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Clinton Cabinet Confirmation Hearing; Hillary Clinton Hearing

Aired January 13, 2009 - 10:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

SEN. JOHN KERRY (D), CHAIRMAN, FOREIGN RELATIONS COMMITTEE: But we're going to have a ten-minute round. We have not yet obviously been able to have our organizational meeting so we'll have a chance to talk about procedures going forward. But today we will go as we have in the past as a matter of seniority. My hope is we can get a full round, maybe plus, before we break. We will take a break at about 12:45 until 2:00, thereabouts.
And that's by agreement with Senator Clinton and some other needs that we have to attend to. We also intend to try to do the business meeting in order to try to expedite this nomination Thursday morning. When we have another hearing on another nominee.

So we look forward to trying to have the cooperation of everybody to be able to do that. I think Senator Lugar, again, spoke for the committee in expressing our desire to have a secretary of state in place, and ready to go, as rapidly as possible, and obviously, on Tuesday of next week. That said, let me turn - I know, Senator Schumer, you are being very patient and we appreciate it. And Senator Dodd.

SEN. CHRISTOPHER DODD (D), CONNECTICUT: Thank you, very much, Mr. Chairman. I apologize to my colleagues, but as we're in the midst of all of this, this is sort of a New York day, I'll leave here, and Shawn Donovan is the nominee to be the new secretary of HUD, and I have to chair that hearing as chairman of the banking committee.

Mr. Duncan is the designee to be the new secretary of education. I'm the ranking democrat on that committee, as well. So we have a busy day in front of us, and I'm going to be very, very brief and ask consent, Mr. Chairman, that a longer statement be included in the record. But I wanted to first of all commend you, Mr. Chairman. This is a - you are so well-suited to this job as chairman of this committee. Your background and experience, your knowledge of these issues. And I'm very excited about your leadership of this committee.

And let me, as well, underscore the points you made about Claiborne Pell, and Dick Lugar as well Joe Biden. We have been blessed in this committee over the years to have these people chair this committee, and you're going to carry on in that tradition.

Let me also welcome and congratulate my wonderful friend from New York, the nominee, Senator Clinton. I have worked with her over the years, and I am very excited, as all of us are, about your nomination, and look forward to having a very strong and healthy relationship between the state department and this committee. I don't think it's overstating the case to say that you will be inheriting some of the largest and most difficult international challenges the United States has faced in over half a century. And has been said by Senator Kerry and Senator Lugar, the threat of terrorism, proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, still loom large, and our own prestige, influence and elements of our soft power have been questioned. And as our commitment to the rule of law.

And while these issues and others, including the crisis in Gaza, and our relationships with China and Russia, are very much at the forefront of our minds, I want to just raise one issue briefly before departing and hopefully getting back later in the day to discuss this with you further.

As I mentioned, I'm chairman of the banking committee. And the one issue that overlaps almost all of this, in many ways, is the global economic crisis. While we're very much aware of it here in our own country, the problems we're grappling with every single day, I think most are aware today, this is not just a localized problem.

In the sense, every other issue we are dealing with will be affected by our ability to grapple effectively with the economic crisis we face. This crisis has inflicted serious and wide-reaching damage to which no nation is immune. As important as our domestic response to this crisis, I think it is particularly critical that we develop a well-coordinated international strategy to deal with what in many ways, as fundamental to our own well-being is our physical security, our economic security.

Both the Senate committee on foreign relations, as well as the Senate committee on banking maintains jurisdiction over a wide array of international, economic issues. And my intent is, along with Senator Kerry and Senator Lugar, to work together with these issues. We have jurisdiction over the banking committee over many of the international institutions. And yet obviously it's a matter of deep concern to this committee, as well.

So we need to coordinate our activities. Of and I raise that, because the jurisdictional overlap is similar to the jurisdictional overlap that currently exists within the executive branch, the state department and the Treasury department.

Senator Clinton, you and I have discussed this issue briefly, and had a chance to talk about it. But I - in order to implement an effective international policy response to the economic crisis, we first must ensure that there is a coordinated leadership on this issue. And so I raise that point before leaving, you may address it in your statement, I'm not sure if you're going to or not, but it's tremendously important.

And I certainly look forward to working with Senator Kerry and you, and others on how we can coordinate our activities. Again, I welcome you. I'm excited about your leadership role as the new secretary of state. Again, I commend you and Senator - president-elect Obama for doing this. There has been a lot of speculation about having two candidates who sought the presidency, taking on these responsibilities.

I think it says volumes about both of you. The idea that this president-elect is not in any way threatened by a significant challenger to ask her to be a part of his team, and your willingness to step up and accept that challenge, as well, is I think what makes this country so unique in the eyes of the world. So I wish you the very best.

KERRY: Thank you, Senator Dodd, for those warm and generous comments. And we appreciate it. And we very much look forward, obviously, to working very closely with you on that. The international global economic linkages nowadays e really transformed foreign policy, and we're already looking within our staff structure on the committee for ways to try to address that more effectively.

