WEBVTT 00:01.840 --> 00:05.170 Hi everyone . Yeah , I think I got a 00:05.170 --> 00:07.281 little ahead of the two minutes , but 00:07.281 --> 00:09.640 it seems okay . Seems ok . Okay . Um 00:09.650 --> 00:11.880 One item for all of you at the top of 00:11.890 --> 00:13.890 the unemployment data released this 00:13.890 --> 00:15.890 morning show us reaching the lowest 00:15.890 --> 00:17.668 level of a new claims since the 00:17.668 --> 00:19.557 beginning of the pandemic and the 00:19.557 --> 00:21.557 moving average has been cut by more 00:21.557 --> 00:23.779 than a third since President biden took 00:23.779 --> 00:25.890 office just four months ago . We know 00:25.890 --> 00:28.057 the policies the president has enacted 00:28.057 --> 00:30.223 are making a difference . Today's four 00:30.223 --> 00:32.334 week average of 505,000 new claims is 00:32.334 --> 00:34.620 down from 752,000 . The week the 00:34.620 --> 00:37.060 American rescue plan was signed and 00:37.060 --> 00:39.227 badly needed . Economic relief started 00:39.227 --> 00:41.449 getting out of the door to families and 00:41.449 --> 00:43.393 communities around the country who 00:43.393 --> 00:45.504 doesn't love a chart . Uh so here's a 00:45.504 --> 00:45.120 little chart of the weekly unemployment 00:45.120 --> 00:47.960 claims . Just to show you all the trend 00:48.200 --> 00:50.311 these numbers can be volatile . So we 00:50.311 --> 00:52.422 caution Against reading too much into 00:52.422 --> 00:54.644 any single report . And obviously we're 00:54.644 --> 00:56.756 looking at trendlines over time , but 00:56.756 --> 00:58.756 the trend is clear . In addition to 00:58.756 --> 01:00.978 declining unemployment insurance claims 01:00.978 --> 01:03.200 over the president's first three months 01:03.200 --> 01:02.560 in office , the economy has created an 01:02.560 --> 01:05.150 average of 500,000 new jobs a month , 01:05.160 --> 01:07.700 eight times more than the average of 01:07.700 --> 01:09.867 the three months prior . And this is a 01:09.867 --> 01:11.811 direct result of President Biden's 01:11.811 --> 01:13.867 vision to build our economy from the 01:13.867 --> 01:16.033 bottom up and the middle out with that 01:16.033 --> 01:18.089 Darlene . Why don't we kick it off ? 01:18.089 --> 01:19.922 Thanks . So , on the Middle East 01:19.922 --> 01:22.033 yesterday in the White House said the 01:22.033 --> 01:24.089 President had uh spoken to the Prime 01:24.089 --> 01:25.978 Minister called for a significant 01:25.978 --> 01:28.200 escalation . The Prime minister in turn 01:28.200 --> 01:30.367 said he was going to push forward with 01:30.367 --> 01:32.589 the operation in Gaza . So the question 01:32.589 --> 01:34.311 is , where does that leave the 01:34.311 --> 01:36.589 President and the administration today ? 01:36.589 --> 01:38.644 So what does what happened yesterday 01:38.644 --> 01:40.756 say about his level of influence with 01:40.756 --> 01:42.867 the prime Minister ? Well , first let 01:42.867 --> 01:45.033 me say Darlene that our objective , as 01:45.033 --> 01:47.144 we've talked about a bit in here , is 01:47.144 --> 01:49.040 to take every step we can through 01:49.040 --> 01:51.262 diplomatic channels , through quiet and 01:51.262 --> 01:53.429 intensive diplomacy to bring an end to 01:53.429 --> 01:55.540 this conflict . Just to bring us back 01:55.540 --> 01:57.762 to a little historical reference here , 01:57.762 --> 01:59.873 which I lived through many of you did 01:59.873 --> 02:03.010 as well back in 2014 . The conflict on 02:03.010 --> 02:05.600 the ground went on for 51 days , 51 02:05.600 --> 02:07.933 days . We're at about 10 days now . Now , 02:07.933 --> 02:09.933 every day that passes and lives are 02:09.933 --> 02:12.130 lost . Palestinian lives , Israeli 02:12.130 --> 02:15.310 lives is a tragedy . But our approach 02:15.310 --> 02:17.532 here and our strategic approach here is 02:17.532 --> 02:20.000 to continue to communicate directly , 02:20.000 --> 02:23.760 stay closely uh inter interlocked with 02:23.760 --> 02:25.649 the Israelis with partners on the 02:25.649 --> 02:27.871 ground to do everything we can to bring 02:27.871 --> 02:29.982 an end to the conflict . We have seen 02:29.982 --> 02:32.038 reports of a move toward a potential 02:32.038 --> 02:34.490 ceasefire that's clearly encouraging . 02:34.500 --> 02:36.500 Obviously we can't get ahead of any 02:36.500 --> 02:38.722 agreements that may be brokered . But I 02:38.722 --> 02:40.722 would say that to go back to answer 02:40.722 --> 02:43.000 your original question there , darling . 02:43.000 --> 02:45.111 We've had uh we've now held more than 02:45.111 --> 02:47.222 80 engagements with senior leaders in 02:47.222 --> 02:49.389 Israel , the Palestinian Authority and 02:49.389 --> 02:51.611 across the region , either in person or 02:51.611 --> 02:53.722 by phone . Uh and again that our view 02:53.722 --> 02:57.500 and our approach has been to use our uh 02:57.510 --> 02:59.621 the role of the United States and the 02:59.621 --> 03:01.621 relationships with countries on the 03:01.621 --> 03:04.360 ground to conduct our efforts quietly 03:04.360 --> 03:06.416 and through diplomatic channels . Do 03:06.416 --> 03:08.638 you have anything on a call between the 03:08.638 --> 03:10.804 president today and uh L . C . C . And 03:10.804 --> 03:12.971 Egypt ? I expect we'll have a read out 03:12.971 --> 03:15.304 shortly . I can confirm they had a call . 03:15.304 --> 03:18.000 Um and just to remind you part of that 03:18.010 --> 03:19.954 engagement is a reflection of what 03:19.954 --> 03:22.121 we've been talking about a bit in this 03:22.121 --> 03:24.288 briefing room . Was the important role 03:24.288 --> 03:24.120 that a number of countries in the 03:24.120 --> 03:26.230 region can play , including the 03:26.230 --> 03:28.490 Egyptians in bringing an end to the 03:28.490 --> 03:30.490 conflict and they have an important 03:30.490 --> 03:32.490 role to play in influencing Hamas . 03:32.490 --> 03:34.657 Hence the president had a conversation 03:34.657 --> 03:36.823 with him this morning . I expect we'll 03:36.823 --> 03:38.768 have a read out shortly . Just one 03:38.768 --> 03:40.379 quickly . If I can switch to 03:40.379 --> 03:42.379 infrastructure , Senator Capito has 03:42.379 --> 03:44.601 raised the possibility of Using unspent 03:44.601 --> 03:46.046 COVID-19 money to pay for 03:46.046 --> 03:48.212 infrastructure . Is that something the 03:48.212 --> 03:49.879 White House would be open and 03:49.879 --> 03:49.540 approached the White House would be 03:49.540 --> 03:51.700 open to ? Well , again , I know 03:51.700 --> 03:53.533 there'll be a range of ideas and 03:53.533 --> 03:55.644 proposals that will come forward from 03:55.644 --> 03:57.867 senator capita , from other Republicans 03:57.867 --> 04:00.033 and other Democrats as well . Uh , the 04:00.033 --> 04:02.033 president's bottom line , as you've 04:02.033 --> 04:04.089 heard me say a few times before , is 04:04.089 --> 04:06.311 that he does not want to raise taxes on 04:06.311 --> 04:08.644 people making less than $400,000 a year . 04:08.644 --> 04:10.811 We certainly , and that scenario would 04:10.811 --> 04:12.978 need to assess whether these funds are 04:12.978 --> 04:15.089 needed and not take them away from uh 04:15.089 --> 04:17.256 fighting the pandemic that we continue 04:17.256 --> 04:19.422 to battle every day . Go ahead . Thank 04:19.422 --> 04:21.644 you . Just a couple of topics quickly . 04:21.644 --> 04:23.811 First , House republicans are claiming 04:23.811 --> 04:25.422 that they have A significant 04:25.422 --> 04:27.610 circumstantial evidence that COVID-19 04:27.620 --> 04:29.900 originated in a lab . Has the White 04:29.900 --> 04:32.067 House seen any circumstantial evidence 04:32.067 --> 04:34.260 that it did not originate in the lab ? 04:34.740 --> 04:36.907 Well , I think first , I would caution 04:36.907 --> 04:39.240 you against disproving a negative there , 04:39.240 --> 04:41.462 which is never the responsible approach 04:41.462 --> 04:43.629 in our view , when it when it comes to 04:43.629 --> 04:45.518 getting to the bottom of the root 04:45.518 --> 04:47.573 causes of a pandemic that has killed 04:47.573 --> 04:49.740 hundreds of thousands of people in the 04:49.740 --> 04:51.740 United States . I will say that our 04:51.740 --> 04:53.851 view continues to be that there needs 04:53.851 --> 04:55.684 to be an independent transparent 04:55.684 --> 04:57.629 investigation uh and that needs to 04:57.629 --> 04:59.684 happen with the cooperation and data 04:59.684 --> 05:01.851 provided from the chinese government . 05:01.851 --> 05:03.851 We don't have enough information at 05:03.851 --> 05:06.018 this point to make an assessment . And 05:06.018 --> 05:07.851 part of the reason some of these 05:07.851 --> 05:10.018 lawmakers say that is is because china 05:10.018 --> 05:12.184 is not cooperating right now . At what 05:12.184 --> 05:14.018 point would president biden call 05:14.018 --> 05:15.907 president sheet and say we've got 05:15.907 --> 05:18.090 587,000 , 883 dead americans were just 05:18.090 --> 05:20.770 trying to figure out if this happened 05:20.780 --> 05:23.530 if covid originated in one of your labs 05:23.540 --> 05:26.480 uh lettuce in . Well , I would say that 05:26.480 --> 05:28.536 we have made that call publicly many 05:28.536 --> 05:30.758 times . We have conveyed that privately 05:30.758 --> 05:32.980 and we have certainly communicated that 05:32.980 --> 05:34.924 they were not transparent from the 05:34.924 --> 05:36.924 beginning , that's not acceptable . 