06 My time for. Going through the story. You leave. 167 00:13:01,18 --> 00:13:07,90 The city. The story you wrote. I was 168 00:13:07,91 --> 00:13:13,47 really were your. Memory. And. 169 00:13:14,85 --> 00:13:19,93 For. Your. 170 00:13:26,42 --> 00:13:32,07 Markers. Good review. 171 00:13:33,23 --> 00:13:39,52 Well. First of first I've got to acknowledge that there's a baby there's 172 00:13:39,53 --> 00:13:44,11 a legitimate basis for your concern all right there's two things in politics that 173 00:13:44,12 --> 00:13:49,88 have gotten really totally out of hand one is the money and the other is the 174 00:13:49,89 --> 00:13:54,93 gerrymandering you know these districts in Congress are designed for the benefit of 175 00:13:54,94 --> 00:14:00,65 the politicians in the parties and what you have often times are districts that are 176 00:14:00,72 --> 00:14:04,59 designed so that only somebody on the far right and the Republican side or somebody 177 00:14:04,60 --> 00:14:09,41 on the far left of the Democratic side can win and what happens there is that the 178 00:14:09,42 --> 00:14:14,40 person who's elected it's not import it's not so important me that they're liberal 179 00:14:14,41 --> 00:14:21,24 or conservative do they want to govern. And if it's an extreme person then there 180 00:14:21,25 --> 00:14:24,65 are the folks who are saying hey let's shut the government down let's default on 181 00:14:24,66 --> 00:14:28,75 our debt let's do these things that really are just very destructive So you've got 182 00:14:28,76 --> 00:14:32,00 to get up you can you can work with a Repub a conservative or 183 00:14:32,01 --> 00:14:36,21 a liberal I mean the people in this. Rotary have 184 00:14:36,22 --> 00:14:39,88 a lot of different political views but you come together when you decide as 185 00:14:39,89 --> 00:14:42,28 a group you want to accomplish something for 186 00:14:42,29 --> 00:14:45,86 a project so I think the jury mandrakes got to be changed and it could be 187 00:14:46,25 --> 00:14:50,23 a lot of states are starting to go and then we don't have this issue in Vermont but 188 00:14:50,24 --> 00:14:56,72 a lot of states are going. To have an independent commissions designed the district 189 00:14:56,73 --> 00:15:01,73 so it's it's got more integrity to it the second thing is the money Citizens United 190 00:15:01,74 --> 00:15:01,92 is been 191 00:15:01,93 --> 00:15:07,77 a real problem. Do you remember I don't know how many remember my first race was in 192 00:15:07,78 --> 00:15:12,30 two thousand and six and it was when Senator Jeffords retired so it was an open 193 00:15:12,32 --> 00:15:14,03 seat in Vermont and it's 194 00:15:14,04 --> 00:15:19,75 a big deal for both parties to try to win that seat OK It really is my opponent was 195 00:15:19,75 --> 00:15:24,55 an extraordinarily competent person and well very much respected it was Martha 196 00:15:24,56 --> 00:15:29,14 Rainville all right she was the adjutant general of our National Guard and it was 197 00:15:29,15 --> 00:15:34,01 a real jump ball as to who was going to win that race OK In fact she was I think 198 00:15:34,05 --> 00:15:36,91 had in for quite a while until the end it was 199 00:15:36,92 --> 00:15:40,80 a Democratic year and I think that helped push me over the top but what was 200 00:15:40,81 --> 00:15:45,92 significant in that race is Martha and I early on sat down had a cup of coffee had 201 00:15:45,92 --> 00:15:51,03 a discussion and we both said hey we don't want to run negative ads and we shook 202 00:15:51,05 --> 00:15:53,71 hands and neither of us in the whole race ran 203 00:15:53,71 --> 00:16:00,01 a negative ad and we in Vermont ran the only contested race for Congress in the 204 00:16:00,02 --> 00:16:01,99 entire country where there was not 205 00:16:01,99 --> 00:16:08,85 a single negative ad people like that. She kept her word I kept my word if Martha 206 00:16:08,86 --> 00:16:14,89 and I were running against each other now we couldn't enforce that agreement she 207 00:16:14,90 --> 00:16:18,56 could make certain her campaign funds didn't spend money on negative and I could do 208 00:16:18,57 --> 00:16:23,39 that but these outside forces where these billionaires are now playing 209 00:16:23,40 --> 00:16:25,53 a big role in politics and where they