Senator Schumer and Senator Clinton, you both have been very patient. We appreciate it enormously. Let me, as I introduce you, Senator Schumer, also welcome Chelsea. We are delighted to have you here. Your mother said, as we were walking across the desk, that she wished you weren't sitting behind her, but she could look at you up here. And so since your father served as an intern on this committee, maybe we could make you an intern for a day. Chairman's purgative. So if you want to come up here later and look, we're happy to welcome you. So Senator Schumer, thanks so much for joining here. Happy to have you here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: For Senator Schumer, or for Chelsea?

SCHUMER: Chelsea, for sure. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and it is a true honor to be here. I want to thank you, and ranking member Lugar, all the members of the committee for the opportunity, the honor, the true honor of introducing my friend and colleague, Senator Clinton.

Before I do, I want to congratulate you, Mr. Chairman, on your ascension to the chairmanship, and I share the confidence of many that you'll be a truly great chairman of this committee. We look forward to watching the committee work. Now, colleagues, I've known Hillary a long time. And I'm confident that there is no one, no one who would better serve our country and the world as the next secretary of state.

We're in a new era. The world is yearning for strong, but consultative American leadership in foreign policy. Hillary Rodham Clinton as secretary of state is exactly the right person at the right time. Hillary has spent more time under the national political spotlight than almost anyone. First as First Lady, then in her race for the New York senate seat, her subsequent eight years as senate, and then her historic victories in her campaign for the democratic presidential nomination, and now finally, as President-elect Obama's choice for secretary of state.

Through all of this time, Hillary has demonstrated the equanimity, the prudence, the fortitude that have made her an exceptional leader and public servant. In her years as first lady, Senator Clinton was one of the country's most important and best-loved ambassadors. She traveled to over 80 countries meeting with heads of state from the Czech Republic to Nepal. She served as a representative to the United Nations, addressing forums around the world. She has negotiated aid packages in Asia, pushed democratic reforms in the former Soviet block, and promoted peace plans in Northern Ireland and Serbia.

But Hillary didn't just meet with world leaders, she has met with private citizens around the world whose lives are shaped by international decisions. She has met survivors of the Rwandan genocide. She has met with advocates for social justice and women's rights in Pakistan, and with the families of children kidnapped in Uganda. And after serving her country eight years as First Lady when most people would retire, Hillary stepped up and has served as a vital and powerful advocate on behalf of the people of New York.

Going from the White House to White Plains, Hillary has continued to show just as much acumen in her dealings with national and global leaders as she shows empathy and interest in the needs of private individuals around New York. In all of her many roles as a public servant, Hillary has always shown the insight to see the heart of a problem, the courage to tackle it, and the talent to solve it.

What could be a better description of what we need as secretary of state? And no matter how abstract the problem, no matter how esoteric the question, Hillary has never once forgotten the people whose lives and happiness depend on her work. Hillary, you've dedicated your career to improving the lives of the least fortunate. Since your work 30 years ago with the Children's Defense Fund, you've come a long way, but you've always retained your tireless efforts to better the world.

For me, it's been a pleasure and a privilege serving with you in the Senate. And I will sorely miss you. But I wish you the best of luck, and I know that you will be a brilliant secretary of state.

KERRY: Thank you, very much, Senator Schumer. And I know we need to excuse you, post-hug to go about other duties. And I know that our republican colleagues are thrilled that those duties no longer include being chairman of the campaign committee, so -

SCHUMER: Mr. Chairman, it is, as Chris Dodd mentioned, the New York day, and I have to go introduce Shawn Donovan.

KERRY: We understand that.

SCHUMER: Thank you, colleagues. Appreciate it very much.

KERRY: Well, Madam secretary designate, we are again really delighted to welcome you here, and we look forward to your testimony and have a chance to get some questions in. Thanks so much.

SEN. HILLARY CLINTON (D), SECRETARY OF STATE NOMINEE: Thank you, very much, Mr. Chairman. And as he's leaving, I want to thank Senator Schumer for that generous introduction. And even more, for his support and our partnership over so many years. He has been a valued and trusted colleague, a friend, and a tribute to the people of New York whom he has served with such distinction.

Mr. Chairman, I join in offering my congratulations, as you take on this new role. You've traveled quite a distance from that day back in 1971, when you testified here as a young Vietnam veteran. You have never faltered in your care and concern for our nation, its foreign policy, and its future. And America is in good hands with you leading this committee.

And Senator Lugar, I look forward to working with you on a wide range of issues, especially those of greatest concern to you, including the non-Lugar initiative. And let me say a word to Senator Voinovich, because of his announcement yesterday, I want to commend you for your service to the people of Ohio, and I ask for your help in the next two years on the management issues that you have long championed.

It is an honor and privilege to be here this morning as President- elect Obama's nominee for secretary of state. I am deeply grateful for the trust and keenly aware of the responsibility that the president-elect has placed in me to serve our country. And to serve our people at a time of such grave dangers and great possibilities. If confirmed, I will accept the duties of the office with gratitude, humility and firm determination to represent the United States as energetically and faithfully as I can.

The same time, I must confess that sitting across the table from so many colleagues brings me sadness, too. I love the senate. And if you confirm me for this new role, it will be hard to say goodbye to so many members, republicans and democrats, whom I have come to know, admire, and respect deeply. And to this institution, where I have been so proud to serve on behalf of the people of New York, through some very difficult days over the past eight years.