05:36.924 --> 05:39.091 There's an opportunity now in the next 05:39.091 --> 05:41.091 stage of this effort for them to be 05:41.091 --> 05:40.940 transparent to participate in 05:40.940 --> 05:42.996 international investigation that can 05:42.996 --> 05:45.510 bring a conclusion to the origins and 05:45.510 --> 05:47.843 provide information that we republicans , 05:47.843 --> 05:49.899 democrats , everyone in this country 05:49.899 --> 05:51.954 would love to have access to on Nord 05:51.954 --> 05:54.121 Stream . But I know that there's a lot 05:54.121 --> 05:56.288 of talk about Nord Stream and Keystone 05:56.288 --> 05:58.510 and I'm just trying to help help people 05:58.510 --> 06:00.760 understand that . Is that well ? Yes , 06:00.770 --> 06:03.550 President biden blocked the Keystone XL 06:03.550 --> 06:05.850 pipeline here because he said it would 06:05.860 --> 06:07.880 undermine us climate leadership and 06:07.890 --> 06:09.834 undercut our ability to urge other 06:09.834 --> 06:11.970 countries to take ambitious climate 06:11.980 --> 06:13.924 action . So how is he urging other 06:13.924 --> 06:16.040 countries to take ambitious climate 06:16.050 --> 06:17.828 action ? And he's letting other 06:17.828 --> 06:20.170 countries build Work stream to first 06:20.170 --> 06:22.360 were hardly letting any country or 06:22.370 --> 06:24.592 other countries build Nord Stream two . 06:24.592 --> 06:27.220 When the president took office , 95 of 06:27.220 --> 06:29.620 this pipeline was built , we've 06:29.620 --> 06:31.650 continued to convey that we believe 06:31.660 --> 06:34.990 it's a bad , a bad idea , a bad plan . 06:35.000 --> 06:37.240 And we have also put in place and taken 06:37.240 --> 06:39.351 actions over the last several days to 06:39.351 --> 06:41.573 make that clear . In large part because 06:41.573 --> 06:43.351 our view is that it's a Russian 06:43.351 --> 06:45.351 geopolitical project that threatens 06:45.351 --> 06:47.407 european energy security and that of 06:47.407 --> 06:49.629 Ukraine in the east and eastern flank , 06:49.629 --> 06:51.573 NATO allies and partners . Hence , 06:51.573 --> 06:53.629 there's a geopolitical concern about 06:53.629 --> 06:56.490 this pipeline and we've taken uh steps 06:56.490 --> 06:58.712 over the last several days to make that 06:58.712 --> 07:01.220 clear . So , a lot of concerns , and it 07:01.220 --> 07:03.440 seemed like there was the ability by 07:03.440 --> 07:05.384 the us government to sanction some 07:05.384 --> 07:07.950 officials to stop the project at like 07:07.950 --> 07:11.840 95% . But you're not doing In what way 07:11.840 --> 07:14.007 where we're going to be able to stop a 07:14.007 --> 07:16.007 project in another country that had 07:16.007 --> 07:18.950 been built 95 more difficult with the 07:18.960 --> 07:21.016 sanctions on some of these officials 07:21.016 --> 07:22.904 involved . Well , we have imposed 07:22.904 --> 07:25.071 sanctions on four Russian entities for 07:25.071 --> 07:25.020 Russian vessels that engaged in 07:25.020 --> 07:27.076 sanctionable activities . We've also 07:27.076 --> 07:28.964 imposed sanctions on nine vessels 07:28.964 --> 07:31.076 belonging to the Russian government . 07:31.076 --> 07:33.242 This is the largest number of entities 07:33.242 --> 07:35.353 listed under this act To date . So we 07:35.353 --> 07:37.520 have certainly taken significant steps 07:37.520 --> 07:39.742 and we've also made clear in public and 07:39.742 --> 07:39.530 private channels , our opposition to 07:39.530 --> 07:41.419 this plan and equipment in Israel 07:41.419 --> 07:43.474 progressives in the House and Senate 07:43.474 --> 07:45.308 are hoping to block $735 million 07:45.308 --> 07:47.960 president ever go along with that . 07:48.440 --> 07:50.607 Well , let me first say that the State 07:50.607 --> 07:52.740 Department is overseas arms sales in 07:52.740 --> 07:54.684 any confirmation of those specific 07:54.684 --> 07:56.851 details or notifications that may have 07:56.851 --> 07:59.018 gone to Congress . Uh , so I would let 07:59.018 --> 08:01.073 them speak to that specific proposal 08:01.073 --> 08:03.184 you're asking about . I will say that 08:03.184 --> 08:05.296 we've had a long abiding security and 08:05.296 --> 08:07.351 strategic relationship with Israel . 08:07.351 --> 08:09.407 That has been certainly the case for 08:09.407 --> 08:11.684 decades as a candidate , the President , 08:11.684 --> 08:13.907 I'm boasted that he was the only one in 08:13.907 --> 08:15.740 the race . Whoever brought world 08:15.740 --> 08:17.629 leaders together to solve a major 08:17.629 --> 08:19.684 problem . There's a major problem in 08:19.684 --> 08:21.629 the Middle East right now . So why 08:21.629 --> 08:23.518 aren't the leaders and the people 08:23.518 --> 08:25.462 they're benefiting from all of his 08:25.462 --> 08:27.629 foreign policy experience ? Do you not 08:27.629 --> 08:29.851 count the 80 engagements we've had with 08:29.851 --> 08:29.310 countries around the world , including 08:29.310 --> 08:31.532 the President's call with the Leader of 08:31.532 --> 08:33.780 Egypt , The four calls he's had with uh 08:33.790 --> 08:36.012 the Israeli prime Minister and the fact 08:36.012 --> 08:37.901 that there have been reports of a 08:37.901 --> 08:39.679 ceasefire , a movement toward a 08:39.679 --> 08:41.623 ceasefire . Would say , do you not 08:41.623 --> 08:44.210 count him telling Benjamin Netanyahu , 08:44.220 --> 08:46.553 who he says he is known for a long time . 08:46.553 --> 08:48.553 Uh They wanted A D . S . Or that he 08:48.553 --> 08:51.840 expected a de escalation by yesterday 08:51.870 --> 08:55.210 and Netanyahu just ignoring it . Well , 08:55.210 --> 08:57.377 first of all , I would say that we are 08:57.377 --> 08:59.377 continuing to work towards that and 08:59.377 --> 09:01.590 that we have believed that they are in 09:01.590 --> 09:03.479 a position to start winding their 09:03.479 --> 09:05.701 operations down . And certainly that is 09:05.701 --> 09:07.812 what we've been conveying and that is 09:07.812 --> 09:09.868 what we expect to happen uh in short 09:09.868 --> 09:11.979 order . So , last one , the president 09:11.979 --> 09:14.090 says that foreign policy is something 09:14.090 --> 09:16.201 he has done his entire life . Does it 09:16.201 --> 09:19.480 work ? I would say uh that if you look 09:19.480 --> 09:21.480 at the fact that the american , the 09:21.480 --> 09:23.202 global community believes that 09:23.202 --> 09:25.480 America's back has a seat at the table , 09:25.480 --> 09:27.702 that we're going to continue to lead in 09:27.702 --> 09:29.813 the efforts to get the climate crisis 09:29.813 --> 09:31.980 under control , to lead in the efforts 09:31.980 --> 09:31.890 in engagement around the world . 09:31.900 --> 09:34.122 Certainly bringing about an end to this 09:34.122 --> 09:36.020 conflict , but also moving toward 09:36.020 --> 09:38.440 diplomacy in as it relates to North 09:38.440 --> 09:40.720 Korea . And moving toward a place where 09:40.730 --> 09:42.920 the United States is return to the 09:42.920 --> 09:45.253 place of being a leader in global forum . 09:45.253 --> 09:47.420 As we hope to be at NATO , I would say 09:47.420 --> 09:49.830 we're certainly working on changing the 09:49.830 --> 09:52.108 tide of the last four years . Go ahead . 09:52.108 --> 09:53.997 There are decidedly mixed signals 09:53.997 --> 09:55.997 coming out of both the Iranians and 09:55.997 --> 09:58.108 Europeans on the chances of a nuclear 09:58.108 --> 10:00.274 deal being struck . Can you tell us he 10:00.274 --> 10:02.552 was right . Oh , I don't know if I can , 10:02.552 --> 10:04.663 I don't know if I'm gonna take assess 10:04.663 --> 10:06.497 in that exact term in that exact 10:06.497 --> 10:08.608 phrasing , but I will tell you this . 10:08.608 --> 10:11.520 Um , we remain engaged uh , as a party 10:11.520 --> 10:13.576 in these discussions . Obviously our 10:13.576 --> 10:15.409 discussions , as you know , from 10:15.409 --> 10:17.520 following this , our through indirect 10:17.520 --> 10:19.353 talks through the Europeans . We 10:19.353 --> 10:21.576 continue to believe that our efforts as 10:21.576 --> 10:23.780 it relates to bringing an end or 10:23.780 --> 10:25.613 preventing Iran from acquiring a 10:25.613 --> 10:27.724 nuclear weapon need to happen through 10:27.724 --> 10:29.669 diplomatic channels . Uh and those 10:29.669 --> 10:31.836 talks and engagements are continuing . 10:31.836 --> 10:33.669 We always know from having lived 10:33.669 --> 10:35.669 through these negotiations before . 10:35.669 --> 10:37.836 There will be bumpy roads . There will 10:37.836 --> 10:37.290 be different assessments , but we're 10:37.290 --> 10:40.620 continuing to work towards progress on 10:40.620 --> 10:42.731 South Korea . The president's seeking 10:42.731 --> 10:44.898 to tap into the U . S . Vaccine supply 10:44.898 --> 10:47.200 as part of his visit . How does the 10:47.200 --> 10:49.256 White House to use such request from 10:49.256 --> 10:51.367 advanced economies like South Korea ? 10:51.367 --> 10:55.030 Is there a higher bar ? Um Can you give 10:55.030 --> 10:57.308 us some some color on the on the phone ? 10:57.308 --> 10:59.540 All those requests . You mean just for 10:59.540 --> 11:01.318 clarification ? So you mean the 11:01.318 --> 11:03.484 president of South Korea is looking to 11:03.484 --> 11:06.260 tap into our vaccine supply ? Uh you 11:06.260 --> 11:08.427 know , I certainly we certainly expect 11:08.427 --> 11:11.020 that the leaders will discuss ways the 11:11.020 --> 11:14.040 United States can support the South 11:14.040 --> 11:16.040 Koreans . South South support South 11:16.040 --> 11:18.207 Korea in its fight against covid 19 as 11:18.207 --> 11:20.207 well as how we can work together to 11:20.207 --> 11:22.373 combat the pandemic around the world . 