thank you. >> you could see all of what the president said by searching "trump" and "isis" at c-span.org. now, new york governor andrew cuomo gives the first of a series of addresses he did around the state as part of a three day tour. this is about 45 minutes. >> thank you. [ applause ] thank you very much. thank you. thank you. thank you very much.

thank you very much. thank you. thank you. first, to our great madam secretary of state who's doing just a fantastic job. let's give her a round of applause. thank you once again for your leadership and guidance. cardinal o'connor. we have our attorney generals doing great work with us, eric sneiderman, please stand. our new york state comptroller who's doing a great job. we have mayor bill de blasio of new york city. the last time i was with the mayor, we were at new year's eve. we did a new year's eve party in

the substation. it went o weso well, the mta is catering, specializing in marriages and time the oncoming trains so that the rumble happens right after the vows. but it was a great night. bill de blasio. let's give him a round of applause. we have new york city comptroller scott stringer who's doing a magnificent job. the other local elected officials and members of our court of appeals and our chief judge shannon defure, thank you for being here. thank you. for the past few days, we've been talking about the state of the state. to put it shortly and concisely, the positive news is that the ship of state is doing very well

and stronger than in decades. 49 other governors in this country that give this type of report and i wouldn't change ogog positions with any of them. new york has truly made remarkable economic, social progress. not since the time of fdr and robert moses has our government passed more impactful legislation, achieved more or built more for the people. but at the same time, the troubling reality is the sea upon which our ship of state sails is as rough and tempest tossed as it has been in over 50 years. our new york credo, indeed, our american credo, our progressive philosophy in providing opportunity for all and fostering community, providing for the poor, respecting individual and religious freedom. it's all being questioned,

blamed, and attacked. the generations of progress that we have made on women's rights, climate change, public education, and affordable health care are being threatened. there is a recent and powerful belief that america's diversity, openness, and acceptance is in conflict with the success of america's middle class working families. that belief is both misguided and incredibly dangerous. it tears at our social fabric and it threatens to turn america's strength into a weakness. now, we all heard the roar on election day. and we must respond. but we cannot lose ourselves in an apparent attempt to save ourselves. we must follow two paths forward. first, to admit, acknowledge,

and address the very real economic problems of our struggling middle class, and second, to prevent misdirected anger from doing damage to our country's core values. this year, we will enact a new economic program. the middle class economic recovery act, and institute the new york promise agenda to protect and advance our progressive values and principles of social justice that are being challenged today. to begin, new york must continue to be strong and move forward. new york has maintained a level of fiscal responsibility unknown in the post-war era. after years of spending more than we took in, we have finally done what every family in the state of new york has had to do. we've set a budget and we've kept to it. our annual spending increases are lower than at any time since

they've been keeping budget numbers. our credit rating is as high as it has been in 60 years. our unemployment is down from 8.4% six years ago to 5.1% today. and the good news is our economic success is felt all across the state. today, new york has 7.95 private sector jobs, the most private sector jobs in the history of the state of thork. new york. [ applause ] and i would like to thank the state comptroller for his good work in helping us maintain the fiscal integrity and responsibility of the state. thank you. >> the state's increase in spending is down because we are

governing smarter. we cut the waste and we prioritize better. we've invested more in education than at any time in history, and more than any state in the nation. soon, the program in the statewide universal pre-k program. and i'm proud to announce that this year, we will increase funding for education to a new record level all time high all across the state and that new york city will receive more aid for education than it has ever received from the state of new york in history. [ applause ] and we are building a new new york from mon talk to the queens

mid-town tunnel, from the second avenue subway to the center from our harbor of lights, bridges project to our new jones beach. we're not just starting projects but we are getting them done and that's government's responsibility and we are performing for the people of the state of new york. and what makes our economic progress even sweeter is that it is matched by unprecedented social progress. at the same time, we did all of our economic work and our infrastructure work, we passed marriage equality, we passed paid family leave, we passed common sense gun control, we passed a $15 minimum wage. new york once again is truly the progressive capital of the nation. eb white, my friends, would be pleased. the nation once again looks to new york to find the way up.

i am proud of the work we have done and how far new york has come over the last 6 years but it's not the time for self-congratulation. it is time to prepare for the future because we will not stop working until the bright light of opportunity shines on all new yorkers. we still have two educational systems main this state. one for the rich, and one for the poor. separate and unequal, and that my friends is simply intolerable in 2017. we still have a judicial system that's supposed to be blind and all too often finds the scales

tipped by resources or race and electoral system that protects prerogatives at the expense of voters and economic transformation has made a handful rich and masses redunda redundant. people lack trust in government and for good cause and i believe and understand that the government must do more to earn the people's trust. acts of discrimination, hate crimes and racism are on the rise. most per saysiv pervasive, earn potential of families is less than it was 20 years ago.

