Tom Steyer, MBA '83, Founder and President of NextGen America
Stanford Graduate School of Business2017-11-30
stanford gsb#stanford#stanford mba#vftt#view from the top#stanford graduate school of business#stanford business school#tom steyer
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💫 Short Summary
The speaker discusses their journey from Goldman Sachs to starting a hedge fund, reflecting on scaling challenges and the shift to climate-friendly investments. They emphasize the urgent need to address climate change and advocate for impactful philanthropy. The speaker's involvement in California voter initiatives and the importance of democracy and fair representation are highlighted. They discuss the campaign to impeach President Trump and the importance of pursuing passions with a long-term perspective. The speaker advocates for clean energy transitions to create jobs and revitalizing communities, emphasizing the value of investing in Americans and leading a meaningful life.
✨ Highlights
📊 Transcript
✦
Speaker reflects on investing career, environmental work, and recent political activism.
02:30Classes like Touchy Feely and International Economics at GSB provided valuable insights.
International Economics course focused on competitive advantage and factors driving societal progress.
Transition from Goldman Sachs to starting a hedge fund in San Francisco motivated by personal and professional reasons.
✦
Challenges faced during fund scaling and the importance of gradual growth.
04:15Transition from flat organizational structure to hierarchical decision-making, regretting lack of empowerment for proven individuals.
Shift in investment focus to climate-friendly options, regretting past investments in coal industry.
Emphasis on senior leaders listening and making accountable decisions, with younger employees deferring to their expertise.
✦
The speaker discusses his realization about the urgent need to move away from fossil fuel energy.
10:24He wishes he had understood the climate change issue sooner and highlights the societal challenge in addressing it.
The speaker contrasts the American approach of compromise and problem-solving with the lack of progress in solving the climate crisis.
This realization led him to delve deeper into the problem and reevaluate his understanding of how America functions in tackling major issues.
✦
Transition to Impact-Driven Strategy in Philanthropy.
11:23Emphasis on creating social impact through capitalist economic systems with a values-driven agenda.
Unique approach of lending money instead of giving it away for economic justice and environmental sustainability.
Belief in Stanford's potential to lead in combating climate change through research, technology, and societal integration.
✦
Influence of California Voter Ballot Initiatives on Policies.
16:22The speaker discusses their involvement in California voter ballot initiatives as a way to influence policies, particularly in climate and energy legislation.
The process of getting propositions on the ballot and the impact of public voting on new laws is explained.
They highlight their efforts in fighting against a ballot initiative to repeal progressive energy laws in 2010.
Emphasizing local issues like jobs and clean air over climate concerns was a successful strategy in maintaining environmental legislation.
✦
Importance of Diverse Coalition in Environmental and Progressive Initiatives in California.
19:20Latinos are the top supporters of environmental and progressive initiatives in California, followed by African Americans and Asian Americans.
Campaigns can secure broad support by appealing to a coalition including progressive businesses, chambers of commerce, organized labor, and community groups.
Emphasis on advocating for important causes like clean energy legislation and closing tax loopholes despite excessive money in politics.
Advocating for broader democracy and increased participation to address societal issues.
✦
Emphasis on democracy, fair representation, and reducing influence of money in politics.
23:07Rejection of retaliatory actions and commitment to broadening and improving the American democratic system.
Commitment to supporting the American people and protecting equality and integrity of the system.
Discussion on the Koch Brothers and lessons that progressive causes could learn from their consistent approach over a century.
✦
Speaker praises family's perseverance and consistency in achieving goals.
26:14Emphasis on continual improvement within the organization for growth and progress.
Importance of long-term strategies for societal change.
Speaker doubts President Trump's commitment to addressing climate policy seriously based on his track record.
Belief in American system's ability to work together through compromise and good intentions for better outcomes.
✦
The campaign to impeach President Trump aims to give the American people a voice in the political conversation.
30:56The goal is to empower citizens to speak up for their safety and well-being, despite opposition from both Republicans and Democrats.
Utilizing technology to facilitate independent action, the campaign seeks to raise awareness and provide a platform for Americans to express their concerns and drive change.
Emphasizing a non-partisan approach, the campaign appeals to all individuals worried about the state of the country.
✦
Speaker emphasizes current generation's thoughtful career planning and life decisions.
34:21Speaker shares examples of children's impactful work in software, architecture, impact investing, and health policy.
Emphasizes importance of pursuing passions with a long-term perspective and considering impact of actions.
Discusses responsibility that comes with opportunities and privileges.
Expresses concerns about current political climate and need to address potential existential threats through impeachment proceedings.
✦
Discussion on political and international crisis in the US.
38:32Emphasis on addressing issues rather than focusing on individual bills for a broader democracy.
Advocacy for engaging with people across the country and pushing for change.
Importance of doing what's right, highlighting the impeachment campaign.
Mention of transitioning away from fossil fuels and its impact on employment, focusing on sustainable energy technologies.
✦
Transitioning to clean energy can boost job creation and wages in the US.
43:29Certain groups, like coal miners, may be left behind during this shift.
The challenge is to support those affected by the transition who may not benefit from new opportunities.
Strategies are needed to address the concerns of individuals outside technology hubs and areas of economic growth.
It is important to ensure that no one is left behind in the changing world of clean energy.
✦
The impact of rapid societal change on individuals in rural and urban America.