11:22.373 --> 11:24.484 And certainly they will raise a range 11:24.484 --> 11:24.310 of issues . I know they have noted that 11:24.310 --> 11:26.532 this is one that they intend to raise , 11:26.532 --> 11:28.532 which is hence why you're asking me 11:28.532 --> 11:30.366 about it . I will say that as it 11:30.366 --> 11:32.310 relates to the vaccine supply that 11:32.310 --> 11:32.250 we've announced , we're going to be 11:32.250 --> 11:34.361 sharing with the world . We will look 11:34.361 --> 11:36.306 at that and we will make decisions 11:36.306 --> 11:38.306 which are still ongoing uh , with a 11:38.306 --> 11:40.528 couple of criteria in mind how to do it 11:40.528 --> 11:42.694 equitably how to ensure we're reaching 11:42.694 --> 11:44.806 parts of the world that need help the 11:44.806 --> 11:46.806 most , how to do it in a way that's 11:46.806 --> 11:48.972 fair uh , and has a regional balance . 11:48.972 --> 11:51.750 So I don't expect that assessment to be 11:51.750 --> 11:53.690 made in advance of tomorrow . But 11:53.690 --> 11:55.912 certainly we welcome the opportunity to 11:55.912 --> 11:57.801 discuss with them how we can work 11:57.801 --> 12:00.134 together to address the global pandemic . 12:00.134 --> 12:02.357 One more question in South Korea , John 12:02.357 --> 12:04.468 Kerry and others have called on South 12:04.468 --> 12:06.579 Korea to double its 2030 targets were 12:06.579 --> 12:08.634 carbon cutting emissions , saying it 12:08.634 --> 12:10.690 won't go far enough to meet the 2050 12:10.690 --> 12:12.801 goals . Should we expect any movement 12:12.801 --> 12:14.968 on that ? Should we expect South Korea 12:14.968 --> 12:17.190 to come a little bit higher on those 23 12:17.190 --> 12:19.190 2030 goals as part of these talks ? 12:19.190 --> 12:21.357 Well , we are working with South Korea 12:21.357 --> 12:23.134 in areas of mutual interest and 12:23.134 --> 12:25.357 certainly climate ambition , addressing 12:25.357 --> 12:25.300 the climate crisis that's facing the 12:25.300 --> 12:27.133 global community as part of that 12:27.133 --> 12:29.078 sectoral decarbonization and clean 12:29.078 --> 12:31.189 energy deployment we expect will be a 12:31.189 --> 12:33.530 part of the discussion . Uh and uh , we 12:33.530 --> 12:35.363 are looking forward to enhancing 12:35.363 --> 12:37.363 technical exchanges on economy wide 12:37.363 --> 12:39.970 decarbonization aligned with the global 12:39.970 --> 12:42.192 goal to achieve net zero greenhouse gas 12:42.192 --> 12:44.359 emissions . So I certainly expect that 12:44.359 --> 12:46.581 addressing the climate crisis , what we 12:46.581 --> 12:48.692 can do mutually , what steps they can 12:48.692 --> 12:50.803 take , perhaps what steps we can take 12:50.803 --> 12:50.640 will be part of the discussions . But 12:50.640 --> 12:52.862 in terms of what the outcome of it will 12:52.862 --> 12:55.029 be tomorrow , I'm not in a position to 12:55.029 --> 12:57.084 get ahead of that . Go ahead . Thank 12:57.084 --> 12:59.140 you , Jen , understanding that there 12:59.140 --> 13:01.084 have been more than 60 phone calls 13:01.084 --> 13:03.307 between 80 minister , okay , 80 between 13:03.307 --> 13:05.640 the administration and regional leaders . 13:05.640 --> 13:07.862 Why is the president and vice president 13:07.862 --> 13:09.807 now reaching out to their regional 13:09.807 --> 13:11.751 counterparts beyond Prime Minister 13:11.751 --> 13:13.696 Netanyahu and Abbas ? Why not make 13:13.696 --> 13:15.862 those some of the first phone ? Well , 13:15.862 --> 13:18.084 the president spoke with Prime Minister 13:18.084 --> 13:20.084 Abbas , just he spoke with him last 13:20.084 --> 13:22.307 week already . These conversations , in 13:22.307 --> 13:24.418 addition to them . Well , I would say 13:24.418 --> 13:26.529 kristen that these conversations have 13:26.529 --> 13:28.751 been happening at a very high level the 13:28.751 --> 13:30.862 Secretary of state , other high level 13:30.862 --> 13:30.160 members of the administration , our 13:30.160 --> 13:32.327 national security adviser . We've read 13:32.327 --> 13:34.327 out many of these calls , not every 13:34.327 --> 13:36.549 single one , but we've read out many of 13:36.549 --> 13:38.604 them as well . And we have felt that 13:38.604 --> 13:40.771 those conversations are constructive , 13:40.771 --> 13:43.610 that they have been helpful partners 13:43.610 --> 13:45.721 and working to bring an end to get to 13:45.721 --> 13:47.721 the point we're at now where we are 13:47.721 --> 13:49.943 working to unwind . We were encouraging 13:49.943 --> 13:51.777 the unwinding and the end of the 13:51.777 --> 13:53.943 conflict on the ground . And there are 13:53.943 --> 13:53.880 moments when it's the right moment for 13:53.880 --> 13:55.991 the president to have a call directly 13:55.991 --> 13:58.158 with a global leader himself . This is 13:58.158 --> 13:58.080 one of the residents . Could the 13:58.090 --> 14:00.800 president have tried to move forward 14:00.800 --> 14:02.940 with this ceasefire earlier if he had 14:02.940 --> 14:05.620 started reaching out to El Sisi and his 14:05.620 --> 14:07.787 other partners in the region . Several 14:07.787 --> 14:10.250 days ago , we have been very closely 14:10.260 --> 14:12.300 aligned and touch and working in 14:12.300 --> 14:14.189 lockstep with our partners in the 14:14.189 --> 14:16.200 region that is not required , but 14:16.200 --> 14:18.367 Kristin , the way diplomacy works that 14:18.367 --> 14:20.478 does not always require a call from a 14:20.478 --> 14:22.700 global leader . We have been working in 14:22.700 --> 14:24.700 lockstep with them , that's still a 14:24.700 --> 14:26.867 very high level to bring an end to the 14:26.867 --> 14:29.089 violence , bring an end to the conflict 14:29.089 --> 14:31.311 on the ground . And they share a desire 14:31.311 --> 14:30.930 to do exactly that . And there's no 14:30.930 --> 14:33.700 question that their relationship uh 14:33.710 --> 14:36.500 ability to engage with Hamas ensures 14:36.500 --> 14:38.667 that they can play a very powerful and 14:38.667 --> 14:40.889 impactful role in this regard . But the 14:40.889 --> 14:43.111 reason , let me just say one more , one 14:43.111 --> 14:45.222 more point . The reason that we're at 14:45.222 --> 14:47.389 this point in terms of the evolving uh 14:47.389 --> 14:49.410 conversations and statements and 14:49.420 --> 14:51.253 readouts that we have put out is 14:51.253 --> 14:53.476 because the situation on the ground has 14:53.476 --> 14:55.531 also evolved and that those readouts 14:55.531 --> 14:57.531 reflect that to be very clear about 14:57.540 --> 14:59.330 where things stand . Is it the 14:59.330 --> 15:01.330 administration's understanding that 15:01.330 --> 15:03.108 both sides have now agreed to a 15:03.108 --> 15:05.470 ceasefire at this point ? We have seen 15:05.470 --> 15:07.960 reports of a potential ceasefire , 15:07.960 --> 15:10.182 which we certainly see as encouraging , 15:10.182 --> 15:12.182 but we are not in a position to get 15:12.182 --> 15:14.280 ahead of any agreements that may be 15:14.280 --> 15:17.790 brokered . No , no . But we have 15:17.790 --> 15:20.012 certainly seen those reports that those 15:20.012 --> 15:22.234 are encouraging . That's certainly what 15:22.234 --> 15:24.290 we're encouraging and we are what we 15:24.290 --> 15:26.457 are working toward . Ask you about the 15:26.457 --> 15:28.790 commission to investigate what happened , 15:28.790 --> 15:30.901 january 6th ? Obviously , Bill passed 15:30.901 --> 15:33.012 through the House , it is facing very 15:33.012 --> 15:34.957 steep odds in the Senate and House 15:34.957 --> 15:37.179 Speaker Nancy . Pelosi has said that if 15:37.179 --> 15:39.401 necessary , she would be open to moving 15:39.401 --> 15:41.457 forward with a commission that would 15:41.457 --> 15:43.512 only have the support of democrats , 15:43.512 --> 15:45.734 with the White House support that , and 15:45.734 --> 15:47.790 have any concerns that the optics of 15:47.790 --> 15:49.734 that would ultimately undercut any 15:49.734 --> 15:51.734 findings ? Well , we're not at that 15:51.734 --> 15:53.790 point yet , and we've certainly seen 15:53.790 --> 15:55.846 the speaker's comments . What I will 15:55.846 --> 15:57.957 say since you gave me the opportunity 15:57.957 --> 16:00.012 is that the attack on the capital in 16:00.012 --> 16:01.846 January six was an unprecedented 16:01.846 --> 16:03.901 assault on our democracy demands . A 16:03.901 --> 16:06.123 full and independent investigation into 16:06.123 --> 16:08.346 what happened . This is not a political 16:08.346 --> 16:07.890 issue in the president's view , this is 16:07.890 --> 16:09.730 a question of how we secure our 16:09.730 --> 16:11.952 democracy and the rule of law . So it's 16:11.952 --> 16:13.952 incredibly disappointing to see how 16:13.952 --> 16:16.008 many , how many representatives have 16:16.008 --> 16:18.008 opted to turn this into a political 16:18.008 --> 16:20.230 issue instead of doing what's right for 16:20.230 --> 16:22.397 our country and our constitution , and 16:22.397 --> 16:21.740 they still have the opportunity to do 16:21.740 --> 16:24.310 the right thing . Would you be open to 16:24.310 --> 16:27.170 the possibility of a commission ? There 16:27.170 --> 16:29.337 hasn't been a vote in the Senate yet ? 