literally 210 00:16:25,54 --> 00:16:30,23 a political advisors and they sit around looking over the map of the House races in 211 00:16:30,24 --> 00:16:34,76 the Senate races and they say hey Vermont looks good for me I mean this might be 212 00:16:34,77 --> 00:16:38,86 a billionaire who lives in Wyoming right now has could care less about for money 213 00:16:39,35 --> 00:16:42,27 but sees that if he can she can prop up 214 00:16:42,96 --> 00:16:46,35 a candidate who's going to support their view on climate change or whatever the 215 00:16:46,36 --> 00:16:52,01 issue is so that's what's happened since Citizens United so I think that the two 216 00:16:52,02 --> 00:16:54,76 most important things to give democracy 217 00:16:55,23 --> 00:17:01,38 a boost in the Give every day people more. Strength is to have 218 00:17:01,91 --> 00:17:08,60 a nonpartisan district lines and really curtail gerrymandering and 219 00:17:08,61 --> 00:17:12,92 second overturn Citizens United but we've got to hang in there but those are those 220 00:17:12,93 --> 00:17:17,71 are the two things I would say. Yes I mean. 221 00:17:22,33 --> 00:17:29,23 Yes Yeah I can the individual market. Is where it's 222 00:17:29,24 --> 00:17:35,38 individuals are buying their policies directly from insurance companies and in 223 00:17:35,39 --> 00:17:40,54 order for those policies to be sold in the when I'm an individual the amount I have 224 00:17:40,55 --> 00:17:47,11 to pay for my premium is based on my income OK And one of the ways that if I'm 225 00:17:47,12 --> 00:17:53,11 lower income I get in affordable policy is the government makes payments to the 226 00:17:53,12 --> 00:17:59,75 insurance companies called cost sharing reductions OK. And what that means is that 227 00:18:00,44 --> 00:18:06,10 the insurance company can of basically lower my co-pays and deductibles so it makes 228 00:18:06,11 --> 00:18:12,50 my policy affordable. The president there's 229 00:18:12,51 --> 00:18:17,13 a legal case as to whether or not the way we design that requires 230 00:18:17,14 --> 00:18:22,53 a legislated for appropriation or it can be administered by the executive the 231 00:18:22,54 --> 00:18:27,08 president has taken the position that he's not going to allow these cost sharing 232 00:18:27,09 --> 00:18:33,70 reductions to continue unless the court says it's OK so I don't have 233 00:18:33,71 --> 00:18:35,82 a big problem with him doing that where I have 234 00:18:35,83 --> 00:18:39,93 a problem is that it's up to Congress could fix that and I was if there's 235 00:18:39,94 --> 00:18:44,55 a legal question there's an available answer and that is to pass 236 00:18:44,56 --> 00:18:48,72 a law that makes it clear so as you know there's 237 00:18:48,73 --> 00:18:52,56 a lot of folks in the president's among them who want to repeal or just unravel the 238 00:18:52,60 --> 00:18:56,24 the Affordable Care Act So his staff in these payments and what that is what that 239 00:18:56,24 --> 00:19:01,42 means is two things one. If the insurance companies aren't getting this that really 240 00:19:01,44 --> 00:19:06,82 benefit the individual. Then people in the low income side are going to get 241 00:19:06,83 --> 00:19:12,28 a higher premium support so it's going to cost the taxpayers more money people just 242 00:19:12,29 --> 00:19:16,84 at that cut off line and it's always works this way you know your work in some and 243 00:19:17,38 --> 00:19:20,92 you're going to lose and they're going to be priced out of being able to get any 244 00:19:20,93 --> 00:19:26,35 insurance so the Alexander Murray and the Problem Solvers approach is number one to 245 00:19:26,36 --> 00:19:31,94 guarantee that the the car sharing reductions continue. Number two to continue the 246 00:19:31,95 --> 00:19:38,15 advertising and marketing for in Rome and in the health care plan and that's 247 00:19:38,24 --> 00:19:43,34 a basic proposition of insurance the more people you have in the pool the more you 248 00:19:43,35 --> 00:19:49,27 spread the risk in the lower the cost is overall All right so those are the two 249 00:19:49,74 --> 00:19:56,21 important elements of of our plan and. By the 250 00:19:56,22 --> 00:20:01,76 Congressional Budget Office that if we did what Alexander Murray and the problem 251 00:20:01,77 --> 00:20:06,84 