they are paying the bills but lacking security. our middle class feels abused. they were collateral damage in the economic shift from the manufacturing of our economy to the high-tech economy and feel that their government did th nothing to help. in the recession of 2007, the middle class saw the hard earned equity in the homes stolen. nearly half of the homes of our middle class are not yet back to their prerecession value. just think of it. that home equity was their life's work. it was their security blanket, the payment for their daughter's wedding. it was their business loan and their child's college tuition. it was taken through no fault of their own but they never got it back and no one ever went to jail and justice was never done and that is not the american

way. the dream that their children is going to have a better life seems more and more elusive as the cost of college and housing goes up and up. student debt now surpasses credit card debt and consumer debt. and more college graduates are living at home than in decades. it is not their reality. talk to the people of my home county of queens. go to the gas station on hillside avenue where i worked, the peas re izzeria. this opposition and this conflict is what is causing the rough waters we see and feel. we understand the anger and we will address it.

today, i am proposing a middle class recovery act. it has three components. jobs and infrastructure, access to education, and lower taxes. our top objective is to keep growing and attracting jobs to new york. especially middle class jobs. we must continue our investment in building the infrastructure that will support 21st century economies. new york has lived off of its inheritance for too long. we must build for tomorrow, since other countries and states will continue to pass us by. master our sustained growth. this year, we build a faster and better subway system with 1200 new cars, dozens of rehabbed in our subway stations and 20 rebuilt commuter stops. and let's give chairman of the mta a big round of applause for

the good work he's doing. please stand. [ applause ] we are building a new laguardia and last week, we announced a $10 billion plan for a new john f. kennedy airport. we will be announcing other important infrastructure projects, statewide this week. at the same time, we must be ever mindful of the present threat of terrorists, especially in new york city. our success breeds envy and envy makes us a target. so when we build, we will be implementing new anti-terrorism prevention measures, increase police presence at our bridges, tunnels, and airports. new electronic security and

tolling equipment that will read license plates both to move traffic faster but also afford police and new effective law enforcement tool they've never had before. and we must continue to invest in the industries of tomorrow. in this state with all of our diversity, there is no one size fits all. so we work region by region in developing economies. in buffalo, our medical research industry is growing in combination with the uv medical school. in rochester, the engineering legacy of xerox is birthing the photonics industry. rotcs are doing great work and i propose another $750 million in economic developments to keep the growth coming and the jobs being delivered.

today, i'm excited to announce we'll invest $650 million to help fuel the new life sciences economy starting right here in new york city. we are partnering with johnson and johnson and the genome center to advance cutting edge genetic research that will save lives and create jobs and new york is the place to do it. we will also work to strengthen our outer boroughs. we'll invest in the king's bridge armory and orchard beach and more desperately needed

restoration opportunities and we will invest $50 million at montefiore hospital. we will offer residents of staten island permanent verrazano toll reduction and make part of the cuny system. queens will see two new airports and a new jfk and a new laguardia because i'm from queen quee queens. and we want to make brooklyn a new model for health care and incorporating prevention strategies into lifestyle and community development. better food and diets with green markets offering new york

certified organic products from farms and businesses in new york. we will be building more recreation facilities, more community-based clinics, and we will make brooklyn a model for wellness. we have an exciting opportunity to attract jobs because the economic cycle has turned. many corporations that went overseas for cheap labor have learned the very important lesson. they learned that sometimes you get what you pay for and they're coming back to the u.s. and the key to jobs is having an education. advanced manufacturing requires skills and an education.

the truth is that automation has taken american jobs far more than any immigrant has taken american jobs. these economic changes have always been happening. textile workers protested machines and steam engines would destroy their livelihoods. in 1928, "the new york times" headline proclaimed march of machines makes idle hands. in 1961, president kennedy declared the major domestic challenge of the 1960s was to maintain full employment when automation is replacing men. we have been through this before. technology takes jobs but then it creates more jobs than it

destroys. who gets them? people with an education get them. and at this time in history, as leaders of this state, it is our mission to lead the way and prepare our people for those jobs and bring those jobs back home to new york and that's why in this session, [ applause ] and that is why in this session, i am proposing tuition-free college at cuny and community colleges for students and families up to $125,000. that's 80% of our people, 1