47:43Cutting essential services like education and healthcare is detrimental to the country's well-being.
Investing in clean energy as a means to create millions of new jobs and revitalize communities.
Clean energy jobs have the potential to provide opportunities and economic growth in areas with high unemployment rates.
✦
Importance of Investing in Americans and Rebuilding the Country.
49:53Investing in Americans and rebuilding the country can foster connection and growth, even in rural areas.
Poetry, specifically by poets Billy Collins and Mary Oliver, can have a positive impact on individuals.
Pursuing a meaningful life is more fulfilling than seeking wealth.
Joy is found in creating a positive impact and happiness comes from leading a meaningful life.
00:00[MUSIC]
00:05Thank you very much for joining us today.
00:07We couldn't imagine a better speaker for
this memorial lecture.
00:11We have all sorts of topics to
discuss from your investing career,
00:14to your work on the environment,
to your recent political activism.
00:18Before we get there, I wanted to start
with your time as a GSB student.
00:22Back when you were in these seats,
metaphorically speaking,
00:26did you ever imagine you would be on this
stage as a view from the top speaker?
00:30>> [LAUGH]
00:35>> I can't say I was thinking this far
00:38forward, and I can't say
00:43I really understood the significance when
I was going to Stanford Business School,
00:48to Stanford Business School,
in terms of leadership in our society.
00:52So, I think I have a different perspective
of the importance of this institution now.
01:00And obviously, I'm a lot older and
01:03have [INAUDIBLE]
and wouldn't have time for anything.
01:08>> Fair enough.
01:11I mean, we're all facing the same
types of constraints here.
01:14Another question for you, what was your
most influential class at the GSB?
01:21>> So, I think I'd chase two classes,
01:25I'll equivocate.
01:28One was touchy feely.
01:30I don't know,
01:31do they still do interpersonal dynamics?
>> [LAUGH]
01:33>> Yes.
01:34>> So, I love touchy feely,
01:36because it was a chance to see how
people interact in a much more
01:40honest way than when people
are normally very controlled.
01:44And also, when I went home for Christmas
break, and my father looked at me and
01:49goes, is this a class, seriously?
01:52So I love that too, just annoying him.
01:53But I also took a course here in
International Economics that was,
01:58I thought absolutely brilliant
in terms about thinking about
02:03basically competitive
advantage on a national level.
02:07And thinking about what makes societies
work, what makes societies productive,
02:13why do some societies
move forward really well?
02:17And what are the reasons that other
societies have continuing problems?
02:20And I thought that was something that
I never looked at so systematically.
02:26It was really a brilliant course.
>> Speaking of making societies
02:30productive, let's now turn to
your early days as an investor.
02:34You were a rising star at Goldman
when Wall Street was booming, and
02:37in less than a year,
02:38you had moved to San Francisco to start-up
a small merger arbitrage hedge fund.
02:43What gave you the confidence
to make this sudden change?
02:48>> So let's be clear,
02:49when I moved back out here from Goldman,
first of all,
02:53my wife wanted to live west
of the Mississippi, period.
02:57So, I knew that Goldman Sachs
was in New York,
03:00and therefore,
I was going to have to leave.
03:02It's also true that I got in a gigantic
fight with a guy I was working for,
03:06and therefore, I felt like, under no
circumstances do I want to continue to
03:10go to work and see that guy every morning.
>> [LAUGH]
03:13>> Which was not a great career move.
03:17But also,
03:17I felt like one of the things I love about
investing is you can measure the results.
03:23And I felt like, if I do a bad job at
Goldman Sachs, they're going to fire me.
03:28If I do a bad job on my own,
I'm also going to get fired.
03:32But if I do a good job on my own,
03:34I'd have much more upside
then I do at Goldman Sachs.
03:37And so, I didn't think I was taking more
risk because I felt like, either way,
03:42if you don't do a good job in life,
it doesn't work out.
03:45So, I was more than willing to
bet on myself in the sense that
03:50if you're taking that risk anyway, why
not at least give yourself the up side?
03:54>> And have the opportunity to go surfing
03:56on weekends is helpful.
>> [LAUGH]
03:58>> We did want to live west of
04:00the Mississippi.
>> [LAUGH] You then went
04:03from $10 million in seed capital,
04:06to managing about $20 billion by the time
you stepped down from Fairlawn in 2012.
04:11What challenges did you face as the fund
scaled, particularly those related to
04:15leadership?
>> First of all,
04:23one of the things that we tried
to do was to grow gradually.
04:26Because I felt if you went from
$10 million to $20 million,
04:31that wasn't a step function,
so that you could
04:35change your team slowly enough, so
that you continue to do the job.
04:40If you went from $10
million to $300 million,
04:43you're in a completely different business,
and you're taking a gigantic risk,
04:46with whether you have the capability
to actually perform that function.
04:51So, we really grew very consistently,
but we never grew geometrically.
04:59I will say this, when I think back
to what we were doing at Farallon,
05:04and when I'm mad at myself, I think
that there's a rule in organizations
05:09that up to 125 people, you don't
have to be that formally organized.
05:13And I remember being here in the HP wave,
management by walking around.
05:18That's what I really like to do,
was just talk to everybody, and try and
05:22stay up to date, and
hear what the problems were.
05:25And we had a very open office
physically so that there were no walls.
05:30There were no offices, so that there
was a lot of internal communication,
05:34whether people wanted it or not.