solvers are proposing it would actually bring the deficit down because in we keep 252 00:20:07,19 --> 00:20:09,49 the insurance roll stable so it's 253 00:20:09,50 --> 00:20:14,77 a fix to about seven to nine percent of the market but for those seven and nine 254 00:20:14,78 --> 00:20:19,37 percent it's one hundred percent of the problem so to some extent just by my answer 255 00:20:19,38 --> 00:20:22,96 you can see you're getting into the weeds and getting technical but that's our job 256 00:20:23,49 --> 00:20:29,08 you know what I mean that's that's our that's our job so that that would that would 257 00:20:29,09 --> 00:20:34,77 work and what I what I do like about working with these other my Republican 258 00:20:34,78 --> 00:20:40,16 colleagues in the Problem Solvers. Is that we're both making an acknowledgement 259 00:20:40,17 --> 00:20:45,16 that the Democrats who course were the main advocates for the Affordable Care Act 260 00:20:45,17 --> 00:20:50,14 are acknowledging that there are some things that are working that well. And my 261 00:20:50,15 --> 00:20:54,97 Republican colleagues you know who have been voting over and over to repeal it are 262 00:20:54,98 --> 00:20:59,09 acknowledging there are some good things in the Affordable Care Act Like people 263 00:20:59,10 --> 00:21:02,43 really do want to be able to get insurance whether they have 264 00:21:02,44 --> 00:21:07,35 a preexisting condition I can't tell you how many parents I've met in Vermont who 265 00:21:07,36 --> 00:21:11,93 are so relieved that their kids can stand their policy tell age twenty six you know 266 00:21:11,94 --> 00:21:15,99 they get out of high school they get out of college that interim period of getting 267 00:21:16,00 --> 00:21:20,89 jobs where oftentimes the wages aren't that great they're getting started in the 268 00:21:20,90 --> 00:21:26,03 parent has the the security to know that their kids got health care coverage and 269 00:21:26,04 --> 00:21:29,29 then the lifetime caps you know if you're so if you're unlucky and you have 270 00:21:29,30 --> 00:21:33,69 a chronic condition and it's not anything you can control you're going to continue 271 00:21:33,73 --> 00:21:38,74 incur medical expenses in the old days it would be you'd be thrown off at 272 00:21:38,75 --> 00:21:43,84 a certain point and so there are some really good things there but you know there 273 00:21:43,85 --> 00:21:50,26 are some things that need to be fixed just. For 274 00:21:50,78 --> 00:21:57,14 oh just briefly I don't know if you can comment or not I'm seventy five since I was 275 00:21:57,18 --> 00:22:03,99 twenty when I read Silent Spring I have been extended very liberal 276 00:22:04,24 --> 00:22:10,31 in my political ideas in my philosophies and things and I've never felt 277 00:22:11,07 --> 00:22:17,32 as despondent. And it's full of despair as I am writing. 278 00:22:18,44 --> 00:22:20,46 Because it's so like I'm 279 00:22:20,47 --> 00:22:27,22 a legs I don't have happiness I don't have optimism and I'm really happy 280 00:22:27,23 --> 00:22:33,69 person most people know me to be that. I'm very distressed depressed 281 00:22:34,41 --> 00:22:39,92 and sad about really about our situation in the world or situation in the country 282 00:22:39,93 --> 00:22:44,68 and I look at my friends and I know that we're all suffering from one thing or 283 00:22:44,69 --> 00:22:51,47 another and I don't see any way out of it and I mean I'm 284 00:22:51,48 --> 00:22:58,22 sorry I just don't know what we can do to get things back together both presidents 285 00:22:58,23 --> 00:23:03,04 both ex presidents are talking about what's going on I don't know what we can do 286 00:23:03,08 --> 00:23:09,79 right well I'm not going to argue with you OK because I I feel as I travel around. 