16:29.337 --> 16:31.448 Obviously , our hope is that senate , 16:31.448 --> 16:33.503 republicans do the right thing . Put 16:33.503 --> 16:36.520 partisan politics aside , uh vote in a 16:36.520 --> 16:38.631 way that supports the preservation of 16:38.631 --> 16:40.798 our democracy of our constitution . Uh 16:40.798 --> 16:42.964 They have the opportunity to do that . 16:42.964 --> 16:45.020 If they don't have it , we'll have a 16:45.020 --> 16:47.242 conversation about it . Finally , there 16:47.242 --> 16:49.409 is a lot of skepticism on capitol Hill 16:49.409 --> 16:51.576 that there will in fact be a bill that 16:51.576 --> 16:53.687 they'll pass the George Floyd bill by 16:53.687 --> 16:55.909 the anniversary of George Floyd's death 16:55.909 --> 16:57.890 next week . Has the White House 16:57.890 --> 17:00.090 accepted that , that it is all but an 17:00.090 --> 17:02.090 impossibility at this point that it 17:02.090 --> 17:04.201 will pass and what will the president 17:04.201 --> 17:06.368 do on the anniversary ? Well , I don't 17:06.368 --> 17:08.590 have anything to preview yet . In terms 17:08.590 --> 17:10.812 of the president's schedule next week , 17:10.812 --> 17:12.979 we will certainly mark the anniversary 17:12.979 --> 17:14.979 as it was a moment that impacted uh 17:14.979 --> 17:17.201 millions of americans and certainly the 17:17.201 --> 17:19.257 President on a personal level . Uh I 17:19.257 --> 17:21.423 will say kristen that obviously we are 17:21.423 --> 17:23.479 in close touch and we , we certainly 17:23.479 --> 17:25.534 defer to the expectations of the key 17:25.534 --> 17:27.534 negotiators here . And I would note 17:27.534 --> 17:29.701 that Senator Booker has indicated that 17:29.701 --> 17:31.646 there's good energy to the talks . 17:31.646 --> 17:31.450 Senator scott has said that the key for 17:31.450 --> 17:34.360 us is to making , is to keep making 17:34.370 --> 17:36.390 progress . And we certainly support 17:36.400 --> 17:38.456 those efforts . The president talked 17:38.456 --> 17:40.678 about , uh , the George , Floyd justice 17:40.678 --> 17:42.789 and policing act in his joint session 17:42.789 --> 17:44.900 speech . Put a marker down because he 17:44.900 --> 17:47.011 feels it's important to be bold to be 17:47.011 --> 17:49.067 ambitious and that's exactly what he 17:49.067 --> 17:51.233 feels we're hopefully working toward . 17:51.640 --> 17:54.330 Sure . So yesterday , President biden 17:54.330 --> 17:56.497 told the Prime Minister that he wanted 17:56.497 --> 17:58.330 to see significant de escalation 17:58.330 --> 18:00.441 yesterday and on a path to cease fire 18:00.441 --> 18:02.274 yesterday . So , did he see that 18:02.274 --> 18:04.497 significant de escalation ? And does he 18:04.497 --> 18:06.497 believe they are on the path to the 18:06.497 --> 18:08.530 ceasefire ? Well , uh , Caitlyn , I 18:08.530 --> 18:10.752 would say we're not going to give a day 18:10.752 --> 18:12.919 by day grade here of the efforts . But 18:12.919 --> 18:16.040 I will say that our objective is to uh 18:16.050 --> 18:18.860 is to continue to push and encourage 18:18.870 --> 18:21.092 all parties on the ground . Israel , of 18:21.092 --> 18:23.148 course , the president has spoken to 18:23.148 --> 18:25.426 Prime Minister Netanyahu , as you know , 18:25.426 --> 18:27.481 four times more than any other world 18:27.481 --> 18:29.370 leader and to start winding their 18:29.370 --> 18:31.537 operations down . We have seen reports 18:31.537 --> 18:33.370 of a potential ceasefire that is 18:33.370 --> 18:35.259 certainly encouraging . Uh and we 18:35.259 --> 18:37.203 believe that they are at the point 18:37.203 --> 18:37.130 where they certainly should be 18:37.130 --> 18:39.240 positioned to bring an end to this 18:39.240 --> 18:41.690 conflict . But again , as I started off 18:41.700 --> 18:43.867 conveying , you know , we're also in a 18:43.867 --> 18:46.089 place where we want to bring this to an 18:46.089 --> 18:48.160 end as quickly as possible . That is 18:48.160 --> 18:50.382 clearly our objective . But we are only 18:50.382 --> 18:53.440 on about 10 or 11 here . When we look 18:53.450 --> 18:56.470 back at 2014 , that was about 51 days . 18:56.480 --> 18:58.536 And we're going to continue to press 18:58.536 --> 19:00.536 behind the scenes , pressed through 19:00.536 --> 19:02.647 intensive quiet diplomacy to bring an 19:02.647 --> 19:04.758 end to the conflict . Just because he 19:04.758 --> 19:06.924 did set the deadline of significant de 19:06.924 --> 19:08.869 escalation yesterday . So I'm just 19:08.869 --> 19:11.036 wondering if they met that mark to his 19:11.036 --> 19:13.202 liking again , I'm not going to give a 19:13.202 --> 19:15.424 public evaluation from the President of 19:15.424 --> 19:17.480 day by day actions . What I can tell 19:17.480 --> 19:20.020 you is that we are continuing to work 19:20.030 --> 19:21.974 behind the scenes through these 80 19:21.974 --> 19:24.030 engagements with senior officials to 19:24.030 --> 19:26.000 advocate for , to convey that they 19:26.000 --> 19:28.130 should be in a position now to start 19:28.130 --> 19:30.130 winding their operations down . And 19:30.130 --> 19:32.186 that is what we are hopeful to see . 19:32.186 --> 19:34.019 Okay . And what are the national 19:34.019 --> 19:35.797 security reasons for waving the 19:35.797 --> 19:37.852 sanctions on the company and the ceo 19:37.852 --> 19:39.963 behind Nordstrom too ? Uh oh , I know 19:39.963 --> 19:41.908 we made this announcement from the 19:41.908 --> 19:43.908 State Department just yesterday and 19:43.908 --> 19:45.963 they certainly spoke to this um from 19:45.963 --> 19:47.908 their end , we also put in place a 19:47.908 --> 19:50.074 number of sanctions , as you know , on 19:50.074 --> 19:52.297 Russian officials uh , and Russians who 19:52.297 --> 19:55.470 were engaged uh , in this uh , in the 19:55.480 --> 19:57.591 building of Nord Stream two to send a 19:57.591 --> 19:59.702 clear message that we think that this 19:59.702 --> 20:01.313 is a bad deal , that it is a 20:01.313 --> 20:04.580 geopolitical um uh plan that we feel 20:04.580 --> 20:07.100 puts our eastern flank , NATO allies 20:07.100 --> 20:10.280 and partners and Ukraine at risk . So 20:10.280 --> 20:12.630 that is why we put those in place uh 20:12.640 --> 20:15.980 for waving miss sanctions , We 20:15.980 --> 20:17.980 certainly have an important , vital 20:17.980 --> 20:20.036 relationship with leaders in Germany 20:20.036 --> 20:22.760 and we make a range of decisions 20:22.770 --> 20:25.310 through a range of global , global 20:25.310 --> 20:28.150 factors . Okay , my last question about 20:28.160 --> 20:30.670 15 days ago , I think Michael Finnan , 20:30.670 --> 20:32.726 who is a D . C . Metropolitan Police 20:32.726 --> 20:34.892 officer who was there on January , the 20:34.892 --> 20:37.114 6th was beaten . Taste , they stole his 20:37.114 --> 20:39.170 badge , You know , suffered a lot of 20:39.170 --> 20:41.059 trauma . He says that he still is 20:41.059 --> 20:43.226 living through . He says he sent you a 20:43.226 --> 20:45.392 letter about 15 days ago talking about 20:45.392 --> 20:47.392 the emotional anxiety that he still 20:47.392 --> 20:49.392 struggles with on a daily basis and 20:49.392 --> 20:51.614 saying it's time to fully recognize the 20:51.614 --> 20:53.726 actions of the officers on that day . 20:53.726 --> 20:55.781 So I was just wondering if the White 20:55.781 --> 20:58.003 House has a response to him . I'm happy 20:58.003 --> 21:00.170 to check on the status of the letter . 21:00.170 --> 21:02.170 Obviously , the President's view is 21:02.170 --> 21:04.226 that the number of officers who lost 21:04.226 --> 21:06.448 their lives paid a tremendous sacrifice 21:06.448 --> 21:09.700 for on a day , that will be a stain on 21:09.700 --> 21:11.867 our democracy for many years to come . 21:11.867 --> 21:14.033 And certainly many who survived . Um , 21:14.033 --> 21:16.089 this will be a long lasting trauma . 21:16.089 --> 21:18.311 I'd have to check on the letter and the 21:18.311 --> 21:20.644 status of that . Thank you . Thanks jen . 21:20.644 --> 21:22.644 You said a couple of times that you 21:22.644 --> 21:22.540 believe that the Israelis are in a 21:22.540 --> 21:24.318 position to start winding their 21:24.318 --> 21:26.318 operations down and that's what the 21:26.318 --> 21:28.318 administration expects to happen in 21:28.318 --> 21:30.096 short order . Have the Israelis 21:30.096 --> 21:32.151 conveyed that they are going to wind 21:32.151 --> 21:34.207 down operations , and can you define 21:34.207 --> 21:36.429 short order , what type of timeline are 21:36.429 --> 21:38.429 you looking for ? Well , I will let 21:38.429 --> 21:40.484 them convey what they feel they have 21:40.484 --> 21:42.707 accomplished our views . We believe the 21:42.707 --> 21:44.651 Israelis have achieved significant 21:44.651 --> 21:46.818 military objectives that they laid out 21:46.818 --> 21:48.540 to achieve , uh in relation to 21:48.540 --> 21:50.262 protecting their people and to 21:50.262 --> 21:52.840 responding to the thousands of rocket 21:52.840 --> 21:55.270 attacks from Hamas . Um and so that's 21:55.270 --> 21:57.740 why in part that we feel they are in a 21:57.740 --> 21:59.518 position to start winding their 21:59.518 --> 22:02.510 operation down . We continue to believe 22:02.520 --> 22:04.353 that they have a right to defend 22:04.353 --> 22:06.409 themselves , but this is uh where we 22:06.409 --> 22:08.940 see again our evolution of what the 22:08.940 --> 22:10.940 readouts that we're sending of what 22:10.940 --> 22:13.107 