05:36I think above 125 people,
you start to really need rules, and
05:41you really need hierarchy, and you
really need a way of organizing people.
05:46And we did do that.
05:48But if there's one thing that I would
fault myself for, and I do get mad about
05:53it is, I think at some point,
we had a very, very flat organization.
05:58And I really did feel like we made
decisions listening to everybody
06:02very clearly, and we didn't really
have a hierarchical decision making.
06:07And if I were doing it again, I would be a
little more insistent that the people who
06:11proved themselves, into which I would
throw my name, should get a little more
06:15decision making than some of the people
who thought they knew a heck of a lot and
06:19then would be like, my gosh,
I had no idea that would happen.
06:22Usually I'm like, well,
that's what I was talking to you about for
06:26the last six months.
06:27And so, I, there is, when I think back
to growth as you get more larger,
06:32you actually have to
able to have some system,
06:35where the senior people really do have
to listen, have to take into account.
06:41But ultimately, they're supposed to be
in the position that they're going to
06:45get hung if it doesn't turn
out to be a good decision,
06:47so the younger people
should defer to them,
06:51until they can get in that position.
>> As you were growing consistently, one
06:56thing that was also growing was Fairlawn's
investments in the coal industry.
07:01Fairlawn became one of the major
players in sustaining and
07:04growing the coal industry in Australia,
Indonesia, and China.
07:07Knowing what you know now, in a different
time, would you have made those
07:11investments again?
>> No.
07:13>> [LAUGH]
07:15>> Look, I would say, somewhere around
07:19ten years ago,
basically I was sitting here
07:24thinking about what was going to
turn out to be a huge problem.
07:29And I started to really focus on climate,
and
07:31then I started to look at all
our investments differently.
07:35And so, it really was a situation
where I felt like up till then,
07:40we invested in every single industry
including fossil fuels, which were
07:46probably less than proportionate to what
they are in the whole worldwide economy,
07:50or the American economy, but
definitely significant investments.
07:54And starting about ten years ago,
I realized,
07:57wow, this is just going
to be a gigantic problem.
08:00And I've gotta not only stop doing this,
but I've gotta get out of this,
08:04which I did do, and have done.
08:07But I feel like, do I wish that I'd
come to that conclusion 10 years or 20?
08:12Of course I do.
08:13Do I wish I were taller and
playing center in the NBA, yes.
08:17>> [LAUGH]
08:17>> I wish I were smarter and
08:19had figured it out sooner.
08:20But I think that we're really coming from
as a society is exactly the same place,
08:25which is this.
08:26Our society was based
around fossil fuel energy.
08:30That's just the truth.
08:31We all drive cars, we've all grown up
in a society where electricity was
08:36largely based on fossil fuels.
08:38It's not a question of that.
08:40The question is what are we
going to do about it, and
08:42how fast can we move away from it, and
how fast do we have to move away from it?
08:46So of course I wish that when my good
friend Dan Lashof was writing his PhD
08:51thesis on climate change in 1989,
that I was like Dan's absolutely right.
08:56We should be really careful about this.
08:58But it took me longer than,
obviously, the sooner the better,
09:03but I feel like ten years ago,
I came to that conclusion.
09:08And I decided this is really important,
that this is a thing that
09:13will be critical for
our society and critical for
09:18everyone on this planet, so therefore,
we can't equivocate about it,
09:23wish I'd been smarter.
>> Could we drill down on that
09:26moment a little?
09:26Because I think there's a very deep
amount of thought that you put into this
09:30particular issue, and yet, there's so
many issues out there in the world.
09:33And you've spoken about many,
you've spoken about inequality, and
09:36you've spoken about tobacco, and
the harms that it poses to society.
09:39You've gone through many different topics.
09:41How is it that climate resonated so
deeply?
09:44And specifically,
09:45what you saw at that time ten years ago?
>> Well,
09:48let me give you my thinking then,
which is this.
09:50I mean, I know the GSPS has a ton
of foreign born students, but
09:57as an American,
I felt like our system basically works.
10:03And the way it basically works
is we're rude, we're vulgar,
10:08we're loud, we disagree with each other.
10:11But if everybody's trying to solve
the problem, regardless of where they're
10:14coming from, we compromise,
we solve the problem, we move on.
10:18And everyone else is thinking
they're very rude and loud,
10:20which is true, but we compromise and
we solve the problem.
10:24And I looked at climate and I thought
my gosh, we're not solving the problem,
10:30that we have this huge problem that
could be existential for a society.
10:35And for some reason,
10:36the normal American loud conflictual
compromise isn't happening here.
10:43And I felt like I really
believe in our system, so
10:46I want to get into our
system more to try and
10:49figure out how I can be part of its
normal solution for big problems for us.
10:56And so, I have changed,
actually, my understanding
11:00as a result of getting into that question,
and diving into that problem specifically.
11:05It's changed my understanding
of how America really works.
11:09But the reason I did that problem
was I though it was existential, and
11:13I didn't understand why the normal
American, democratic, ugly, messy,
11:18loud way wasn't working in that case.
>> This gives us a really
11:23good transition over to your
extensive philanthropic work.
11:26You signed onto the giving pledge in 2010.
11:28And you've been especially active
in environmental causes, especially
11:32since that moment that you described
where you saw the light, so to speak.
11:36How did you go about finding
the right causes to back?
