Instead of bullying them to salute us, more than ever our strength today depends on pursuing our purposes in cooperation with others, not in ways that anger them or ignore them or condescend to them.
Franklin Roosevelt said of America in 1945, We have learned that we cannot live along at peace, that our own well-being is dependent on the well-being of nations far away. We have learned to be citizens of the world, members of the human community.
If only President Bush would heed those words.
Our fragile planet is not a Republican or Democrat or American community; it is a world community.
And we cannot -- and we forget that truth at our very, very peril.
I welcome the opportunity and the obligation to debate our values and our vision. A new American majority is ready to respond to our call for a revitalized American dream grounded firmly in our Constitution and in the endless adventure of lifting this nation to ever new heights of discovery and prosperity and progress and service to all our people and to all humanity.
We, as Democrats, may be in the minority in Congress, but we speak for the majority of Americans. If we summon the courage and the determination to take our stand and state it clearly, I'm convinced the battles that lie ahead will yield our greatest victories.
Thank you.
(APPLAUSE)
MODERATOR: We're going to try to get through as many questions as we possible can.
And the first one, Senator Kennedy, this person writes, You say no president has proposed a Social Security benefits cut. Do you believe, however, that any long-term solution to Social Security has to result in benefit reductions?
And also, what steps are the Democrats taking to modernize Social Security? Young and middle-aged Americans seem to have the perception that Social Security is a welfare program for old people. How might the Democrats overcome this misinformed image to better defend against Republican reform attacks?
KENNEDY: Well, Social Security represents a very fundamental and basic and continuing obligation and commitment by the American people to our seniors. And that is an absolutely indelible commitment that we made when that was passed and signed into law. And the financial situation with the Social Security now, until the mid- or late 2040s, is secure.
But what this administration wants to do is to have a crisis in Iraq, a crisis in the federal judiciary, a crisis in Social Security, and they want a crisis everywhere so they can give the benefits of the Social Security or a third of all of the Social Security fund to Wall Street. We're not going to permit it. And the American people aren't either. We're going to win this.
(APPLAUSE)
QUESTION: Why did Congress add 20,000 more H1B visas into the omnibus budget bill when American middle-level engineers need those jobs? And what do you think should be the Democratic position about massive illegal immigration, which takes low-income Americans' jobs and outsourcing, which takes middle-class American jobs?
KENNEDY: Well, first of all, I think we should put the whole issue of immigration on the table, and we ought to deal with it, rather than in piecemeal, which we have in the past, even as we try to, in a bipartisan way, on the Ag jobs issue, in the last Congress, and how we tinkered with various numbers in the past.
We ought to recognize that it isn't open borders or closed borders; it's smart borders. It's smart borders. And we ought to try to find a way to deal with that issue.
We can do our part, but I think Mexico and the countries of Central America have to do their part, and to date there hasn't been their willingness.
But I think if we were able to have their willingness for President Fox, the countries of Central America, to work with us, particularly with regards to, one, the whole border issues, and secondly, with regards to development -- there's about $14 billion or $15 billion that are repatriated every year -- there's been some willingness with some of the repatriation to help in economic development along borders areas.
We could take ideas like that and see what kind of expansion (ph) would be. We're going to need a partnership in Mexico to be able to do it. But we ought to be willing to do it. It's not only because I think it's the right thing to do, because it's a national security issue as well.
We have the southern border. It's a tragedy. We had more than 530 people that died there last year. And the idea for those that say about a temporary work group, we already have 8 million undocumented here. We already have workers in this country.
I see that the president has announced his interest in doing this. John McCain has indicated a strong interest. I think there is the framework for bipartisan movement on the issue, and we ought to try and take advantage, but that will be a very difficult, emotional fight about it.
MODERATOR: (OFF-MIKE) mention about the visas?
KENNEDY: The increase in terms of -- this is on the highly skilled visas, which we have capped at I think it was 65,000 in the legislation we passed probably four or five years ago. We've raised that cap to 120,000. But that cap was eliminated and it went back to 65,000.
The question was because of that extraordinary kind of reversal whether we would include in this the 20,000 which are the masters and PhDs. That's the group that'll be eligible for it.
And the issues always on immigration are two: one, can the individual expand employment and jobs in this country, and secondly, the reunifications of families.
I think you could make a pretty good case that that particular number, with those particular kind of credentials, expand employment, although that's a position that my good friend John Sweeney who's over here would not agree with.
MODERATOR: One area in which you have led bipartisan work is in federal efforts to bring health care into the digital age. Do you plan to continue your efforts in this Congress?
And do you think your successor has been born yet?
The next question is: What would be the cost of a medical program that covers all Americans, and do you think caps on awards for medical practice are the way to lower those costs for the American people?
KENNEDY: You've got them all here on this.
(LAUGHTER)
Medical malpractice, less than two cents out of every health care dollar is spent. The idea that this is a part of the crisis.
But the rest of it is basically a protection for the profits of the pharmaceutical industry and the insurance industry.
If this administration was so interested in protecting patients, which they talk about, why didn't they sign the patients' bill of rights? That's the one that really reaches out and protects patients in all aspects of it.
So that's where you have the whole question -- I can continue on caps if you want, but let me just say we have -- half the states have caps, the other states don't. There is really no difference in the premiums between those states that have it and those states that do not.
Always the pressure comes from caps when the insurance industries have had bad investments. You find that in the Congress.
On the electronics (inaudible), 32 cents out of every health dollar is nonclinical. There isn't a business that's represented here, or a businessman that's watching this program, that could possibly believe that. Maybe they have 10 or 12 cents in terms of administrative costs or in terms of business costs -- 33 cents?
If you bring this -- we have a 21st century health care system and a 19th century accounting processing system. And if we bring that 33 cents down to 27 cents, we save $110 billion a year. That isn't just my estimate. That's the Institute of Medicine that's saying we are wasting $400 billion a year.
