Good morning, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to Washington. I want to congratulate Amy Elias, Victoria Tobin and everyone associated with arranging this most worthy conference. I hope your experience here in our Nation's Capital provides you with insights into how our country works, and gives you ideas on how you can make it work better. And that doesn't mean just how you can make it work better here.
Leadership is needed in our private sector, as well.
While I am currently the Chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board, I previously served in Tennessee state government for a period of six years as a member of Governor Ned McWherter's cabinet and staff. When you look at what government does at its best, it is providing for human wants. When natural disaster strikes, FEMA and the National Guard are just two agencies that provide aid. When Americans fall into physical or legal trouble in foreign lands, our State Department is there to help. When a viral or bacterial outbreak hits a school, a business or a town, the Centers for Disease Control are there to help.