11:39>> [LAUGH] By,
11:40I mean, it's such a classic thing.
11:44I think that you learn a lot by doing,
and I think that what we've found
11:49over time is, hopefully,
we're a lot better at what we're doing,
11:53as a result of all the things that
we did that weren't so smart.
11:57And, to a large extent,
I would say, my understanding of
12:02the idea of philanthropy is
really different from what I
12:06would say is a traditional
understanding of philanthropy.
12:11Because actually,
12:13what we've tried to do is to set up
operating enterprises in the real world
12:17that are hands on to actually affect
the kinds of things we're hoping for.
12:23It sounds complicated.
12:25But for instance, we have a community bank
where the equity is through a foundation.
12:32So we can never get the money back.
12:34So in a way, we've given
the money away forever and ever.
12:37But it's a bank that's FDIC insured.
12:39It makes loans for economic justice,
12:43environmental sustainability,
women in minority own businesses.
12:47So it's got a very specific
social thrust done through our
12:53capitalist economic system, but
with a complete value driven agenda.
13:01So it's kind of, we're not giving money
away to people, we're lending money.
13:06We need them to pay us back with interest,
so
13:09we can make more loans to other people,
so they can succeed.
13:13And so that's not, I mean, I've never
heard of someone else doing that,
13:16or thinking of that as philanthropy.
13:18In fact, when we suggest to other
people that it's a good idea,
13:20they look very askance, but
13:24we really believe in operating
enterprises where people are involved,
13:29really in the real world trying
to have impact in a big way, and
13:34also to show that things are possible.
>> Is that a strategy that underlies
13:38your focus on both the Center and
the Tomcat Center here at Stanford?
13:43I mean, you clearly believe that
Stanford has a role to play in
13:46your strategy in fighting climate change.
>> So, one of the things that's true,
13:51if you look at climate, and
you kind of divide it into what
13:54is happening in the real world in terms
of the natural world changes, and
13:59what's happening in terms of research,
and technology, and
14:02capability of dealing with the problems or
solving the problems.
14:07And then our willingness to actually solve
the problems and use the technology and
14:11the techniques that we have I felt as if,
and I still feel like,
14:16I mean, I love Stanford, Stanford
has led revolutions in technology.
14:22I wanted Stanford to use its
broad range of capabilities,
14:27to be a leader in this on every scale.
14:30So from an investment side,
a legal side, a technology side,
14:34I felt like Stanford has done this in IT,
why shouldn't we be doing this in energy?
14:41There are very few places that have
the breadth of research, the sort
14:47of capability of across the board making
this difference, and making it happen.
14:52And so, part of the solution to
this is our ability to solve
14:57it from a technical basis, and then to
understand how that fits into society.
15:03And so, since I love Stanford, and
since I knew the capabilities,
15:06I felt like I would really like
it if Stanford leads on this.
15:12And if you actually look at what
Stanford did on renewing its
15:16own electricity plant for
the campus, that was, I think,
15:22designated the best engineering project
in the United States of America in 2015.
15:27The Stanford electricity system,
so that we have the capability
15:35of doing this in a way that is
significant and replicable, and
15:40that's what I wanted to see.
>> Apparently,
15:42we're also pretty good at football.
15:45[LAUGH]
>> Wow, where I goeth before a fall.
15:50>> [LAUGH]
15:51>> We'll pass on the message to
15:53David Shaw.
>> [LAUGH]
15:55>> But before we go to national politics,
15:58I'd like to focus a bit on your
activism here in our own backyard.
16:02In California,
16:03voter ballot initiatives allow the public
to vote directly on proposed laws.
16:08You have focused on these ballot
initiatives as a way to influence a wide
16:13range of policies, including climate and
energy legislation.
16:17How did you arrive at
this particular approach?
16:22>> So for the people who aren't California
16:25citizens, we do have
this extremely fat and
16:28complicated ballot where you're basically
allowed to do direct democracy.
16:33So if you can get enough
signatures raised,
16:36you can put a proposition on the ballot
that everybody gets to vote on.
16:40And if 50.1% of the people vote for
it, you have a new law.
16:45And this has led to some
truly heinous outcomes, and
16:49it's also led to some
really good outcomes.
16:51And so, the first thing that we did,
was I co-chaired with George Schultz.
16:57Fighting a ballot initiative
which was designed to get
17:00rid of our progressive energy legislation.
17:03Our cap and trade system, and a bunch
of other things that have to do with
17:07basically having the most progressive
energy laws in the world.
17:10That was in 2010,
17:11two oil companies wanted to basically
change those laws and get rid of them.
17:16And so we were the No on 23 campaign.
17:20So why did we, we did that because
traditionally, when you get to
17:25the ballot and it's a question of
business versus environmentalist,
17:30jobs versus the environment,
jobs and business always win.
17:34And that was the way people thought
this was going to happen and
17:37there had been a previous
ballot initiative in 2006.
17:40So four years before, where an individual
from L.A spent 70 million bucks and
17:45lost his initiative.
17:47So there was no one rushing to be the
environmental side of this proposition,
17:52so it's like most of the jobs I've had.
17:54There was no one else
stupid enough to take it.
17:57But the difference was,
it actually was a formative experience for
18:01me because it really was about
climate in some ways but
18:06we had a rule,
no one can talk about climate.
18:09The way that we're going to talk to people
18:11is about local human issues of jobs and
clean air.