million families. it will change lives. and it will restore hope for thousands of children who never believed they could make it to college. this program, go ahead. [ applause ] that's only because you're my daughter. this program is the statement of new york values. education should be a right, in the a privilege. it shouldn't be about your income or your zip code or your ethnicity. and that's why i also propose the dream act to help make all of our children's dreams come true. to further level the playing

field, we will offer additional help to children in schools with poor districts. in 2017, my friends, the "p" word, poverty, is still a challenge we must address. we are proud that we pioneered our statewide pre-k, the first in the nation but we need more. today, we are announcing a new pilot after-school program that will target new york city and other cities in the state with our poorest communities. it will provide extended school hours for after-school mentoring, tutoring, and recreation all in a safe environment. means keeping regulations sensible, the government

entrepreneurial and most importantly, taxes competitive. this year, i will propose that we provide additional relief to working and middle class families with a middle class child care tax credit. the average annual child care cost for 2 is $25,000 per year. this year, we will double the child tax credit to help reduce the child care cost for more than 200,000 hard working new york families and that will make a real difference in the way people live. i believe these measures will help alleviate the middle class anger. people focused energy, generated by that anger and when they focus that energy and they do it

in a positive way, it can be a great force for reform. but misdirected, that anger can be destructive. it can scapegoat and it can demonize and it can spread fear of those who are different. and it can destroy the uniquely american and progressive prinls principles that are the foundation of this country. the hate crimes are disturbing. the kkk flyers, swastikas, white supremacists and anti-sme metti rants happening across the state. it is disgusting and it is ignorant and it is anti-american. [ applause ]

because as we know in new york better than anywhere, we are all imdwramigrants unless you're a native american. we all come from different places and not just coexist in america but cooperate and we work together and forge community. that is what makes this nation unique on the globe. we share benefits and we share burdens without discrimination or judgment. that is the american promise and that is the new york legacy. new york knows that our progressive principles of acceptance and diversity are not the enemy of our middle class. and we know that the middle class is not the enemy of our progressive beliefs. in fact, it was the progressive policies that created the

nation's middle class in the first place. [ applause ] president roosevelt put people while he regulated banks and a minimum wage and created labor rights that built labor unions, social security and build infrastructure all at the same time. the answer for people who believe they're not getting a big enough piece of the american pie is not to try to take the piece of pie from your neighbor. it is not the fight for the scraps left by the rich the answer is to grow the pie for all, and that's what we have to

do. [ applause ] and if it is going to be a debate in this nation, which way to go forward, you have heard our philosophy and if it is a debate, then we stand with abraham lincoln who said and i quote, america will never be destroyed from the outside if we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves. we stand with cuomo who said some people believe the wagon train will not make it to the front tier unless some of the young, some of the old, some of the weak are left behind by the side of the trail. we believe in something else. we believe that we can make it all the way with the whole family in tact.

at these stormy times of instability and confusion, let the great state of new york serve as a safe harbor for our progressive principles and social justice that made america. we will hold the torch high but light the way. that is new york's promise and it is unequivocal and this promise is not just in words. it will be in actions. we will protect the social progress that we have made and we will push even harder. our new york promise starts with the private sector partnership with law firms so that every new immigrant is protected with

legal representation, even if they cannot afford it. next, we will expand the indigent legal services to honor the constitutional promise of g gideon versus wayneright. we will improve the justice system and end racial and resource inequities. we will propose ground breaking perfo performance and raise liability from 16 to 18.

we will reform our system the way the public safety risk posed by an individual because we accomplish absolutely nothing, locking up people for years who pose no threat to the public who we've not had the right to a trial. we will honor the promise of the speedy trial because reicher's island is an insult to lady justice. [ applause ] i want to thank our great chief judge of the court of appeals, janet defiore. thank you for the guidance and advice on these reforms.

the new york promise continues because we believe individual health is public health and quality affordable health care is a human right. we will not go back to a place where nearly 3 million new yorkers are uninsured or medicaid is decimated or our world class new york health care system is dismantled. we will not allow that to happen in the state of new york. [ applause ] and we're going to work with 1199 and the greater new york hospital association to make sure that doesn't happen. [ applause ]

we will protect our environment because we believe in the native american proverb that said we did not inherit the land from our parents but borrowing it from our children. we will record and develop offshore wind power and lower the reggie emission caps by 30% by the year 2030. [ applause ] we will take bold steps to make us safer. new york city sits 30 miles from a ticking time bomb. the indian point nuclear power plant. nuclear power plant, nuclear power can be a useful bridge as we transfer to renewables, there is no doubt. but indian point is located in the most densely populated area of our state and in the most