we're conveying . What the President's 22:13.107 --> 22:15.329 conveying directly . The Prime Minister 22:15.329 --> 22:15.120 is also a reflection of what we're 22:15.120 --> 22:17.420 seeing on the ground and what are 22:17.430 --> 22:19.541 officials who are working in close in 22:19.541 --> 22:21.708 lockstep with both Israeli officials , 22:21.708 --> 22:23.819 Palestinians , others are also seeing 22:23.819 --> 22:26.041 on the ground . So it's a reflection of 22:26.041 --> 22:28.041 all of that . But in terms of their 22:28.041 --> 22:30.152 assessment of that , I will certainly 22:30.152 --> 22:32.208 leave that to them . And obviously , 22:32.208 --> 22:31.710 our objective is to work toward a 22:31.710 --> 22:33.821 ceasefire has not been a message from 22:33.821 --> 22:36.043 the Israelis to the administration that 22:36.043 --> 22:38.099 they are going I'm not going to read 22:38.099 --> 22:40.321 out their messages from them . They can 22:40.321 --> 22:42.377 do that . I can read out what we are 22:42.377 --> 22:44.488 conveying to them . The President not 22:44.488 --> 22:46.377 publicly calling for an immediate 22:46.377 --> 22:48.266 ceasefire rather than a path to a 22:48.266 --> 22:50.760 ceasefire . The de escalation not right 22:50.770 --> 22:52.937 now , stop this . What is the thinking 22:52.937 --> 22:55.048 behind that ? I think the president's 22:55.048 --> 22:57.048 been clear . He wants to see a wind 22:57.048 --> 22:59.214 down of this , of the violence and end 22:59.214 --> 23:01.381 to the violence and a winding of their 23:01.381 --> 23:03.548 operations down as quickly as possible 23:03.548 --> 23:05.659 and lead to a ceasefire as quickly as 23:05.659 --> 23:07.492 possible . So I don't think he's 23:07.492 --> 23:09.492 attempting to mince words there and 23:09.492 --> 23:11.603 what he hopes the outcome to be there 23:11.603 --> 23:13.714 any consequences . If Israel does not 23:13.714 --> 23:15.881 show progress toward the de escalation 23:15.881 --> 23:18.060 toward the path to cease fire . Our 23:18.060 --> 23:20.004 focus is on getting to a path to a 23:20.004 --> 23:21.782 ceasefire and bring it into the 23:21.782 --> 23:23.616 violence to the suffering of the 23:23.616 --> 23:25.949 Israeli people , the Palestinian people , 23:25.949 --> 23:28.116 many people in the region . So I'm not 23:28.116 --> 23:27.580 going to get ahead of that to predict 23:27.580 --> 23:29.670 consequences . Go ahead , Go ahead , 23:29.670 --> 23:33.010 jenny , sorry , go ahead on 23:33.010 --> 23:35.310 infrastructure . Senator Capito said 23:35.320 --> 23:37.431 that she expects a counter offer from 23:37.431 --> 23:39.376 the White House tomorrow . Can you 23:39.376 --> 23:41.376 confirm this ? Is the deadline . Is 23:41.376 --> 23:43.598 there a deadline for tomorrow to make a 23:43.598 --> 23:45.598 counter offer ? We do expect we had 23:45.598 --> 23:45.400 constructive conversations at a staff 23:45.400 --> 23:47.720 level on Tuesday on the hill with 23:47.720 --> 23:50.080 Senator Capito , other ranking members 23:50.080 --> 23:52.358 with steve , Machete and Louisa Terril , 23:52.358 --> 23:54.469 Secretary buddha , Judge Secretary ra 23:54.469 --> 23:56.040 Mondo . And we expect those 23:56.040 --> 23:58.890 conversations to continue tomorrow and 23:58.890 --> 24:01.650 then on another piece of legislation on 24:01.650 --> 24:03.761 the hill that I know is a priority of 24:03.761 --> 24:06.130 yours . Uh , the endless Frontier Act . 24:06.140 --> 24:08.140 Obviously you guys care a lot about 24:08.140 --> 24:10.810 semiconductors . Um , it seems like the 24:10.810 --> 24:13.088 negotiations have hit a couple hiccups , 24:13.088 --> 24:15.254 which , you know , is kind of normal . 24:15.254 --> 24:17.310 But at what point is the White House 24:17.310 --> 24:19.643 getting involved in smoothing this over ? 24:19.643 --> 24:21.699 Because I know , you know , this was 24:21.699 --> 24:23.810 supposed to go on a faster track than 24:23.810 --> 24:25.977 your infrastructure proposal . Are you 24:25.977 --> 24:27.866 guys involved at all through your 24:27.866 --> 24:29.866 alleged affairs team ? Do you leave 24:29.866 --> 24:31.810 this all to Senator Schumer ? Were 24:31.810 --> 24:33.699 absolutely involved , were strong 24:33.699 --> 24:33.540 supporters of the endless Frontiers Act , 24:33.540 --> 24:35.920 as was evidenced by the statement of 24:35.920 --> 24:37.753 administration policy we put out 24:37.753 --> 24:40.090 earlier this week , and we are hopeful 24:40.090 --> 24:42.368 looking forward to signing it into law . 24:42.440 --> 24:45.230 If are you behind the scenes pushing to 24:45.240 --> 24:47.560 resolve the hiccups that are currently 24:47.560 --> 24:49.510 holding up our legislative team is 24:49.510 --> 24:52.280 closely involved with members and with 24:52.290 --> 24:55.150 their staff on moving it forward . one 24:55.150 --> 24:57.440 Last 1 , also on infrastructure . If 24:57.440 --> 25:00.570 you can lay out what the White House , 25:00.580 --> 25:02.747 um and the president himself was doing 25:02.747 --> 25:05.840 um to urge congressional democrats to 25:05.840 --> 25:07.729 support his proposed tax increase 25:07.729 --> 25:11.690 increases . What to to I'm sorry , 25:11.690 --> 25:13.579 say that one more time , what the 25:13.579 --> 25:15.523 president , the president and your 25:15.523 --> 25:17.660 alleged affairs team is how that 25:17.670 --> 25:19.950 outreach , what type of outreach you're 25:19.960 --> 25:23.070 doing with hill democrats on the 25:23.080 --> 25:25.470 proposed tax increases ? Well , I would 25:25.470 --> 25:27.692 say the vast majority of Hill democrats 25:27.692 --> 25:30.140 support raising taxes on the highest 25:30.140 --> 25:32.540 income and also on corporations , as do 25:32.540 --> 25:34.830 the vast majority of americans . So I 25:34.830 --> 25:36.941 would flip that question around . And 25:36.941 --> 25:38.997 really the question we're posing out 25:38.997 --> 25:41.108 there as if you don't want to pay for 25:41.108 --> 25:42.941 these proposals , these historic 25:42.941 --> 25:45.052 investments in infrastructure , these 25:45.052 --> 25:47.460 Investments in ensuring that we are 25:47.470 --> 25:49.590 making our workforce more competitive 25:49.590 --> 25:52.110 and rebuilding roads , rails , and 25:52.110 --> 25:54.277 bridges around the country , investing 25:54.277 --> 25:56.443 in broadband . If you don't want to do 25:56.443 --> 25:58.443 it by raising taxes on the top 1% , 25:58.443 --> 26:00.166 going back to the tax rates of 26:00.166 --> 26:02.332 President George W . Bush raising them 26:02.332 --> 26:04.388 on corporations , many of whom never 26:04.388 --> 26:04.330 didn't pay any taxes in the last few 26:04.330 --> 26:06.219 years . What's your alternative ? 26:06.219 --> 26:08.552 That's really the question we're asking , 26:08.552 --> 26:10.774 uh , most people in the country and the 26:10.774 --> 26:12.997 Democratic Caucus support raising taxes 26:12.997 --> 26:14.608 on the highest income and on 26:14.608 --> 26:16.663 corporations . Go ahead . Thanks jim 26:16.670 --> 26:18.837 Infrastructure . Given that there were 26:18.837 --> 26:21.059 staff level talks earlier in the week , 26:21.059 --> 26:23.059 can you say whether just give us an 26:23.059 --> 26:22.970 idea if the , if the ball has been 26:22.970 --> 26:24.914 moved forward , has there been any 26:25.440 --> 26:27.690 movement on maybe the pay for ? Is you 26:27.690 --> 26:29.970 just talked about the importance of the 26:29.980 --> 26:31.758 president's proposal and asking 26:31.758 --> 26:33.869 republicans to submit their own ? Did 26:33.869 --> 26:35.924 they do that ? Is there I mean , how 26:35.924 --> 26:37.980 constructive was this ? And how much 26:37.980 --> 26:40.091 did the ball move from where had been 26:40.091 --> 26:42.202 prior to Tuesday ? I wish there was a 26:42.202 --> 26:44.360 daily ball moving monitor . You guys 26:44.360 --> 26:46.360 would probably love that too . Um , 26:46.360 --> 26:48.471 doesn't always work that way . As you 26:48.471 --> 26:50.416 know , with these negotiations and 26:50.416 --> 26:52.360 discussions with members and their 26:52.360 --> 26:54.138 staff , our team felt they were 26:54.138 --> 26:56.193 constructive conversations . They're 26:56.193 --> 26:58.304 obviously needed needs to be followed 26:58.304 --> 26:57.810 as we fully expected because 26:57.820 --> 27:00.120 negotiations and compromise require 27:00.130 --> 27:02.880 many , many conversations , sometimes 27:02.880 --> 27:05.260 back and forth proposals . We expect 27:05.260 --> 27:07.204 those to continue tomorrow . Those 27:07.204 --> 27:09.316 discussions and we're looking forward 27:09.316 --> 27:11.204 to that . But I'm not going to be 27:11.204 --> 27:13.260 evaluating kind of the percentage of 27:13.260 --> 27:15.149 progress and after each meeting , 27:15.640 --> 27:17.807 republicans continue beyond tomorrow . 27:17.807 --> 27:19.862 There are some democrats . We'll see 27:19.862 --> 27:21.973 about talking about it's time to just 27:21.973 --> 27:24.084 move on . Look , the President's view 27:24.084 --> 27:26.251 and the view of senior members of this 27:26.251 --> 27:28.196 administration is that uh , he was 27:28.196 --> 27:30.251 elected . The american people expect 27:30.251 --> 27:32.300 him to work with members of both 27:32.300 --> 27:34.522 parties to attempt to work with members 27:34.522 --> 27:36.744 of both parties to get business done on 27:36.744 --> 27:38.856 their behalf . And he's doing exactly 27:38.856 --> 27:41.078 that . Uh , so we're looking forward to 27:41.078 --> 27:43.189 constructive conversations tomorrow . 