But I assure you, I will be in frequent consultation and conversation with the members of this committee, the House foreign affairs committee, the appropriations committees, and with Congress as a whole. And I look forward to working with my good friend, Vice President-elect Biden, who has been a valued colleague and a very valued chairman of this committee.

For me, consultation is not a catch word. It is a commitment. The President-elect and I believe we must return to the time-honored principle of bipartisanship in our foreign policy. An approach that has served our nation well. I look forward to working with all of you, to renew America's leadership through diplomacy that enhances our security, advances our interests, and reflects our values.

Today, our nation and our world face great peril. From ongoing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and to the continuing threats posed by terrorist extremists, to the spread of weapons of mass destruction, from the dangers of climate change to pandemic disease, from financial meltdown, to worldwide poverty. The 70 days since the presidential election offer fresh evidence of these challenges. New conflict in Gaza, terrorist attacks in Mumbai, mass killings and rapes in the Congo, cholera in Zimbabwe, reports of record high green house gases and rapidly melting glaciers and even an ancient form of terror, piracy asserting itself in modern form off the horn of Africa. Always and especially in the crucible of these global challenges. Our over riding duty is to protect and advance America's security, interest and values, to keep our people, our nation and our allies secure, to promote economic growth and share prosperity at home and abroad. And to strengthen America's position of global leadership. So we remain a positive force in the world, whether in working to preserve the health of our planet or expanding opportunity for people on the margins whose progress and prosperity will add to our own.

Our world has undergone an extraordinary transformation in the last two decades. In 1989, a wall fell and old barriers began to crumble after 40 years of a cold war that had influenced every aspect of our foreign policy. By 1999, the rise of more democratic and open societies, the expanding reach of world markets, and the explosion of information technology had made globalization the word of the day.

For most people, it had primarily an economic connotation. But, in fact, we were already living in a profoundly interdependent world, in which old rules and boundaries no longer held fast. A world in which both the promise and the peril of the 21st century could not be contained by national borders or vast distances. Economic growth lifted more people out of poverty faster than at any time in our history. But economic crises can sweep across the globe even more quickly.

A coalition of nations stopped ethnic cleansing in the Balkans, but the conflict in the Middle East continues to inflame tensions from Africa to Asia. Nonstate actors fight poverty, improve health, and expand education in the poorest parts of the world, while other nonstate actors traffic in drugs and children and women and kill innocent civilians across the globe.

Now in 2009, the clear lesson of the last 20 years is that we must both combat the threats and seize the opportunities of our interdependence, and to be effective in doing so, we must build a world with more partners and fewer adversaries. America cannot solve the most pressing problems on our own, and the world cannot solve them without America. The best way to advance America's interests in reducing global threats and seizing global opportunities, is to design and implement global solutions.

That isn't a philosophical point. This is our reality. The President-elect and I believe that foreign policy must be based on a marriage of principles and pragmatism, not rigid ideology. On facts, and evidence. Not emotion or prejudice. Our security, our vitality, and our ability to lead in today's world oblige us to recognize the overwhelming fact of our interdependence.

I believe that American leadership has been wanting, but is still wanted. You must use what has been called "smart power," the full range of tools at our disposal, diplomatic, economic, military, political, legal and cultural, picking the right tool or combination of tools for each situation. With smart power, diplomacy will be the vanguard of our policy.

This is not a radical idea. The ancient Roman poet Terrence declared that in every endeavor, the seemly course for wise men is to try persuasion first. The same truth finds wise women, as well. I assure you that if I am confirmed, the State Department will be firing on all cylinders to provide forward thinking, sustain diplomacy in every part of the world.

Applying pressure wherever it may be needed, but also looking for opportunities, exerting leverage, cooperating with our military and other agencies of government, partnering with nongovernmental organizations, the private sector and international organizations, using modern technologies for public outreach. Empowering negotiators who can protect our interests, while understanding those of our negotiating partners.

Diplomacy is hard work. But when we work hard, diplomacy can work. Not just to diffuse tensions, but to achieve results that advance our security interests and values. Secretary Gates, as the chairman said, has been particularly eloquent in articulating the importance of diplomacy. As he knows, it's not often that a Secretary of Defense makes the case for adding resources to the State Department. And elevating the role of the diplomatic core.

Thankfully, Secretary Gates is more concerned about having a unified, agile, and effective U.S. strategy that spending precious time and energy on petty turf wars. As he has stated, our civilian institutions of diplomacy and development have been chronically undermanned and under funded for far too long. That is a statement that I can only heartily say amen to.

President-elect Obama has emphasized that the State Department must be fully empowered and funded to confront multi-dimensional challenges from thwarting terrorism to spreading health and prosperity in places of human suffering. And I will speak in greater detail about that in a moment. We should also use the United Nations and other institutions, whenever possible and appropriate.

Both democratic and republican presidents have understood that these institutions, when they work well enhanced our influenced. And when they don't work well, as in the cases of Darfur and in the farce of Sudan's election, the former U.N. commission on human rights, we should work with like-minded friends to make them more effective.