287 00:23:11,19 --> 00:23:17,30 People are concerned that there's like no guardrails you know in the past it might 288 00:23:17,31 --> 00:23:20,36 be the Republican what it might be the Democrat won but you had 289 00:23:20,37 --> 00:23:24,85 a sense that they were going to operate within certain lanes of travel OK And and 290 00:23:25,64 --> 00:23:31,57 and there were and you could always count on expressions of respect for people that 291 00:23:31,58 --> 00:23:33,12 you disagree with that in fact that's 292 00:23:33,13 --> 00:23:38,00 a major responsibility that our president has or just think about the chair of 293 00:23:38,01 --> 00:23:40,70 a local select board major responsibility 294 00:23:40,71 --> 00:23:47,37 a person has is to create space for the dialogue in the debate. And that's 295 00:23:47,89 --> 00:23:52,58 so I think what you just said I hear many other really good people who've been 296 00:23:52,59 --> 00:23:58,42 involved in lives through the ups and downs of political defeats and victories. 297 00:23:59,57 --> 00:24:03,48 Local or national and they just keep moving ahead but there is some doubt as to 298 00:24:03,49 --> 00:24:08,05 whether those basic guardrails of democracy are there and I think they're under 299 00:24:08,06 --> 00:24:13,40 stress and so I want to be candid in acknowledging that it's why so much of why. 300 00:24:13,46 --> 00:24:18,05 I'm doing now in my time is trying to reach out to Republicans you know when I 301 00:24:18,06 --> 00:24:23,26 first ran for office I was talking about health care I was talking about the Iraq 302 00:24:23,27 --> 00:24:27,51 war at that time I was really talking about the environment I mean things that were 303 00:24:27,52 --> 00:24:32,93 really important to me I think really important from Honor's now the situation 304 00:24:32,94 --> 00:24:38,67 we're in we've got to make this Congress work in order to have any chance of being 305 00:24:38,68 --> 00:24:44,39 successful on progress on any of these issues so that's the big challenge now what 306 00:24:44,40 --> 00:24:51,23 I say just to motivate myself we don't decide to go with the 307 00:24:51,24 --> 00:24:55,07 times or like we decide whether we're getting 308 00:24:55,08 --> 00:25:01,07 a gauge and what those times require OK So when President Obama got elected I was 309 00:25:01,08 --> 00:25:06,29 pretty excited about that and we went down to Congress and. There was 310 00:25:06,30 --> 00:25:10,30 a lot of positive things that I thought we could do and we worked on it it's 311 00:25:10,31 --> 00:25:12,77 a bit different now and it's 312 00:25:12,78 --> 00:25:19,63 a different challenge but what motivates me is every day I get up and I have an 313 00:25:19,64 --> 00:25:25,25 opportunity uphill battle that it may be to go over to that Capitol and to vote in 314 00:25:25,26 --> 00:25:30,98 ways that I think makes sense and hope you do and also to try to create some 315 00:25:31,77 --> 00:25:32,100 movement towards 316 00:25:33,40 --> 00:25:40,30 a more productive Congress it minutely uphill and none of us ever know in 317 00:25:40,31 --> 00:25:44,99 whatever our interest whatever our activity is whether we'll be successful. You 318 00:25:45,00 --> 00:25:47,75 know you're a teacher in a school you start now with 319 00:25:47,76 --> 00:25:52,33 a fifth grade class you don't know how that's going to turn out you have some 320 00:25:52,34 --> 00:25:56,27 experience that tells you that tough as it is on the first day will probably be OK 321 00:25:56,71 --> 00:26:00,07 but you just got to plunge ahead and do it and that's what I think is true for all 322 00:26:00,08 --> 00:26:02,23 of us and what I do believe is that 323 00:26:02,24 --> 00:26:06,17 a lot of the good leadership now is coming from our local communities and our state 324 00:26:06,18 --> 00:26:10,70 communities it's local organizations it's local companies 325 00:26:11,16 --> 00:26:16,93 a lot of the progress good work on the environment now as many of our companies are 326 00:26:16,94 --> 00:26:23,77 recognizing. That they have to contribute to reducing carbon emissions and 327 00:26:23,78 --> 00:26:28,49 they also are totally into energy efficiency so whatever the politics are swirling 328 00:26:28,50 --> 00:26:29,43 around there's 329 00:26:29,44 --> 00:26:34,76 a lot of local actors and it can be us as individuals who just say what can I do 330 00:26:34,80 --> 00:26:36,20 where I am to make 331 00:26:36,21 --> 00:26:42,08 a difference and embrace that that's important to do it's why the projects you do 332 00:26:42,23 --> 00:26:45,79 you know that this is not going to save the world but it's going to make 333 00:26:45,80 --> 00:26:52,67 a better world right and that's good just keep at it we can't allow ourselves to 334 00:26:52,68 --> 00:26:59,43 be