densely populated area on the globe. there is no other nuclear power plant closer to as densely a plant closer to as densely a populated area. god forbid there's an accident. evacuation of this region would be all but impossible. i have been there many times to the plant to review operational issues, and there have been many operational issues. i have personally been trying to close it down for 15 years. finally this year, i'm proud to announce that we have an agreement. indian point will close in four years, 14 years ahead of schedule. [ applause ]

it will close at no cost to the state. our plan identifies sources of replacement power and transitions workers to new jobs. this agreement eliminates a major risk, provides welcome relief. new yorkers can sleep a little better. i want to thank our new york state attorney general who really did great work on this matter. please, eric, stand so we can acknowledge you. [ applause ] i'd also like to ask richard kauffman and jim malatros to stand, who did great work on my team. [ applause ] we will improve our democratic processes. we will propose early voting and automatic voter registration

because we should do everything we can to actually get people to vote. [ applause ] we will advance women's rights and equal pay by adopting salary history blind hiring practices and requiring all state contractors to report employees' gender and pay. [ applause ] and make no mistake. new york will always stand up and stand tall and stand firm to protect a woman's right to choose. [ applause ] we will fight the scourge of homelessness. last year we made an historic

$20 billion commitment to fight pervasive homelessness and the affordable housing shortage. the money is there. the largest state commitment in history, $20 billion. four months ago i signed a memorandum of understanding to release the funds. neither the assembly nor the senate have agreed to move the funds forward. today i call on them to advance this historic plan initiated in 2016. it provides 100,000 units of affordable housing across the state and 6,000 units of supportive housing primarily in new york city. we need it. we need it now. we need it in the winter. we need it in the cold. it is time for the state legislature to act.

[ applause ] we will enforce our anti-discrimination and our hate crime laws in every instance of prejudice. i am proposing a new state policing department of human rights, education, and enforcement task force because hate and discrimination have no home in new york, and no infraction will be tolerated, period. [ applause ] we will also come together as new yorkers under cardinal dolan's efforts to organize interfaith religious leaders and congregations to share and educate new yorkers about the commonalities in our different faiths because religious freedom and individual liberty are new

york hallmarks, and we need to focus on religious commonalities and similar foundations as opposed to artificial distinctions. we're pleased that the cardinal will be leading that effort. thank you, your eminence. [ applause ] please stand. in closing, my friends, yes, we have challenges. it is a challenging time. but we have been challenged before. we've been challenged time and time again. and if there's one thing new york knows, we know how to get up after we've been knocked down, and we know how to face a challenge. it is who we are in our essence. we will calm the waters. we will stop the opposing

currents, and we will align the energy of both. and when all are headed in the same direction, that will create a current that is so strong, it pulls all forward. because as new yorkers living in this great state of diversity, we know inherently that anger, one against the other, never works. and the only thing that works is engendering a spirit where we help one another. we today gather at the site of 9/11 that made this statement so clear. this is the site where you saw the greatest hatred and the greatest cowardice and the greatest anger in the attack. but it is also the site where you saw the greatest response,

which was love and reaching out and understanding and people coming together and not seeing differences, but seeing souls and character and fellow human beings, and seeing americans. and we saw that unity is undefeatable. and people came from not just all over the state. they came from all across the country. they came from all across the world. and they said, we're not new yorkers, but we're here to help because we're human beings. and when we are at our best, we don't focus on the difference and the disparity. we focus on the humanity and the commonality. that's what this is all about. in new york, we know it. why?

because new york was the stepping-off place for america. it is the laboratory of the american experiment in democracy. it is 18 million people from all across the world. and if you want to start to point fingers at people who are different, you're going to be pointing fingers all day long. and there is only one strategy to make this place work, which was to come together and see the humanity and cooperate and understand that this is about putting people together and not pulling people apart. it's not about upstate or downstate. it's upstate and downstate. it's not democrat or republican. it's democrat and republican. it's not christian or muslim or jew. it's christian and muslim and jew. [ applause ] it's old immigrant, and it's new immigrant.

it's rich and middle class and poor, and it's black and white and brown. and it's forging community from that group and that alliance. and that is new york. that is what we do. [ applause ] our founding fathers -- our founding fathers said it all in three words. e pluribus unum. out of many, one. that was the founding premise of the nation, and that is the enduring promise of the nation. that is a lesson that lives in this state, and our people need to know today that, yes, the winds are strong. and, yes, the seas are rough.

and, yes, our principles are being challenged. but new york will show this nation once again how to heed our better angels and that the greatest success is shared success. and that we build the brightest future together. excelsior and god bless you. [ applause ] sunday night on q&a -- >> in all these years i have never seen a case where the snowden case where so uncritically journalists have accepted information from a single source, edward snowden, who is in