We will leave with diplomacy, because that's the smart approach. But we also know that military force will sometimes be necessary, and we will rely on it to protect our people and our interests when and where needed as a last resort. All the while, we must remember that to promote our interests around the world, America must be an exemplar of our values. Senator Isaacson made the point to me the other day that our nation must lead by example other than edict.

Our history has shown that we are most effective when we see the harmony between our interests abroad and our values at home. Our first Secretary of State, Thomas Jefferson, subscribed to that view. Reminding us across the centuries, the interest of a nation, when well-understood, will be found to coincide with their moral duties. Senator Lugar, I'm going to borrow your words here, too. As you said, the United States cannot feed every person, lift every person out of poverty, cure every disease or stop every conflict. But our power and status have conferred upon us a tremendous responsibility to humanity.

Of course we must be realistic. Even under the best of circumstances, our nation cannot solve every problem, or meet every global need. We don't have unlimited time, treasure, or manpower, especially with our own economy faltering and our budget deficits growing. So to fulfill our responsibility to our children, to protect and defend our nation while honoring our values, we have to establish priorities.

I'm not trying to mince words here. As my colleagues in the Senate know, establishing priorities means taking tough choices. Because these choices are so important to the American people, we must be disciplined in evaluating them, weighing the costs and consequences of action and inaction, gauging the probability of success, and insisting on measurable results.

Right after I was nominated, a friend told me, the world has so many problems, you've got your work cut out for you.

Well, I agree, but I don't get up every morning thinking only about the threats and dangers we face. In spite of all the adversity and complexity, there are so many opportunities for America out there, calling forth the optimism and can-do spirit that has marked our progress for more than two centuries. Too often, we see the ills that plague us more clearly than the possibilities in front of us.

But it is the real possibility of progress of that better life, free from fear and want and discord that offers our most compelling message to the rest of the world. I've had my chance to lay out and submit my views on a broad array of issues in written responses to questions from the committee. So this statement will only outline some of the major challenges we face, and the major opportunities we see, as well.

First, President-elect Obama is committed to responsibly ending the war in Iraq and employing a broad strategy in Afghanistan that reduces threats to our safety, and enhances the prospects of stability and peace. Right now, our men and women in uniform, our diplomats and our aid workers are risking their lives in these two countries. They have done everything we have asked of them and more.

But over time, our larger interests will be best served by safely and responsibly withdrawing our troops from Iraq, supporting a transition to full Iraqi responsibility for their sovereign nation. Rebuilding our overtaxed military, and reaching out to other nations to help stabilize the region and employ a broader arsenal of tools to fight terrorism. We will use all the elements of our power, diplomacy, development and defense. To work with those in Afghanistan and Pakistan, who want to root out Al Qaeda, the Taliban, and other violent extremists who threaten them, as well as us, and what President-elect Obama has called the central front in the fight against terrorism.

As we focus on Iraq, Pakistan and Afghanistan, we must also actively pursue a strategy of smart power in the Middle East that addresses the security needs of Israel, and a legitimate, political, and economic aspirations of the Palestinians that effectively challenges Iran, to end its nuclear weapons program and its sponsorship of terror, and persuade both Iran and Syria to abandon their dangerous behavior, and become constructive regional actors.

And that also strengthens our relationship with Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, other Arab states, along with Turkey and our partners in the gulf, to involve them in securing a lasting peace in the region. As intractable as the Middle East problems may seem, and many presidents, including my husband, have spent years trying to work out a resolution. We cannot give up on peace.

The President-elect and I understand and are deeply sympathetic to Israel's desire to defend itself under the current conditions. And to be free of shelling by Hamas rockets. However, we have also been reminded of the tragic humanitarian cost of conflict in the Middle East and pain of the suffering of Palestinian and Israeli civilians.

This must only increase our determination, to seek a just and lasting peace agreement that brings real security to Israeli, normal and positive relations with its neighbors, independence, economic progress, and security to the Palestinians in their own state. We will exert every effort to support the work of Israelis and Palestinians who seek that result. It is critical, not only to the parties involved, but to undermining the forces of alienation and violent extremism around the world.

For terrorism, we must have a comprehensive strategy. Levering intelligence, diplomacy and military assets to defeat Al Qaeda and other terrorist groups. By rooting out their networks and drying up their support for violent and nihilistic extremism. The gravest threat that America faces is the danger that weapons of mass destruction will fall into the hands of terrorists. We must curve the spread and use of these weapons - nuclear, biological, chemical or cyber. And prevent the development and use of dangerous new weapons.

Therefore, while defending against the threat of terrorism, we will also seize the parallel opportunity to get America back in the business of engaging other nations to reduce nuclear stockpiles. The non-proliferation treaty is the cornerstone of the non-proliferation regime, and the United States must exercise leadership needed to shore it up. So we will seek agreements with Russia to secure further reductions in weapons under start(ph).

We will work with this committee and the Senate toward ratification of the comprehensive test band treaty, and we will dedicate efforts to revive negotiations on a verifiable sessile(ph) material cutoff treaty. At the same time, we will continue to work to prevent proliferation in North Korea and Iran. To secure loose nuclear weapons and materials and to shut down the market for selling them.