discouraged that's how I feel and I'm in the swamp right so we're 335 00:26:59,71 --> 00:27:05,48 going to follow. One of the things that I'm very happy to do is to call 336 00:27:05,82 --> 00:27:12,09 senators this is coming to your office. But what is stunning to me 337 00:27:12,91 --> 00:27:18,21 when I first started wanting to voice my opinion was going to the website for 338 00:27:18,22 --> 00:27:22,40 congressional committees and many of the congressional committees because that's 339 00:27:22,66 --> 00:27:27,14 the people who are working on the issues so you want your voice to be heard there 340 00:27:27,55 --> 00:27:28,74 and many of them have 341 00:27:28,75 --> 00:27:34,27 a contact number. But there are number of them who say right on the website if 342 00:27:34,28 --> 00:27:37,02 you're a Democrat contact this person if you're 343 00:27:37,03 --> 00:27:41,80 a Republican this person and then say that it's not helpful Yeah I agree with that 344 00:27:41,84 --> 00:27:47,19 I mean that you know if you want to make progress and persuade people you don't 345 00:27:47,20 --> 00:27:52,73 just talk to the people that agree with you so I guess you're correct in that 346 00:27:53,07 --> 00:28:00,00 generate. During the last election I voted Libertarian 347 00:28:00,88 --> 00:28:06,79 and the reason why. I said. I didn't want to vote 348 00:28:07,43 --> 00:28:12,94 against somebody already other was when vice versa and both were something positive 349 00:28:13,43 --> 00:28:19,42 and the positive thing that I can see is three party system that you are 350 00:28:19,43 --> 00:28:25,96 a laterally Democrat in the Republicans blocked an idea whenever they can. 351 00:28:27,18 --> 00:28:27,86 Why is that. 352 00:28:34,44 --> 00:28:38,61 You know. Those the access to the ballot is much more 353 00:28:38,87 --> 00:28:44,48 a state by state and you know some states it's much harder like New York state is 354 00:28:44,49 --> 00:28:50,20 very hard to get on the ballot for mine it's pretty easy OK so it is 355 00:28:50,21 --> 00:28:52,20 a state by state answered there's not 356 00:28:52,21 --> 00:28:57,79 a national Democratic Party position or ability to stop 357 00:28:57,80 --> 00:29:01,34 a third party person from running I mean look at Bernie did I mean he's an 358 00:29:01,35 --> 00:29:06,09 independent but he parked himself in the Democratic Party to run for president and 359 00:29:06,80 --> 00:29:09,66 did pretty well he did pretty well so I think that's 360 00:29:09,67 --> 00:29:16,62 a state issue and it has historic reasons and each of the states. Now what's 361 00:29:16,63 --> 00:29:19,93 happening by the way and many you know Trump is kind of 362 00:29:19,94 --> 00:29:26,25 a third party person. Well no it's I mean I'm saying is true that whole part that 363 00:29:26,26 --> 00:29:32,42 whole thing is breaking down the parties are are not particularly respected OK they 364 00:29:32,43 --> 00:29:37,74 don't have the ability to deliver like they used to and Donald Trump used to be 365 00:29:37,75 --> 00:29:43,68 a Democrat least that's what I read and it's not like he was the favorite of the 366 00:29:43,69 --> 00:29:45,21 Republican Party he was kind of 367 00:29:45,22 --> 00:29:51,23 a hostile takeover that's what most most people think so it was his his success in 368 00:29:51,24 --> 00:29:53,97 the some extent Bernie's was I think a reflection of 369 00:29:53,98 --> 00:30:00,01 a lot of discontent among the American people that things weren't working and 370 00:30:00,02 --> 00:30:04,76 obviously Donald Trump had one set of prescriptions and Bernie had quite the 371 00:30:04,77 --> 00:30:10,69 opposite I'm much more sympathetic to Bernie's prescriptions and president trumps 372 00:30:11,38 --> 00:30:16,08 but you voting Libertarian think is an expression of the frustration that 373 00:30:16,09 --> 00:30:18,56 a lot of people have with the way things are going. 