27:43.189 --> 27:45.411 We'll have to evaluate How those go and 27:45.411 --> 27:45.000 what the next step is . But I'm not 27:45.000 --> 27:47.222 going to get ahead of the conversations 27:47.222 --> 27:50.040 tomorrow on the 16 Commission . And you 27:50.040 --> 27:52.262 know , that hangs in the balance in the 27:52.262 --> 27:54.318 Senate . You said just a few minutes 27:54.318 --> 27:56.540 ago that this is a matter of preserving 27:56.540 --> 27:58.520 our democracy . Uh , if it's that 27:58.520 --> 28:00.687 important , is this an issue where the 28:00.687 --> 28:02.576 president is going to be lobbying 28:02.576 --> 28:04.409 members , picking up the phone , 28:04.409 --> 28:06.187 calling republicans and perhaps 28:06.187 --> 28:08.242 speaking to the country , you know , 28:08.242 --> 28:09.964 using the bully pulpit to push 28:09.964 --> 28:12.076 lawmakers on this ? Or is he going to 28:12.076 --> 28:14.298 sort of save Save those calls for other 28:14.298 --> 28:16.353 issues ? Well , he's made clear what 28:16.353 --> 28:18.540 his view is on the mark on our 28:18.540 --> 28:21.160 democracy . That was January six , and 28:21.160 --> 28:23.327 he's conveyed that clearly publicly on 28:23.327 --> 28:25.271 numerous occasions . I don't think 28:25.271 --> 28:27.160 there's any secret about where he 28:27.160 --> 28:29.327 stands on the commission . We also put 28:29.327 --> 28:31.493 out a statement on , of administration 28:31.493 --> 28:33.716 policy on this as well just a couple of 28:33.716 --> 28:35.938 days ago , and certainly as he's having 28:35.938 --> 28:35.240 discussions with members , if 28:35.240 --> 28:37.351 appropriate , uh , he raises a number 28:37.351 --> 28:39.073 of issues , but I think it was 28:39.073 --> 28:41.073 important for us to convey where we 28:41.073 --> 28:43.296 stand in our view that this is an issue 28:43.296 --> 28:45.462 of commission that shouldn't be viewed 28:45.462 --> 28:47.629 through a partisan lens . And we don't 28:47.629 --> 28:47.280 think the american people view it that 28:47.280 --> 28:50.470 way either . Good . Thanks . The texas 28:50.470 --> 28:52.610 governor yesterday signed a abortion 28:52.610 --> 28:54.554 law that bans the procedure at six 28:54.554 --> 28:56.870 weeks . What specifically is the White 28:56.870 --> 28:58.870 House looking to do ? What specific 28:58.870 --> 29:00.981 steps , what do I have to take to try 29:00.981 --> 29:03.037 and protect abortion access ? Well , 29:03.037 --> 29:05.148 first , as you noted , but for others 29:05.148 --> 29:07.314 who haven't followed this is closely , 29:07.314 --> 29:09.370 this is the most restrictive measure 29:09.370 --> 29:11.092 yet in the nation and the most 29:11.092 --> 29:13.203 restrictive recent assault on women's 29:13.203 --> 29:15.426 fundamental rights under roe v wade and 29:15.426 --> 29:17.592 critical rights continue to come under 29:17.592 --> 29:19.814 withering and extreme attack around the 29:19.814 --> 29:21.537 country . The president , vice 29:21.537 --> 29:23.703 president are devoted to ensuring that 29:23.703 --> 29:23.300 every american has access to health 29:23.300 --> 29:25.133 care . Now , more than ever , he 29:25.133 --> 29:27.300 continues to support the robust agenda 29:27.300 --> 29:29.411 he put forward during the campaign to 29:29.411 --> 29:31.467 protect women's fundamental rights , 29:31.467 --> 29:33.467 including by codifying roe V wade . 29:33.467 --> 29:35.578 Obviously there are some actions that 29:35.578 --> 29:37.578 will be through legal processes and 29:37.578 --> 29:39.467 through the courts . Um those are 29:39.467 --> 29:41.689 decisions for the Department of Justice 29:41.689 --> 29:41.450 and others to make . But certainly the 29:41.450 --> 29:44.350 president supports and believes we 29:44.350 --> 29:46.510 should codify roe V wade and that is 29:46.520 --> 29:49.810 his view . Regardless of these backward 29:49.810 --> 29:51.950 looking steps that are being taken 29:51.950 --> 29:54.280 estates by states in the country and 29:54.300 --> 29:56.411 both Pfizer and Moderna Ceo , they're 29:56.411 --> 29:58.356 saying covid boosters continued as 29:58.356 --> 30:00.250 early as september . How is the 30:00.250 --> 30:02.306 administration preparing for that in 30:02.306 --> 30:04.472 terms of contracts of companies ? What 30:04.472 --> 30:06.472 would that mean for efforts to send 30:06.472 --> 30:08.694 shots overseas ? Sure , Well , first we 30:08.694 --> 30:10.694 would wait for the FDA to certainly 30:10.694 --> 30:12.750 make that official recommendation to 30:12.750 --> 30:14.861 the american public . I will say that 30:14.861 --> 30:16.750 when we purchased uh such a large 30:16.750 --> 30:19.340 quantity of supply and doses we were 30:19.340 --> 30:20.951 also factoring in a range of 30:20.951 --> 30:23.530 contingencies and that includes that 30:23.530 --> 30:25.697 potential . We don't know if that will 30:25.697 --> 30:27.919 be what the FDA concludes , but we plan 30:27.919 --> 30:29.808 for that . And in addition to the 30:29.808 --> 30:31.808 supply that we've already ordered , 30:31.808 --> 30:34.030 we're going to be focused on continuing 30:34.030 --> 30:36.197 to work with manufacturers to increase 30:36.197 --> 30:38.308 uh supply global globally , of course 30:38.308 --> 30:39.974 through our own manufacturing 30:39.974 --> 30:42.141 facilities and we'll continue to build 30:42.141 --> 30:41.850 from the supply . We've already ordered 30:42.140 --> 30:44.196 More really quickly . Last week , 25 30:44.196 --> 30:46.362 members of Congress sent the president 30:46.362 --> 30:48.529 letter asking him to appoint a special 30:48.529 --> 30:50.696 envoy in Northern Ireland wondering if 30:50.696 --> 30:52.807 he has any plans to do that and if so 30:52.807 --> 30:54.862 what the timing would be . Uh We did 30:54.862 --> 30:56.751 see that letter certainly um that 30:56.751 --> 30:58.751 decision and uh recommendation were 30:58.751 --> 31:00.862 probably made by the State Department 31:00.862 --> 31:02.751 in terms of what is needed on the 31:02.751 --> 31:04.529 ground . Um so I don't have any 31:04.529 --> 31:06.696 personnel announcements to convey or a 31:06.696 --> 31:08.807 timeline for that go ahead . Thanks . 31:08.807 --> 31:10.918 Um Well , President Biden , President 31:10.918 --> 31:13.010 Moon to join the indo pacific quad . 31:13.020 --> 31:15.242 And if South Korea is not a part of the 31:15.242 --> 31:17.298 quad , does that kind of leave a big 31:17.298 --> 31:19.576 hole in your hopes of containing china ? 31:19.576 --> 31:21.798 Well , uh , the quad has four members , 31:21.798 --> 31:24.076 so not to be too mathematical about it , 31:24.076 --> 31:26.290 but I would say that that already 31:26.290 --> 31:28.520 exists . Um I would say that South 31:28.520 --> 31:31.460 Korea is um an incredibly important 31:31.460 --> 31:33.516 partner to United States . Hence the 31:33.516 --> 31:35.571 president is having one of his first 31:35.571 --> 31:37.738 bilateral person with the president of 31:37.738 --> 31:39.904 South Korea . And I think that sends a 31:39.904 --> 31:42.016 clear message now in terms of working 31:42.016 --> 31:44.071 with South Korea to address regional 31:44.071 --> 31:46.238 security issues or strategic issues in 31:46.238 --> 31:48.182 the region uh certainly will be an 31:48.182 --> 31:50.182 opportunity to talk about that . We 31:50.182 --> 31:52.071 expect that North Korea will be a 31:52.071 --> 31:54.016 central topic of the discussion of 31:54.016 --> 31:56.660 course tomorrow , but they also will 31:56.670 --> 31:58.600 discuss climate . They will also 31:58.600 --> 32:01.230 discuss economic partnership , they 32:01.230 --> 32:03.397 will also discuss china and those will 32:03.397 --> 32:05.880 all be a part of this bilateral 32:05.890 --> 32:08.112 conversation and meeting tomorrow . But 32:08.112 --> 32:09.890 in terms of like a full fledged 32:09.890 --> 32:12.057 membership , I know you have to rename 32:12.057 --> 32:14.168 it . Um is that going to come up ? Is 32:14.168 --> 32:16.279 that is the president push for that ? 32:16.279 --> 32:18.970 Look ? I think that South Koreans may 32:18.970 --> 32:21.137 bring up a range of issues of course , 32:21.137 --> 32:23.192 but I'm just framing for you what we 32:23.192 --> 32:25.359 expect the focus of the discussions to 32:25.359 --> 32:27.581 be about . And I would also convey that 32:27.581 --> 32:29.803 there are a range of forums and formats 32:29.803 --> 32:32.137 through the international um , you know , 32:32.137 --> 32:34.303 community where the U . S . Works with 32:34.303 --> 32:36.637 a range of countries where we work with , 32:36.637 --> 32:38.692 we may work with of course Japan and 32:38.692 --> 32:40.803 South Korea on a range of issues that 32:40.803 --> 32:40.560 there's been history of that through 32:40.560 --> 32:42.727 trilateral cooperation . As you know . 32:42.727 --> 32:45.450 Uh there are a range of international 32:45.450 --> 32:47.561 organizations that we are part of and 32:47.561 --> 32:49.617 South Korea is also a part of . So I 32:49.617 --> 32:51.506 don't have anything to predict or 32:51.506 --> 32:53.450 anticipate in terms of a change in 32:53.450 --> 32:55.506 membership of the quad . But I would 32:55.506 --> 32:57.617 just note that the fact that they are 32:57.617 --> 32:57.440 here tomorrow that it's a full 32:57.440 --> 32:59.760 bilateral program makes clear the 32:59.760 --> 33:01.371 importance of that strategic 33:01.371 --> 33:03.427 relationship . President Biden ruled 33:03.427 --> 33:05.427 out the possibility of face to face 33:05.427 --> 33:07.649 meeting with kim jong un of the North . 