18:15And in fact, by far,
18:17the best TV commercial we had was a
commercial of a woman who was the head in
18:21California of the American Lung
Association talking about clean air and
18:25the American Lung Association so
obviously she cared about it.
18:28She was very credible, a lovely person,
came across incredibly well and
18:34we got 70% of the vote for
people who said basically,
18:39we don't want to get rid of our
clean air/climate legislation.
18:44We also found, and I think it was
incredibly significant for me,
18:49that we wanted a different message
which was more jobs, cleaner air.
18:54But we also wanted a completely
different corelation.
18:57So we spent, we knew that all the people
who are traditional environmentalists,
19:01of course,
would be on our side in terms of groups.
19:05The NRDC, EDF,
League of Conservation Voters,
19:10Sierra Club, of course,
those people would be for us.
19:13But actually when you look
at the people of California,
19:16the number one group who supports
everything environmental, everything about
19:20progressive energy, everything
against climate change, are Latinos.
19:25Number two group, African Americans,
number three group Asian Americans.
19:29So when we were looking at
the people of California for
19:32votes, we knew from the beginning we were
going to get progressive business and
19:37we basically split the chambers
of commerce around the state.
19:43We had at least half
the chambers on our side.
19:46We had organized labor but
went to every community group and
19:49we wanted to make sure
that people understood it.
19:53Because actually, the people who
are not necessarily considered members
19:58of the CR club and Mike Brunes once
tried to kill me for saying this.
20:03But people who haven't necessarily been
the, what you think of as the fabled
20:08environmentalists actually
are the environmentalists.
20:12And that's how we got 70% of the vote
because we looked at a completely
20:16different slice of Californians, and
we said our coalition is much broader and
20:21our message is much different.
20:23And that is something that
I learned in that year and
20:27it was true then and it's true now.
>> So
20:32these campaigns you've organized on
behalf of these clauses are not cheap.
20:37[LAUGH] California's all ready one of
the most expensive media markets in
20:42the country and
as these things go national,
20:45I mean the costs grow
almost exponentially.
20:48What would you say to those who argue
that spending massive amounts of money on
20:52these types of campaigns actually
undermines our democratic process?
20:56>> There's no question that the money in
20:58politics is completely out of control and
21:01I would be strongly in favor
of changing the rules.
21:05I completely agree with that, I do think
the money in politics is a cancer and
21:10it's distorting and has led to some
terrible outcomes and continues to.
21:15You really can't look at
this tax bill that's going
21:18through the Congress right now and not
see that that's exactly what's happening.
21:22That we have a fight between
monied interests and the people of
21:26the United States, and the people of
the United States are losing badly.
21:29No question about it.
21:33That happens to be the system we have.
21:36So I could say, you know what,
I wish the system were different and
21:40until the system is different,
I'm going to sit on the sidelines.
21:43Or I could say, I really think
it's important that we keep our
21:47clean energy legislation, I really think
it's important to close this tax loophole,
21:52I really think it's important to
stop young people from smoking and
21:55just suck it up and spend the money.
21:58Or I could be pure and
say I'm going to keep the money and
22:01I'm going to wait until the system is
perfect which will be, by the way, never.
22:07So I do think we should change it.
22:09I'm completely against
Citizens United decision.
22:11I think it's an absolutely
terrible decision for democracy.
22:16I think it is distorting
the way our society is run.
22:20And I'm completely committed to
a change to what I would think of.
22:25If you look at what we do,
22:27I believe the solution to our
problems is broader democracy and
22:31broader participation and more power
to the people of the United States.
22:34So if you look at what our organization
does, we're a grassroots organization.
22:40Last year, with our partners, we knocked
on 12 and a half million doors, we were
22:45on 370 college campuses, we registered
807,000 people in the State of California.
22:50About 350,000 outside.
22:51Every one of those was an attempt to
get people who are under represented
22:58to be registered, engaged,
and to participate.
23:01Because unless you are doing that,
your voice isn't heard and
23:04you are not going to get a fair shake.
23:07So, everything we are doing
is about broader democracy,
23:11more participation by people
who are underrepresented so
23:15that they will get a fair
shake in our democracy.
23:18And the money side of this,
on the other side, is huge and
23:21absolutely contrary to every
single thing we're doing.
23:25And in fact,
they're fighting their head off to try and
23:28prevent Americans from being able
to exercise their franchise and
23:33to participate fully.
>> So I'm hearing you say something very
23:37interesting which is that,
even if Gandhi once said, an eye for
23:42an eye will make the world blind, you're
essentially telling us well, in this case,
23:45two wrongs do make a right.
23:46That if you want to fight,
you have to fight the fight with your own,
23:50with whatever you've got on your arsenal.
>> No, no, no, no.
23:54I will not accept that question.
23:56I am not jabbing anyone's eye out.
>> [LAUGH]
23:59>> That is absolutely unfair.
24:01I believe what they are doing
is anti-democratic And
24:04I believe the only thing I'm doing is
to try and make the democracy broader,
24:08more complete, and more just.
24:10I don't think this is an eye for an eye.
24:12I don't think I'm doing anything
that is not absolutely positive and
24:16in favor of the American system and
the American people.
24:20I'm not doing anything to hurt them.
24:22All I'm trying to do is have
a counterbalance supporting the people of
24:26the United States.
24:28This isn't an eye for an eye.