374 00:30:23,48 --> 00:30:28,10 OK I think Jerry might have been addressing the fact that last in two thousand and 375 00:30:28,11 --> 00:30:32,72 sixteen the Libertarian Party was able to get on the ballot in every single state 376 00:30:32,79 --> 00:30:39,03 right however if the libertarian candidate isn't in the debates he's dead. 377 00:30:40,53 --> 00:30:45,06 That's true and of course you know the that the press sort of controls that and 378 00:30:45,07 --> 00:30:49,91 they. And I don't know what the rules are in that you have to be the way they set 379 00:30:49,92 --> 00:30:56,74 it up you have to have some reach some polling percentage so. That I don't think we 380 00:30:56,75 --> 00:31:00,85 ought to be making that accessible as much as we can I agree with that but there's 381 00:31:00,86 --> 00:31:06,41 got to be some standards so that not you don't have thirty five people standing up 382 00:31:06,96 --> 00:31:07,26 for 383 00:31:07,27 --> 00:31:13,53 a final presidential debate kind of gets window down in the primaries yes because 384 00:31:13,54 --> 00:31:19,54 I'm going to turn around and I would like to ask you you know the problem solvers 385 00:31:19,58 --> 00:31:26,40 who. Were the Senate. Congressman is that encouragement to you Do you 386 00:31:26,41 --> 00:31:31,99 feel like you know you gain momentum and get. It's Yeah I mean that's that's 387 00:31:31,100 --> 00:31:36,43 a really good question here's the answer is yes all right it really is heartening 388 00:31:36,44 --> 00:31:39,86 to me to be with a group and it's but it reminds me 389 00:31:39,87 --> 00:31:44,20 a little bit Mary of my p.o.v here because we would sit down among people you're 390 00:31:44,21 --> 00:31:48,52 with Republicans and Democrats we do it at lunch or we do it in the committee and 391 00:31:48,53 --> 00:31:50,60 we'd have a talk about a problem and we try to make 392 00:31:50,61 --> 00:31:54,52 a little bit of progress and that's the way I mean look I'm saying that like it's 393 00:31:54,53 --> 00:31:58,66 a big deal that's like what our job is right so we ought to be doing that just 394 00:31:58,67 --> 00:32:05,15 every day the problem we have right now is that in that. The the 395 00:32:05,19 --> 00:32:09,38 Republican majority in the House is operating on a on 396 00:32:09,53 --> 00:32:14,42 a self-imposed rule where they basically won't put 397 00:32:14,43 --> 00:32:18,71 a piece of legislation on the floor unless they can pass it with Republican votes 398 00:32:18,72 --> 00:32:24,95 only all right now what is what happens when that happens OK It means that as 399 00:32:24,96 --> 00:32:28,59 you're trying to get up to two hundred eighteen on a bill that's 400 00:32:28,60 --> 00:32:35,06 a number we need and there are some holdouts the holdouts and that's generally the 401 00:32:35,07 --> 00:32:41,77 most conservative wing of the Republican Party make demands. And that legislation 402 00:32:41,78 --> 00:32:47,86 moves farther and farther to the right if Paul Ryan abandon that approach 403 00:32:48,42 --> 00:32:53,17 instead of negotiating to get those last twenty or thirty votes from the most 404 00:32:53,18 --> 00:33:00,09 extreme wing of his party came to Democrats and said hey you know can we get 405 00:33:00,10 --> 00:33:05,53 this budget passed can we passed this reform on the individual health care market 406 00:33:06,10 --> 00:33:07,46 you have a whole different scene 407 00:33:08,03 --> 00:33:13,15 a totally different scene so that is got us in handcuffs there. And it's the 408 00:33:13,16 --> 00:33:15,90 biggest impediment to progress you know John Boehner who I thought was 409 00:33:15,91 --> 00:33:22,45 a good speaker several times abandoned that rule it was called the Hastert rule but 410 00:33:22,46 --> 00:33:29,41 they stopped calling it that after he went to jail you know so. But 411 00:33:29,42 --> 00:33:32,73 the point is on things that were really essential to the wellbeing of the country 412 00:33:32,74 --> 00:33:38,49 like the budget and paying our bills instead at the faulting he came to Nancy 413 00:33:38,50 --> 00:33:43,48 Pelosi all right and the Democrats in we wanted to keep the lights on in government 414 00:33:43,49 --> 00:33:49,77 we want to pay our bills and the if if Ryan would do that we can start making 415 00:33:49,78 --> 00:33:54,36 progress and the challenge for him is that many within his caucus would have been 416 00:33:54,37 --> 00:33:59,02 than him if he did it but you can't operate where it's an all or nothing by one 417 00:33:59,03 --> 00:34:02,92 party just isn't doesn't work thank you all very much thank you. 418 00:34:06,21 --> 00:34:07,64 Thank you thank you.