33:07.649 --> 33:09.810 Is that even a possibility ? I don't 33:09.810 --> 33:12.470 expect that to be top on his agenda . I 33:12.480 --> 33:14.702 just want a quick one on taxes . Do you 33:14.702 --> 33:16.480 have any fears that the new IRS 33:16.480 --> 33:18.424 enforcement plan might create some 33:18.424 --> 33:20.536 political blowback , Some wariness in 33:20.536 --> 33:22.647 the public ? Just the idea of the tax 33:22.647 --> 33:24.647 man is coming at my face an audit . 33:24.647 --> 33:26.702 What should people know about that ? 33:26.702 --> 33:28.758 Well , I think one , it's one of the 33:28.758 --> 33:30.869 reasons that we want to be absolutely 33:30.869 --> 33:33.091 clear about what additional enforcement 33:33.091 --> 33:35.202 from the I . R . S . Would be focused 33:35.202 --> 33:37.369 on our people who are not paying their 33:37.369 --> 33:39.480 fair share . That is not hard working 33:39.480 --> 33:41.591 middle class americans who are , uh , 33:41.591 --> 33:43.870 you know , working hard paying taxes , 33:43.880 --> 33:46.200 putting food on the table . Uh , there 33:46.200 --> 33:49.160 are a range of other entities that are 33:49.170 --> 33:51.337 less likely to pay their fair share of 33:51.337 --> 33:54.230 taxes . So , um , we will be , um , you 33:54.230 --> 33:56.397 know , continue to be absolutely clear 33:56.397 --> 33:58.174 about that . Lower middle class 33:58.174 --> 34:00.174 americans are , for the most part , 34:00.174 --> 34:02.286 across the board compliant with their 34:02.286 --> 34:05.080 tax obligations . But there are cases 34:05.080 --> 34:07.302 where corporations are not paying their 34:07.302 --> 34:09.469 fair share and they're able to play by 34:09.469 --> 34:11.580 their own rules , paying half or less 34:11.580 --> 34:13.580 than what they owe . And you know , 34:13.580 --> 34:15.636 that's really what the focus is . Go 34:15.636 --> 34:17.636 ahead and back . Thank you , jen on 34:17.636 --> 34:19.802 taxes again , the president has called 34:19.802 --> 34:22.080 on the wealthy to pay their fair share . 34:22.080 --> 34:24.136 I'm wondering if the president would 34:24.136 --> 34:26.247 like to see reforms to the way that s 34:26.247 --> 34:28.358 corporations are treated , given that 34:28.358 --> 34:30.302 the Obama administration said that 34:30.302 --> 34:32.024 those corporate structures can 34:32.024 --> 34:34.080 sometimes be used as loopholes . And 34:34.080 --> 34:36.700 yet president biden between 2017 and 34:36.700 --> 34:39.870 2020 used an s corporation according to 34:39.870 --> 34:41.759 his tax returns and reporting and 34:41.759 --> 34:43.670 Bloomberg to avoid paying nearly 34:43.680 --> 34:46.670 $500,000 in self employment taxes . 34:47.040 --> 34:48.818 Well , I will say first that he 34:48.818 --> 34:51.460 received no income from uh , Celtic 34:51.470 --> 34:55.070 Capri in 2020 which is the S corp and 34:55.080 --> 34:57.650 uh , it's dormant and I will not be 34:57.650 --> 34:59.872 engaging in any business . I've been to 34:59.872 --> 35:01.872 receive potential royalties , which 35:01.872 --> 35:03.928 would relate to books he has already 35:03.928 --> 35:06.039 heard . And of course , as you know , 35:06.039 --> 35:08.094 you only know about this because the 35:08.094 --> 35:10.150 president released his tax returns , 35:10.150 --> 35:12.206 which has long been history historic 35:12.206 --> 35:14.372 precedent , even if it wasn't over the 35:14.372 --> 35:16.094 last several years in terms of 35:16.094 --> 35:18.094 additional tax reform proposals , I 35:18.094 --> 35:17.680 don't have any to announce for you 35:17.680 --> 35:19.902 today . I would note that the President 35:19.902 --> 35:21.791 paid a higher rate than most high 35:21.791 --> 35:23.347 income individuals and most 35:23.347 --> 35:25.458 corporations around the country . And 35:25.458 --> 35:27.540 then another one with regards to the 35:27.550 --> 35:29.328 question of of what's happening 35:29.328 --> 35:31.661 currently in the Middle East . You know , 35:31.661 --> 35:33.800 that you touched on the Iran nuclear 35:33.800 --> 35:36.760 deal . But there was reporting 35:37.740 --> 35:41.120 earlier that the leader of the Iranian 35:41.130 --> 35:44.110 Revolutionary Guard said that the 35:44.120 --> 35:46.270 rocket attacks from Palestine hitting 35:46.270 --> 35:48.280 Israel was a sign of quote , a new 35:48.280 --> 35:50.760 Palestine . I'm wondering if that type 35:50.760 --> 35:52.927 of rhetoric coming out of Iran has any 35:52.927 --> 35:56.020 effect on the President's eagerness to 35:56.030 --> 35:59.010 rejoin the treaty , the Iran nuclear 35:59.010 --> 36:01.500 agreement . And and sort of if there is 36:01.500 --> 36:03.833 any interplay between those two spheres , 36:03.833 --> 36:06.167 I think it's important to be very clear , 36:06.167 --> 36:08.900 Iran is there are bad actors and 36:08.900 --> 36:12.470 they're bad actors in the region and uh 36:12.480 --> 36:14.730 we're that that is very clear . That is 36:14.730 --> 36:17.330 our position . However , we believe the 36:17.330 --> 36:19.560 president believes that it is in the 36:19.560 --> 36:22.150 best interests of the United States and 36:22.160 --> 36:24.271 in the best interests of countries in 36:24.271 --> 36:26.493 the region , uh to have more visibility 36:26.493 --> 36:28.716 into Iran's nuclear capabilities and to 36:28.716 --> 36:30.827 prevent them from acquiring a nuclear 36:30.827 --> 36:33.290 weapon . One more on the colonial 36:33.290 --> 36:35.980 pipeline . Yes . Has the president been 36:35.980 --> 36:38.420 briefed on any intelligence suggesting 36:38.430 --> 36:40.650 that the dark side hacking group which 36:40.660 --> 36:43.560 claimed responsibility operates under 36:43.570 --> 36:45.920 the direct supervision of any Russian 36:45.920 --> 36:47.976 intelligence services ? Is there any 36:47.976 --> 36:50.670 relationship that we have seen ? I 36:50.670 --> 36:53.003 think the President was clear last week , 36:53.003 --> 36:55.226 and what the intelligence assessment is 36:55.226 --> 36:56.948 about the Russian government's 36:56.948 --> 36:59.060 involvement or knowledge of uh the 36:59.060 --> 37:01.340 hacking at the same time ? They are 37:01.350 --> 37:05.190 criminal entity that is uh on Russian 37:05.190 --> 37:06.912 soil and therefore they have a 37:06.912 --> 37:09.650 responsibility . Sure , go ahead . Hi , 37:09.730 --> 37:11.674 I just wanted to go back to Israel 37:11.674 --> 37:13.230 really quick . So yesterday 37:13.230 --> 37:15.240 congresswoman Ocasio Cortez accused 37:15.250 --> 37:17.620 Israel of using american weapons to 37:17.620 --> 37:19.453 target media outlets , schools , 37:19.453 --> 37:21.787 hospitals , other sides . The other day , 37:21.787 --> 37:23.898 congresswoman Omar called the Israeli 37:23.898 --> 37:26.120 Prime Minister and ethno nationalists . 37:26.120 --> 37:28.176 I know you've talked about the White 37:28.176 --> 37:30.398 House's message to democrats , but does 37:30.398 --> 37:32.398 the President specifically denounce 37:32.398 --> 37:34.380 these comments ? I think we have a 37:34.380 --> 37:36.602 responsibility here to speak about this 37:36.602 --> 37:39.290 as it as it as the issue that it is , 37:39.300 --> 37:41.300 which is a conflict that is killing 37:41.300 --> 37:44.060 people uh in a region and and uh and 37:44.060 --> 37:46.171 our efforts to bring that to an end . 37:46.171 --> 37:48.338 The President doesn't see this through 37:48.338 --> 37:50.504 the prism of domestic politics . Um he 37:50.504 --> 37:52.504 sees this through the prism of what 37:52.504 --> 37:54.560 role the United States can play as a 37:54.560 --> 37:56.850 leader in the global community , to uh 37:56.860 --> 37:59.138 to engage in quiet intensive diplomacy , 37:59.138 --> 38:01.193 to bring an end to the suffering and 38:01.193 --> 38:03.550 the tragedy on the ground , just to 38:03.550 --> 38:05.910 follow up on that . So of course this 38:05.910 --> 38:08.132 isn't just a domestic issue , but there 38:08.132 --> 38:10.960 is infighting between democrats and one 38:10.960 --> 38:13.090 of President Biden's big messages is 38:13.100 --> 38:15.800 unity . So what is being done to unify 38:15.800 --> 38:18.410 his own party on this issue ? And how 38:18.410 --> 38:20.410 is this infighting not hurting that 38:20.410 --> 38:22.577 message of unity ? Well , here's where 38:22.577 --> 38:24.880 there is agreement . We all want to see 38:24.890 --> 38:27.057 an end to the conflict on the ground . 38:27.057 --> 38:28.890 We all want to see an end to the 38:28.890 --> 38:31.057 suffering for the Palestinian people , 38:31.057 --> 38:33.168 for the Israeli people . Uh There's a 38:33.168 --> 38:35.168 disagreement on tactics . There's a 38:35.168 --> 38:37.990 disagreement on some aspects of how we 38:37.990 --> 38:40.990 engage , uh but we all agree that we 38:40.990 --> 38:43.101 want to end the suffering and that is 38:43.101 --> 38:45.323 certainly a unifying message . Go ahead 38:45.323 --> 38:47.490 in the back and I want to pick up on a 38:47.490 --> 38:47.350 couple of things that my colleagues 38:47.350 --> 38:49.350 have asked infrastructure and taxes 38:49.350 --> 38:51.239 first on infrastructure , has any 38:51.239 --> 38:53.239 progress been made ? I know you say 38:53.239 --> 38:55.072 that the conversations have been 38:55.072 --> 38:54.970 constructive talks are going to keep on 38:54.980 --> 38:58.100 going . But has any progress been made 38:58.110 --> 39:00.221 through the lens of the White House ? 