As Senator Lugar has pushed for so many years. These threats, however, cannot be addressed in isolation. Smart power requires reaching out to both friends and adversaries to bolster old alliances and to forge new ones. That means strengthening the alliances that have stood the test of time, especially with our NATO partners and our allies in Asia. Our alliance with Japan is a corner stone of American policy in Asia, essential to maintaining peace and prosperity in the Asia Pacific region and based on shared values and mutual interests. We also have crucial economic and security partnerships with South Korea, Australia and other friends in ASEAN. We will build on our economic and political partnership with India, the world's most populous democracy, and a nation with growing influence in the world. Our extra relationships with confidence and trust with Europe will be deepened.

Disagreements are inevitable but on most global issues we have no more trusted allies. The new administration will reach out across the Atlantic, to leaders in France, Germany, the United Kingdom and others, including and especially the new democracies. President- elect Obama and I seek a future of cooperative engagement with the Russian government on matters of strategic importance while standing strongly for American values and international norms.

China is critically important as an actor who will be changing the global landscape. We want a positive and cooperative relationship with China, one where we deepen and strengthen our ties on a number of issues and candidly address different differences where they persist. But this is not a one way effort. Much of what we will do depends on the choices China makes about its future at home and abroad.

With both Russia and China, we should work together on vital security and economic issues like terrorism, proliferation, climate change and reforming financial markets.

The world is now, as Senator Dodd said, the cross currents of the most severe global economic contraction since the Great Depression. The history of that crisis teaches us the consequences of diplomatic failures and uncoordinated reactions.

We have already seen this crisis extend beyond the housing and banking sectors, and our solutions will have to be as wide as scope as the causes themselves, taking into account the complexities of the global economy, the geopolitics and the continued political and economic repercussions from the damage already done.

But here again, as we work to repair the damage, we can find new ways of working together. For too long we've merely talked about the need to engage emerging powers in global economic governance. The time to take action is upon us. The recent G-20 meeting that President Bush hosted was a first step, but developing patterns of sustained engaragement will take hard work and careful negotiation.

We know that emerging markets, like China and India, Brazil and South Africa and Indonesia are feeling effects of the current crisis. And we all stand to benefit, in both the short and long-term, if they are part of the solution and become partners in maintaing global economic stability.

In our efforts to return to economic growth here in the United States we have an especially critical need; to work more closely with Canada, our largest trading partner, and Mexico, our third-largest. Canada and Mexico are also our big suppliers of imported energy. More broadly, we must build a deeper partnership with Mexico to address the shared dangers arising from drug trafficking and the challenges along our border. An effort begun this week with the meeting between President-elect Obama and President Calderon.

Throughout our hemisphere, we have opportunities to enhance our relationships that will benefit all of us. We will return to a policy of vigorous involvement, partnership even, with Latin America, from the Caribbean to Central America to South America. We share common political, economic and strategic interests with our friends to the south, as well as many of our citizens who share ancestral and cultural legacies. We're looking forward to working on many issues during the Summit of the Americas in April. And taking up the president-elect's call for a new energy partnership around shared technology and new investments in renewable energy.

In Africa, the foreign policy objectives of the Obama administration are rooted in security, political, economic and humanitarian interests. Including combatting al Qaeda's efforts to seek safe havens in failed states in the horn of Africa -- helping African nations conserve their natural resources and reaping fair benefits from them. Stopping war in the Congo, ending autocracy in Zimbabwe, and human devastation in Darfur.

But we also intend to support the African democracies, like South Africa and Ghana, which just had its second peaceful change of power in a democratic election. We must work hard with our African friends to reach the millenium development goals and help education and economic opportunity.

Many significant problems we face will challenge us not only on a bilateral basis, but all nations. You, Mr. Chairman, were among the very first in a growing chorus from both parties to recognize that climate change is an unambiguous security threat. At the extreme it threatens of very existence, but well efore that point, it could well incite new wars of an old kind over basic resources like food, water, aeroble land.

President-elect Obama has said America must be a leader in developing and implementing a global and coordinated response to climate change. We will participate in the upcoming UN Copenhagen Global Conference and a Global Energy Forum and will pursue an energy policy that reduces our carbon emissions while reducing our dependence on foreign oil and gas. Fighting climate change and enhancing our economic security.

George Marshal (ph) noted that our gravest enemies are often not nations or doctrines but hunger, poverty, desperation and chaos. So to create more friends adn fewer enemies, we must find common ground and common purpose with other peoples and nations. To overcome hatred, violence, lawlessness and despair.

The Obama administration recognizes that even when we cannot fully agree with some governments, we share a bond of humanity with their people. By investing in that common humanity, we advance our common security.

Mr. Chairman, you were one of the first again to underscore the importance of our involvement in the global AIDS fight. Now, thanks to a variety of efforts, including President Bush's emergency plan for AIDS relief, as well as the work of NGOs and foundations, the United States enjoys widespread support in public opinion polls in many African countries. Even among Muslim populations in Tanzania and Kenya, America is seen as a leader in the fight against AIDS, malaria and TB.