24:30This is completely different.
24:31This is an attempt to protect a system
that was set up over 200 years ago,
24:37where the idea is everybody is equal,
not every dollar is equal,
24:42but every person is equal.
>> So, and I happen, by the way,
24:45to support a lot of the causes you back.
24:47So, understand this comes
from a really good place.
24:50>> [LAUGH]
24:51>> Wait, George, trust me.
24:52If I disagree with you, I intend to.
>> I'm thinking it would be edifying for
24:56people to understand something.
24:58Which is you've built yourself,
occasionally,
25:00as the left's answer to the Koch Brothers.
>> Never, not one time.
25:03>> [LAUGH]
25:04>> Thank you for saying it.
25:05Not once, and never will.
>> Well, I've read it.
25:09>> Someone else has.
25:09>> [LAUGH]
25:11>> I promise, it's never happened.
25:13Other people ask me if I'm the left
answer to the Koch Brothers and
25:18I always say no.
>> All right well,
25:20well challenge accepted I guess.
>> [LAUGH].
25:24>> I've been there every time.
25:25>> [LAUGH]
25:26>> Yeah, I agree that it's not a fair
25:28characterization to
compare people like that.
25:32But I think one thing that I was curious
to understand is what do you think
25:36the American left, or rather,
just progressive causes in general, and
25:40those who back them,
could learn from the Koch Brothers?
25:48>> Well, I'll say this,
25:50I mean I don't know if you guys,
have you guys read Dark Money?
25:54There's a book about
the Koch Brothers essentially,
25:57kind of going back through their family
history about what they've done from
26:01an economic basis and
what they've done on a political basis.
26:05And they have been really consistent.
26:07They have been pushing on this stuff
really for over a century as a family.
26:14And so, I admire that fact that
they have continued to push on
26:20the things that they care about
over a very long period of time.
26:25And when you've said that, you've said
every single that I appreciate about
26:29them.
>> [LAUGH] We're talking about what can we
26:31learn from them.
26:33And we don't have to appreciate them.
>> Be
26:34consistent.
>> Be consistent.
26:35>> Keep trying.
26:37I think there is no question
that our organization,
26:42I quit my job five years ago and
26:44our organization has been up for
approximately five years.
26:49We're much better today than
we were five years ago.
26:52What we can do in terms
of going door to door,
26:56what we can do on college campuses.
27:00Our capability of making change
is much better because of
27:04the five years that we've
spent improving ourselves.
27:09I mean when we, I thought at Fairlawn,
and I think today,
27:13when I look back at 2017 I'll
say what did we do in 2017?
27:18Did it work?
27:18Didn't it work?
27:19I will also ask is our organization
stronger at the end of the year than
27:23it is at the beginning of the year?
27:26Because there are lots of things you
can do that makes a year be good at
27:30the expense of a long term growth
of your organization capability.
27:35And I always feel like you
want to have good results and
27:38you want to grow your capability.
27:41And so when I think about
what we're trying to do and
27:43what I think progressives should be trying
to do is be aware of that second part.
27:48It's a long-term proposition
to get this country
27:53back on a trajectory of growth and
justice.
27:58And so any one year, any one election
is not going to do it, we've always
28:05gotta be building capability overtime.
>> So
28:09speaking about building capability,
I think it's probably time just to change
28:13topics slightly to one that's
been in the news recently.
28:16I believe I've seen a commercial or two
regarding your love of President Trump.
28:22>> [LAUGH]
28:25>> If Trump invited you to work on climate
28:27change policy at the White House,
would you accept?
28:32>> No, there's absolutely no chance that
28:36the president has any interest in
seriously working on climate policy.
28:42Every single thing he's done,
in the election and
28:46subsequent to the election has been to
work against us having progressive,
28:52objectively derived energy policies.
28:55So there is no chance that he would make
a good faith effort to have me come and
29:01try and come up with a program so
29:04that as a country we could move
forward in a positive way.
29:08And I think that the fact that
I'm saying that, I deeply regret,
29:13I started by saying my belief in
the American system is as long as
29:18you seed to the other person
that they're patriotic,
29:22that they're first goal is
to help the American people.
29:27And that they're driven by a belief
in data objectivity and analysis.
29:35That's the American system.
29:36And if people disagree with you fine,
of course they do.
29:39I mean anyone who's arrogant enough to
think they're always right is really
29:44ridiculous.
29:45So the American system is we may disagree
but as long as you seed good intentions,
29:49then we can work together, and compromise
in the middle, and probably come out with
29:54something better than either party
had at the start of the conversation.
29:59That's my basic belief.
30:00I don't believe for
30:01a second that those are the circumstances
under which that proposal would be made,
30:06and therefore, I wouldn't do it.
>> So
30:08in talking about growing the capability
of your organization, how would you say
30:12this particular campaign to impeach
President Trump grows the capability of
30:17your organization over the long term?
>> So
30:22what we're actually doing,
which I encourage you to sign onto please,
30:28www.needtoimpeach.com, is
trying to give the American
30:34people directly a voice
in this conversation.
30:38And I think it's fair to say,
that the Republicans in Washington D.C.
30:43don't like it and the Democrats in
Washington, D.C. also don't like it.
30:48But the fact of the matter is
we have the technology for
30:52the American people to act
independently and to speak up.
30:56And the voice of the American people in
a democracy is supposed to be dispositive.
