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July 8, 2008:   Senator Obama's Top Aides Speak at AeA

As part of AeA’s continuing outreach to the campaigns of presidential candidates, senior staff to Sen. Barack Obama met with over 70 executives from the high-tech industry, US universities, and technology professional societies to discuss Sen. Obama’s positions on innovation and competitiveness. The meeting this week at AeA’s David Packard Conference Center in Washington, DC, included Pete Rouse, Chief of Staff, and Karen Kornbluh, Policy Director. The meeting was conducted in partnership with the Task Force on the Future of American Innovation, which is co-chaired by AeA and Intel Corporation.


After Mr. Rouse and Ms. Kornbluh outlined Sen. Obama’s competitiveness agenda, industry representatives stressed key competitiveness points including:

• The importance of improved math and science education at both elementary school and university levels
• The need to increase spending on government-funded basic research and development
• The urgency of reforming the county’s policies on H-1B visas and green cards
• The need to make permanent the R&D tax credit
• The importance of addressing increased health care costs for U.S. companies, making them less competitive in the global market

At the conclusion of the meeting, the Obama advisors expressed a desire to follow-up on this meeting to get more specifics on the policy agenda “that will work to improve the U.S. economy and our global competitiveness.”   Representatives from AeA in Washington, DC, are flying to Chicago next week to continue these discussions and AeA will host a smaller group of high-tech industry representatives for a meeting in Washington in early August to present a more detailed agenda to the campaign staff.

AeA President Chris Hansen offered his assistance to arrange meetings with company CEOs around the country and Obama advisors in order to gain a broader context for the high-tech policy agenda. AeA has made the same offer to Sen. McCain’s campaign.

More information on Sen. Obama’s Chief of Staff.

Read Sen. Obama's speech on U.S. competitiveness.

May 30, 2008:   Grant Aldonas, Trade Advisor to McCain Campaign, Meets with AeA International Committee to Discuss Candidates Trade Views

Grant Aldonas, Trade Advisor to the McCain Campaign, began his discussion on trade by asserting that Washington’s vision of international economics is out of date and challenged the assumption that globalization is the cause of downward pressure on wages of U.S. workers. He believes that American workers need to be able to adapt to global changes and become more competitive. The U.S. could lose its competitive edge if its markets do not remain open. Senator McCain has a strong free trade stance and supports the use of the multilateral and bilateral processes. McCain also recognizes the importance of Asia and plans to devote time and resources to securing American economic interests in the region. McCain supports an international economic policy that would anchor the U.S. with China. However, Aldonas suggested that the U.S. will have to delicately balance between enforcing China’s economic responsibilities and remaining sufficiently economically engaged with the nation. Minutes with more detailed information on the comments by Aldonas and responses to member company questions are available to members on the AeA website.

For more information contact Rob Mulligan, Senior Vice President International, at 202.682.4452

Sue Schwab, United States Trade Representative, with AeA leadership

Senators Olympia Snowe (R-ME) and John Kerry (D-MA) respond to testimony by AeA member Black Duck Software in the Senate Small Business Committee

Chris Hansen, President & CEO, AeA; Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT); AeA Board Member Deirdre Hanford, Synopsys (L-R)

Participating in AeA's Federal Government Affairs Committees will enhance your company’s ability to remain updated and have an impact on legal and regulatory changes affecting your company. Participation is open to any AeA member company, and there is no limit to the number of employees per company who sign up.  Committees include:

• National Government Affairs Committee
• E-Commerce
• RFID Task Force
• Sarbanes-Oxley Section 404 Committee
• Tax Committee  
• Technology for Government (T4G) Committee

Secretary Michael Leavitt, HHS, is hosted in Silicon Valley by AeA Board Member Tim Guertin, President & CEO, Varian Medical Systems

Chris Hansen, President & CEO, AeA; and Speaker Nancy Pelosi

AeA's Board of Directors meet with Senior President Bush officials in the White House