We have an opportunity to build on this success by partnering with NGOs to help expand health clinics in Africa, so more people can have access to life-saving drugs. Fewer mothers transmit HIV to their children and fewer lives are lost.

We can generate more goodwill through other kinds of social investments, again, partnering with entire international organizations, NGOs, to build schools and train teachers. The president-elect supports a global education fund to bolster secular education around the world.

I want to emphasize the importance to us of this bottom's-up approach. The president-elect and I believe in this so strongly. Investing in our common humanity through social development is not marginal to our foreign policy, but essential to the realization of our goals.

More than 2 billion people worldwide live on less than $2 a day. They're facing rising food prices and widespread hunger. We have to expand civil and political rights in countries that are plagued by poverty, hunger and disease, but our pleas will fall on deaf ears, unless democracy actually improves peoples lives, while weeding out the corruption that too often stands in the way of progress.

Our foreign policy must reflect our deep commitment to help millions of oppressed people around the world, and of particular concern to me is the plight of women and girls, who comprise the majority of the world's unhealthy, unschooled, unfed, and unpaid. If half the world's population remains vulnerable to economic, political, legal and social marginalization, our hope of advancing democracy and prosperity is in serious jeopardy.

The United States must be an unequivocal and unwaivering voice in support of women's rights in every country on every continent. As a personal aside, I want to mention that President-elect Obama's mother, Ann Dunham, was a pioneer in microfinance in Indonesia. In my own work on microfinance around the world from Bangladesh to Chile, to Vietnam and to South Africa and many other countries, I've seen firsthand how small loans given to poor woman to starts businesses can raise standards of living, and transform local economies.

The president-elect's mother had planned to attend a microfinance forum at the Beijing women's conference in 1995 that I participated in. Unfortunately, she was very ill, and couldn't travel. And sadly passed away a few months later.

But I think it's fair to say that her work in international development, the care and concern she showed for women and for poor people around the world, mattered greatly to her son, our president- elect. And I believe that it has certainly informed his views and his vision. We will be honored to carry on Ann Dunham's work in the years ahead.

Mr. Chairman, I know we'll address many issues in the question and answer session. But I want to underscore a final point. Ensuring that our State Department is functioning at its best is absolutely essential to America's success. The president-elect and I believe strongly that we need to invest in our capacity to conduct vigorous American diplomacy, provide the kind of foreign assistance that I've mentioned, reach out to the world, and operate effectively alongside our military.

Now, the entire state department bureaucracy in Thomas Jefferson's day consisted of a cheap clerk, three regular clerks, and a messenger. And his entire budget was $56,000 a year. But over the past 219 years, the world has certainly changed. Now the department consists of foreign service officers, the civil services, and our locally engaged staff, working not only at Foggy Bottom, but in offices across our country, and in some 260 posts around the world. And USAID carries out its critical development missions in some of the most difficult places on our earth.

These public servants are two often the unsung heroes. They are in the trenches, putting our policies and values to work in a complicated and dangerous world. Many risk their lives, and some have lost their lives in service to our nation. They need and deserve the resources, training and support to succeed.

I know this committee, and I hope the American public understand that foreign service officers and civil service professionals and development experts are doing invaluable work, and it is the work of the American people. Whether helping American businesses make in- roads in new markets, or being on the other end of the phone when someone gets in trouble beyond our shores, needs a passport, needs advice at an embassy, or doing the delicate work of diplomacy and development with foreign governments that leads to arms control and trade agreements, peace treaties and post-conflict reconstruction. Standing up for greater human rights, and empowerment, broader cultural understanding, and building alliances.

State Department is a large, multi-dimensional organization, but not the placid, idol bureaucracy that some have suggested. It is an out post for American values that protects our citizens and safeguards our Democratic institutions in times both turbulent and tame.

State Department employees offer a lifeline of hope and help. Often, the only lifeline for people in foreign lands who are oppressed, silenced and marginalized. We must not short-change them or ourselves.

One of my first priorities is to make sure that the State Department and the USAID have the resources they need. And I will be back to make the case to the committee for a full funding of the president's budget request. But I will work just as hard to make sure we manage those resources prudently, efficiently, and effectively.

Now, like most Americans, when I was growing up, I never had the chance to travel widely. Most of my early professional career was as a lawyer and advocate for children, and the poor who found themselves disadvantaged here at home. But during the eight years of my husband's presidency and now eight years as the Senator from New York, I have been privileged to travel on behalf of our country, and I've had the opportunity to get to know many world leaders.

As a member of the Senate Arms Services Committee, I've spent time with our military commanders, as well as our brave troops. I've immersed myself in a number of military issues, and I've spent many hours with American and non-American aid workers, businessmen and women, religious leaders, teachers, doctors, nurses, students, volunteers, all who have made it their mission to help other people across the world. And I've seen countless, ordinary people in foreign capitals, small towns, and rural villages who live in a world far removed from our experiences.

In recent years, as other nations have risen to compete for military, economic, and political influence, some have argued that we have reached the end of the American moment in world history. Well, I disagree.