31:02And so what we're trying to do is give
Americans an easy way together to
31:07raise their voice because we believe
that we're actually in danger.
31:12That every single day the health and
safety of American citizens is in danger
31:17and that we can't sit by and
pretend that its not happening.
31:21And so when I think about this campaign,
31:24I think about it the same way you ask
me the questions about the proposition.
31:29The propositions are there for
31:31when the government in
Sacramento fails to be able for
31:36the people of California to be
able to enact laws together.
31:41And what we're doing with this
impeachment petition is to try and
31:45give the American people
a chance to do just that.
31:48Even though we can't make laws,
we can, in effect, raise our voice and
31:52change the conversation and say,
31:54there is something desperately
wrong here in the United States.
31:57This is not a partisan appeal.
32:00This is not to Democrats, or
Independents, or Republicans.
32:03This is to everybody who's worried
about the United States of America, and
32:06that is what we are trying to do.
32:09I had a look for the privacy policy
on the impeachment campaign, and
32:12one of the things it says is that
the information that you provide can be
32:15used for, essentially, future outreach.
32:17Is that another objective
of this campaign?
32:19Is that, yes, maybe this campaign raises
awareness to some issues, but does it also
32:24provide a platform for a really devoted
set of followers to be reached out to
32:29over the course of your next objectives?
>> Well I
32:34would love it if we can get a way for
the American people
32:38to have their voice be heard
over a long period of time and
32:43also to provide a place to
basically put out content.
32:48So as far as I'm concerned,
look, we have seen information
32:53technology change the way people
relate in so many different ways.
33:00And the capability of Americans,
we've seen this all over the world.
33:05I mean, we have seen politics
turned upside-down by the ability
33:10of citizens around the world
to communicate real time.
33:16And we've seen it here too,
in the election process.
33:20The question is, is there a way for
Americans to come together in a way so
33:24that we can actually have our voice be
heard when there's something desperately
33:28wrong?
33:29That's what we're trying to do.
>> Thank you so much.
33:32One more question before we turn it
over to the audience for Q and A.
33:37I wanted just to focus back on the GSP
student body for a second and ask you.
33:41If you could be a GSP student again,
and we'd be very fortunate to
33:46have you in our student body, and
wanted to help the environment,
33:52where would you go right now, and why?
>> As
33:55a job?
>> Yes, for
33:56a career.
>> Well,
34:02I'll say this, I don't think there's
one answer to that question.
34:05I have four kids who are 23,
25, 27, and 29.
34:14I think that their generation, so for
34:17everybody who's sitting here
who's in that age range,
34:21I think that your generation actually
is much more thoughtful about the way
34:27that you're thinking about your careers
and your lives than the class of
34:321983 at the business school where
basically we would like a job.
34:37I think people now are much more proactive
in thinking about what getting that
34:42job will mean and what the implications
are down the line, I really do.
34:47But I think when I look at my four kids,
my oldest son is working
34:52on basically software to
put renewables on the grid.
34:57My second son is an architecture student
who is trying to figure out how to use
35:02the mimicry of nature to make better
spaces for people to live in.
35:06My daughter is working at an impact
investor trying to get good returns, but
35:11also take into account what will mean for
the world if you make the investments.
35:15My youngest son is claims to be
about to take the MCATs, and
35:19he's working on health policy for
a Congressperson from Southern California.
35:26So my answer is,
I don't think there's one answer,
35:30I think that as always you should do the
things that you love and are thrilled by.
35:35But I think that when you do them,
you should do them with a perspective that
35:39you're going to have a lot of impact,
more than you think.
35:45And that the flip side of getting to go
to this incredibly elite institution.
35:52I know people hate hearing that,
everyone would like to think, shucks,
35:56it's nothing special.
35:58It's very special,
35:59people here get an opportunity to have
impact that's absolutely disproportionate.
36:04And I think you should just be aware,
that when you do,
36:08you should take responsibility for
what you're causing.
36:12And that is,
I don't care what your job is,
36:16as long as you're doing that,
as long as you're thinking it through,
36:20and that your values are reasonable,
then you will do good things.
36:25And I think that is the responsibility
of getting all this special stuff,
36:31which I'm extremely grateful
to have gotten myself.
36:36It is a massive opportunity, and with
the massive opportunity, should come some
36:40sense of responsibility that you don't
just get to do this for yourself.
36:46That if you're going to get
this special chance in society,
36:50that you should be thinking about what
that means for your relationship to
36:55all the other people in this society
who didn't get that special chance.
37:00And I think you don't do that, I think
that would be a profound mistake for
37:05someone.
>> We'll now open it up to questions
37:08from the audience.
37:09We've got some microphones.
>> Hi,
37:17Dr. Van Aken, I'm an MBA One here.
37:20Question on why impeachment?
37:23Why not focus on the policy disagreements,
37:25raise those issues with
the American people?
37:28It strikes me from a rhetoric perspective
that saying the man's an existential
37:32threat, he should be removed from office
is to now action impact us a bit confusing
37:37and potentially dangerous, so thank you.
>> So, why impeachment?
37:44Well, I do think the man's
an existential threat, for starters.
37:47I do think that he's met the standard for
impeachment.
37:50And we're actually going to go through
that, I think, in public next week.
37:54But, I also think,
That there is a question in our society,
38:02really, about what we're doing and
whether we're in crisis.