39:00.221 --> 39:02.443 Well , here's what's progress . We have 39:02.443 --> 39:04.666 democrats and republicans , the ranking 39:04.666 --> 39:06.443 members of a range of important 39:06.443 --> 39:08.332 committees in the Senate , having 39:08.332 --> 39:10.499 discussions with members of our senior 39:10.499 --> 39:12.277 White House team , a democratic 39:12.277 --> 39:14.221 administration about the agree and 39:14.221 --> 39:16.443 agreement that we need to invest in our 39:16.443 --> 39:18.666 nation's infrastructure . Are we on the 39:18.666 --> 39:20.832 same page on every component of how it 39:20.832 --> 39:23.166 should be paid for ? Are on the numbers . 39:23.166 --> 39:23.090 No . Do we know we'll have a successful 39:23.090 --> 39:25.300 outcome ? Uh No , we don't know that 39:25.300 --> 39:27.633 yet because this is democracy in action . 39:27.633 --> 39:29.300 This is compromised , This is 39:29.300 --> 39:31.189 negotiations and it looks for him 39:31.189 --> 39:33.244 because we haven't seen this in some 39:33.244 --> 39:35.411 time , but it's ongoing . So we're not 39:35.411 --> 39:35.030 going to give a day by day grade . It's 39:35.030 --> 39:37.030 not particularly constructive to do 39:37.030 --> 39:39.030 that . The bigger challenge at this 39:39.030 --> 39:41.197 point , the top line figure , they pay 39:41.197 --> 39:43.252 for the top line figure that pay for 39:43.252 --> 39:45.363 what's a bigger what's bigger lift at 39:45.363 --> 39:47.363 this point ? Look , I think I'm not 39:47.363 --> 39:49.474 going to rank order them , but I will 39:49.474 --> 39:51.530 say that it's not been a secret that 39:51.530 --> 39:53.641 that the largest area of disagreement 39:53.641 --> 39:55.752 is paid for us . And obviously if you 39:55.752 --> 39:55.730 have a higher top line number , you 39:55.730 --> 39:57.897 need more pay for us . Doesn't require 39:57.897 --> 40:00.740 mathematician for that . And on taxes , 40:01.110 --> 40:03.054 the the guidelines of the Treasury 40:03.054 --> 40:05.221 Department put out today as it relates 40:05.221 --> 40:07.040 to the IRS . Yeah . What is the 40:07.050 --> 40:10.780 argument that you would make that the 40:10.790 --> 40:13.040 inflows and outflows of someone's 40:13.040 --> 40:16.390 account should be monitored by the IRS ? 40:16.400 --> 40:19.640 And since The since the Treasury 40:19.640 --> 40:21.920 Department says those who make under 40:21.920 --> 40:24.550 400,000 aren't going to be audited any 40:24.550 --> 40:26.717 more than they have been in the past , 40:26.717 --> 40:28.772 essentially . Are you creating a two 40:28.772 --> 40:30.994 tier audit system ? Those who make more 40:31.330 --> 40:33.552 Than 400,000 and those who make lives ? 40:34.010 --> 40:36.060 Well , I would say that lower and 40:36.060 --> 40:38.282 middle income americans who are working 40:38.282 --> 40:41.270 hard making getting their paychecks are , 40:41.280 --> 40:44.880 are not typically the issue at hand 40:44.880 --> 40:47.950 here . And what the tax compliance 40:47.950 --> 40:51.940 report conveyed today is that um uh 40:51.950 --> 40:54.117 or confirmed today , I should say , is 40:54.117 --> 40:56.006 that it's past time to reform our 40:56.006 --> 40:57.894 broken tax system that teachers , 40:57.894 --> 40:59.672 firefighters , nurses and other 40:59.672 --> 41:02.060 hardworking americans . Uh They report 41:02.060 --> 41:04.338 their income , they pay required taxes , 41:04.338 --> 41:06.449 wealthiest americans and corporations 41:06.449 --> 41:08.282 because they often operate under 41:08.282 --> 41:10.504 different tax systems . It already is a 41:10.504 --> 41:12.970 system that is living into America's . 41:13.110 --> 41:15.890 They are able to pay lower tax rates . 41:15.900 --> 41:18.140 That's not fair . That's basically what 41:18.140 --> 41:20.520 the president is conveying to the 41:20.530 --> 41:23.490 person who does well pays their taxes 41:23.490 --> 41:25.546 and just doesn't want the government 41:25.546 --> 41:27.601 seeing the outflows and inflows they 41:27.601 --> 41:29.657 pay by the book and they say , hey I 41:29.657 --> 41:31.657 don't I don't think this is right . 41:31.657 --> 41:33.823 Well again , I think what our focus is 41:33.823 --> 41:36.360 on here is ensuring that any american 41:36.370 --> 41:38.580 pays the taxes that they are owed and 41:38.580 --> 41:40.747 if they are paying the taxes that they 41:40.747 --> 41:42.802 are owed then uh they have little to 41:42.802 --> 41:44.913 worry about . But there's no question 41:44.913 --> 41:47.136 that given that for the last 10 years , 41:47.136 --> 41:49.136 the I . R . S . Has been repeatedly 41:49.136 --> 41:51.302 underfunded currently has 20,000 fewer 41:51.302 --> 41:53.524 staff including fewer enforcement staff 41:53.524 --> 41:55.469 than it did a decade ago . Uh That 41:55.469 --> 41:57.691 proposals like the President's proposal 41:57.691 --> 41:59.858 to increase uh 10% increase in funding 41:59.858 --> 42:02.080 for the Rs . That would largely be used 42:02.080 --> 42:04.136 to strengthen enforcement on wealthy 42:04.136 --> 42:06.024 and corporate tax filers and help 42:06.024 --> 42:08.191 ensure those at the top pay their fair 42:08.191 --> 42:10.358 share is uh certainly something that I 42:10.358 --> 42:10.240 think the vast majority of americans 42:10.240 --> 42:12.351 would feel is fair and effective . Go 42:12.351 --> 42:14.296 ahead . Thank you jen I'm going to 42:14.296 --> 42:16.184 bring you back to the Middle East 42:16.184 --> 42:18.470 questions the U . N . Chief just said 42:18.480 --> 42:21.370 and I'm quoting him If there is hell on 42:21.380 --> 42:23.491 earth , it is the life of Palestinian 42:23.491 --> 42:25.380 Children indulge in . So far , 65 42:25.380 --> 42:28.170 Children have been killed , 40 women In 42:28.170 --> 42:31.490 total , 230 civilians , 50,000 people 42:31.490 --> 42:33.250 have been displaced since this 42:33.250 --> 42:34.970 administration , human rights 42:34.970 --> 42:36.970 protection as the forefront of your 42:36.970 --> 42:39.137 foreign policy . Why can't you do more 42:39.137 --> 42:41.081 to protect the life of Palestinian 42:41.081 --> 42:43.303 Children and exert more pressure on one 42:43.303 --> 42:45.470 of your closest ally , which is Israel 42:45.470 --> 42:48.060 to avoid killing Children ? Well , I 42:48.060 --> 42:50.282 would say that what our effort has been 42:50.282 --> 42:53.480 focused on uh area is conveying behind 42:53.480 --> 42:55.369 the scenes , that certainly while 42:55.369 --> 42:57.480 Israel has a right to defend itself , 42:57.480 --> 42:59.647 that uh it is time now to bring an end 42:59.647 --> 43:01.813 to this conflict , that there has been 43:01.813 --> 43:04.036 too much suffering , too much tragedy . 43:04.036 --> 43:06.091 Every life lost , every one of these 43:06.091 --> 43:08.036 Children who has lost their life , 43:08.036 --> 43:10.202 Every family that has had to mourn the 43:10.202 --> 43:12.424 life of a loved one is is certainly too 43:12.424 --> 43:14.647 many . We have certainly had a shift in 43:14.647 --> 43:16.536 our approach as it relates to our 43:16.536 --> 43:18.647 engagement with the Palestinians from 43:18.647 --> 43:20.869 the last administration , including the 43:20.869 --> 43:23.300 fact that the consulate was closed . Uh 43:23.310 --> 43:25.810 They had ended assistance to UNWra and 43:25.810 --> 43:28.032 during the last administration and they 43:28.032 --> 43:29.754 did not have that open line of 43:29.754 --> 43:31.699 communication engagement that also 43:31.699 --> 43:33.588 ended humanitarian assistance and 43:33.588 --> 43:35.810 security assistance to the Palestinians 43:35.810 --> 43:37.754 which we have resumed . So we have 43:37.754 --> 43:39.921 certainly taken a different approach . 43:39.921 --> 43:42.143 Uh and we believe our our role here can 43:42.143 --> 43:44.254 be playing a role behind the scenes , 43:44.254 --> 43:46.477 uh conveying that it's time to bring an 43:46.477 --> 43:48.699 end to the conflict . And on Iran talks 43:48.699 --> 43:50.890 from Vienna is indicating that my next 43:50.890 --> 43:53.800 round Iran might come into compliance 43:53.810 --> 43:55.532 and the U . S . Might lift the 43:55.532 --> 43:57.990 sanctions . You consider the june 18th , 43:57.990 --> 43:59.768 which is the day of the Iranian 43:59.768 --> 44:01.850 election . And it's the end of Iran 44:01.850 --> 44:04.560 commitment to the I . E . A . It's a 44:04.570 --> 44:06.720 deadline for the White House too , 44:06.900 --> 44:09.580 trying to achieve something . Well , 44:09.580 --> 44:11.802 I'm not gonna set new deadlines today , 44:11.802 --> 44:13.747 I'm sure that won't surprise you . 44:13.747 --> 44:15.913 There's certainly political factors uh 44:15.913 --> 44:18.100 that are factors for uh for countries 44:18.100 --> 44:20.850 like Iran that are key parties in these 44:20.850 --> 44:23.160 discussions and negotiations are of 44:23.160 --> 44:25.370 course , goal is to mutually return to 44:25.370 --> 44:28.200 compliance with the J C B O P O A . And 44:28.200 --> 44:30.033 we would be prepared to lift the 44:30.033 --> 44:31.700 sanctions necessary for JCPOA 44:31.700 --> 44:33.478 compliance only if Iran , we're 44:33.478 --> 44:35.644 prepared to return its nuclear program 44:35.644 --> 44:37.700 to its J . C . P . O . A status . We 44:37.700 --> 44:39.867 will see where we get with that as our 44:39.867 --> 44:41.120 bottom line . Thanks everyone .