Yes, the conventional paradigms have shifted, but America's success has never been solely a function of our power. It has always been rooted in and inspired by our values. With so many troubles here at home and around the world, millions of people are still trying to come to this country, legally and illegally. Why? Because we are guided by unchanging truths that all people are created equal, that each person has the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. And in these truths, we will find, as we have for more than two centuries, the courage, the discipline and the creativity to meet the challenges of this ever-changing world.

I am humbled to be a public servant and honored by the responsibility placed on me, should I be confirmed by our president-elect, who embodies the American dream. Not only here at home, but far beyond our shores. No matter how daunltiting the challenges may be, I have a steadfast faith in this country and in our people. And I am proud to be an American at the dawning of this new American moment.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and members of this committee, for granltding me your time and attention today. I know there is a lot more territory to cover, and I'd be delighted to answer questions.

SEN. JOHN KERRY (D), CHAIRMAN, FOREIGN RELATIONS COMMITTEE: Well, thank you very much, Senator for a comprehensive and thoughtful statement. And I can tell you from certainly this Senator's perspective, it's wonderful to hear so many of these issues set out as priorities for the new administration. And we're excited about the prospect of working with you in order to implement the policies in greater detail that will support the agenda that you've set out.

I just say to all my colleagues, I think we all know this, that this committee and the Congress and its role in foreign policy has been in its strongest when we have been bipartisan. And I think the old adage about politics ending at the waters' edge with respect to diplomacy and our national security interests is something that would serve us well as a guidepost, as we think about the enormity of the choices that we're going to face in the days ahead.

We will begin now a ten-minute question round, and in deference to Senator Corker, who has the same obligations as Senator Dodd, since we let Senator Dodd go, we're going to let him go after Senator Luger. Is that amenable to you? And then we'll go through -- is that all right?

So we'll start the clock running on a ten-minute series of questions. And I think, Senator, that in your opening, you wonderfully covered a broad array of the challenges. And the task, obviously, before all of us is really now to try hone in a little bit and see how these -- are really going to play out with specific regions and specific countries and challenges.

Obviously, one of the most pressing issues we face and it was underscored in the "New York Times" on Sunday, is the question of Iran's nuclear program. And the entire relationship with Iran, which was, needless to say, a subject of discussion throughout the campaign.

The time when Iran is going to be capable of producing enough weapons grade uranium to build a bomb, if they choose to, is very fast approaching. The clock is ticking, and yet Iran continues to defy the UN resolutions, enriching more uranium to reactor-grade levels and installing more and more centrifuges, failing to address the concerns of inspectors and so forth, and recent efforts to get tough, as you know, failed with respect to the UN Security Council.

So I would ask you, during the campaign, President-elect Obama said that he would employ, quote, "...big carrots and big sticks," to deal with Iran's nuclear program. We do know that there is a significant package of incentives already on the table from the P5 plus 1, and the prospect of -- of increased security council sanctions may be questionable, at best.

So could you share with us the thinking at this stage? I know it's early. But can you share with us what additional carrots the administration might have in mind, why do you believe those might be enough to change Iran's calculations. Are tougher sanctions achievable, and how are you and the administration viewing this at this point?

CLINTON: Well, thank you, Mr. Chairman. And obviously, the incoming administration views with great concern the role that Iran is playing in the world. Its sponsorship of terrorism, its continuing interference with the functioning of other governments, and its pursuit of nuclear weapons.

There is an un -- on going policy review that the Obama administration has undertaken. But I think as the president-elect said just this past weekend, our goal will be to do everything we can pursue through diplomacy, through the use of sanctions, through creating better coalitions with countries that we believe also have a big stake in preventing Iran from becoming a nuclear weapon power. To try to prevent this from occurring.

We are not taking any option off the table at all. But we will pursue a -- a new, perhaps different approach that will become a corner stone of what the Obama administration believes is an attitude toward engagement that might bear fruit.

We have no illusions, Mr. Chairman, that even with a new administration, looking to try to engage Iran in a way that might influence its behavior, that we can predict the results. But the president-elect is committed to that course, and we will pursue it.

KERRY: Do you believe that tougher UN sanctions from which to choose? And secondly, are they achievable?

CLINTON: You know, it's kind of like the experimenters' bias in a way. We won't know what we're capable of achieving until we're actually there working on it. We have a commitment to engaging with international organizations in a very intense and ongoing way.

We are going to be working with our friends and our adversaries in the United Nations. We're going to be making the case to members of the Security Council who have been either dubious or unwilling to cooperate up until now. That a nuclear-armed Iran is in no one's interests, under any circumstances.

So, Mr. Chairman, it's hard to predict how successful we will be, but I promise you, our very best efforts in doing all that we can to try to achieve greater international support for sanctions and actions that could actually influence the behavior of the Iranian government, the supreme leader and the religious council and the Revolutionary Guard and the Quds Force, because as you know so well, all of these are players.

And so our task will be to try to figure out the appropriate and effective pressure that will perhaps lead to us dissuading Iran from going forward.

KERRY: Well, I happen to agree with you, that it is, in fact, legitimately impossible to be able to determine exactly what options are available until you begin to get into a conversation and begin to see what the play is. But as a matter of fundamental American policy, let me ask you a question.

Is it the policy of the incoming administration, as a bottom line of our security interests and our policy, that it is unacceptable that Iran has a weapon under any circumstances, and that we will take any steps necessary to prevent that, or is there -- is it simply not desirable? I think as you said, it's in no one's interest, which is less than a formation (ph) of a prohibition.

CLINTON: Well, Mr. President-elect -- the president-elect, Mr. Chairman --

KERRY: I'll take that.

CLINTON: It was a Freudian slip. The president-elect --

KERRY: We're both subject to those, I want you to know. CLINTON: Indeed. On this subject, especially. The president-elect has said repeatedly it is unacceptable. It is going to be United States policy to pursue diplomacy, with all of its multitudinous tools, to do everything we can to prevenue Iranfrom becoming a nuclear weapons state. As I also said, no option is off the table. The president-elect has been very clear, that it is unacceptable, and that is our premise, and what we are going to be basing our actions on.

KERRY: The Bush administration sent Undersecretary Burns to the last round of those talks essentially as an observer. Do you plan to send a U.S. representative to engage directly in those kinds of discussions, almost immediately?

CLINTON: Mr. Chairman, we are looking at a range of possibilities. One very important aspect of the decisions we make is that we engage in consultation with our friends in the region and beyond. We don't want anything I say today or anything the president-elect says to take our friends and allies by surprise. So, we cannot tell you with specificity exactly the steps we will take.

But I think it's fair to say that the president-elect as recently as this weekend has said that we're going to be trying new approaches, because what we've tried has not worked. They are closer to nuclear weapons capacity today than they were. So, we're going to be looking broadly.

But in consultation, and I want to underscore that, because it's very important that those who have to live in the region, many of whom are our allies, Israel and others who have a legitimate set of concerns about Iran's growing power and its use of that power, should know that the Obama administration will be consulting broadly and deeply, so that when we move, we will move in concert, insofar as possible.

KERRY: Do you plan, personally, to engage in personal diplomacy with Iranian officials at high level in the near-term?

CLINTON: Well, again, Mr. Chairman, I want to wait to determine the exact contours of how we proceed until we're actually in office and have a chance to consult with others. Because it is very clear to me that we have not as full a brief as we need on the feelings of many of the important players. We have carefully hewed to the president- elect's position. There's one president at a time.

We have not spoken with foreign leaders, we have not -- in many instances, taken their calls, because we want to be very respectful of the ongoing work of the Bush administration. As soon as we are in a position to do so, we will be consulting, and we will be setting forth a series of actions, and we will be consulting and informing this committee.

KERRY: Well, I know you've been very careful about that. And I think it's been appropriate. And I think a wise course, and I look forward to you being able to get deeply engaged.

Last question, just quickly. Last year, six colleagues and I, including Senator Levin, wrote to Secretary Rice, urging her to establish an interest section in Tehran. It just seems counterproductive and almost incomprehensible that we're not on the ground in some of these places.

We don't have an ambassador in Syria, for instance. We should have. So, I would ask you if you have made a decision, and will there be -- will you proceed forward to create an intersection in Tehran and immediately put an ambassador back in Syria?

CLINTON: Again, Mr. Chairman, these are matters that are part of our policy review, and we will turn to them with, you know, great diligence and attention as soon as we were able to.

KERRY: Well, I hope the question establishes some sense of priority.

(LAUGHTER)

CLINTON: I think I got your drift, Mr. Chairman.

KERRY: Senator Lugar.

SEN. DICK LUGAR (R), INDIANA: Mr. Chairman, could you recognize Senator Corker...

KERRY; Yes, absolutely.

LUGAR: ... and Senator Feingold and then go to me?

KERRY: Yes, thank you very much. I'd be delighted to do that.

LUGAR: Expedite his work.

KERRY: Thank you so much.

COLLINS: I just want to give you an idea of what you have been listening to. In case you are just now joining us, this is the confirmation hearings taking place, of course, in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee for Senator Hillary Clinton to become secretary of state.

We heard a lengthy address from the chairman, John Kerry, there, also from the ranking member, Dick Lugar, and an introduction by Charles Schumer. So then we also heard the opening statement from Hillary Clinton, talking on a variety of topics and challenges all across this world that she is aware of that she will be facing if, in fact, she does get this confirmation, again, for secretary of state.

Most recently, we saw the question-and-answer session begin. We are expecting that to go on for quite some time now, and the chairman of that committee, of course, John Kerry, was the first to ask those questions, particularly focusing on the situation with Iran.

Several questions surrounding the challenges there, the diplomatic relations, and as Senator Clinton answering those questions mostly by saying, you know, we really just don't know exactly how effective we can be, meaning her and the president-elect, until we are there and working on the situation with Iran. And also talking about possible tougher U.N. sanctions and really not providing too many answers at this points, as you might expect. So once again, several other confirmation hearings going on today. We are monitoring all of them for you right here on CNN. Sure do appreciate you watching.

I'm Heidi Collins. You can join us again tomorrow morning beginning at 9 a.m. Eastern. For now, though, CNN NEWSROOM continues with Tony Harris.