38:07So I look at the impeachment question as,
are we in crisis?
38:12And I talked to a friend of mine,
and I thought he said something,
38:16who runs a very large public company.
38:19And he said Tom, I have a 3% mortgage,
we have 4% unemployment,
38:25and the sock market is at a record,
how are we in crisis?
38:32And I said well the markets fluctuate,
economies change around.
38:38But if you look what was
going on politically,
38:42if you look at what's going on
internationally, if you look at what's
38:47going on in terms of long term decisions,
for the United States of America's,
38:53we are in a profound crisis that
people are not dealing with.
38:57And that is the point of impeachment.
39:00People are saying to me,
39:01actually I'm never going to use this
when they don't like a tax bill.
39:03This has nothing to do with a tax bill.
39:06We are in a profound crisis and the
question is when are Americans going to be
39:11able, are we going to as a group realize
this and understand what's at stake?
39:16So I actually think that going
after the individual bills,
39:20all of which I disagree with, every single
one of them, is the wrong way to do it.
39:26That that is something where
you're really fighting in DC.
39:30I don't want to be fighting in DC.
39:32I don't think it's going to be effective.
39:33I think it's a waste of time and money.
39:35What I want to be doing is I want to
be talking to people in Des Moines,
39:41and Schenectady, and
Cleveland, and Dallas, and
39:45all across the country,
because those are the people who I trust.
39:51I keep saying the solution for
us is going to be a broader democracy,
39:56not to go back to Washington DC to
beg people to be more thoughtful.
40:02>> To build on that question a little bit,
40:04you've fielded many
questions about whether or
40:06not this impeachment campaign is setting
up a run for governor of California, and
40:10I'm not going to repeat that question.
40:13That talking about whom
you're fighting on behalf of.
40:16I guess I was curious, what would you want
potential voters to know about you based
40:20on this impeachment campaign?
>> About me?
40:22>> Yes, because you're the one fighting
40:24for them.
>> [LAUGH] Well,
40:27I don't think it's about me.
40:28Let's start by saying this
campaign is supposed to be about
40:30everybody putting their voice together.
40:32The only thing I'd really like
people to understand is I think that
40:37most of the people who interview me
ask me what my hidden agenda is.
40:42And there's an assumption in there that no
one would do something because they just
40:47thought it was the right thing to do,
that there has to be something.
40:50I remember when I started on climate,
people would say to me, but
40:54you're doing this to make money on
your clean energy investments, right?
40:57And I'd be like, how does spending
tens of millions of dollars that has
41:01no response make people richer?
41:04It's-
>> [LAUGH]
41:08>> But we actually made sure we made no
41:10clean energy investments except
through our foundation, so
41:12that we could just take
that off the table.
41:15So when I think about this impeachment,
my whole point on this is
41:18we're trying to do what's right,
because we think it's important.
41:22That's what I want people to think,
that's all we want.
41:25We want Americans to think
that there is a possibility to
41:30do what's right, and
that is what we are pushing for
41:35as hard as possible.
>> Hi, my name's Tyler Willerbram, MBA 1.
41:39And I'm curious to know, so, investing
all this money in technologies for
41:44sustainable energy, and trying to
influence policies to promote them.
41:49But people largely ignore the fact that if
you just got rid of fossil fuels today,
41:55you'd be having thousands of people
unemployed all of a sudden across the US.
41:59And largely this happened
in the coal industry, and
42:03is definitely a factor that led to
the results of this past election.
42:07So to claim that we need to get to get to
sustainable energy as quickly as possible,
42:13but ignore this really
large fact of doing so
42:16could actually result in electing even
more in the same potential president.
42:22What's sort of your response to,
what are you doing to actually look at
42:27the American workers and people that
are going to be voting in these elections
42:32to ensure that if we do get to
a sustainable energy across the grid,
42:37how do we actually make sure that
we're not leaving other people behind?
42:44>> So, that is a great question.
42:47And before I give my answer,
let me apologize for my answer,
42:51because I completely disagree
with almost everything you said.
42:57We actually did a study on this.
42:58So we did a study what happens to
employment if we move to clean energy.
43:03We can't move to clean energy tomorrow.
43:05It's always going to
be a question of pace.
43:09But we did a study with Hank Paulson,
43:12the Republican Secretary of
the Treasury under George W Bush, and
43:17Mike Bloomberg, who's been a Democrat, a
Republican, and is sort of an independent,
43:21I guess, to make sure that it
wasn't a partisan's fight.
43:24And it basically showed, that in fact, if
we moved to clean energy, it creates more
43:29jobs, that we will have higher paying
jobs, the United States will grow faster.
43:35And this isn't taking into account
the cost of having the climate change,
43:41and the kinds of disasters that
are going to cost the United States $300
43:44billion this year.
43:47But there are a couple true points in
what you're saying that are absolutely
43:52important politically, and I agree with.
43:54One of them has to do with
what are you going to do with.
43:57It's true there will be more jobs, and
43:59it's true the jobs will be better paying,
but not for the same people.
44:03So the question is,
what are you going to do?
44:05My roommate, my ex-roommate lives in
the poorest county in West Virginia.
44:11His brother-in-law is
an unemployed coal miner, and
44:13his cousin is an unemployed coal miner.
44:15So I went down to see him,
44:17he's a retired career army officer
with some health problems.
44:22And I went down, and he was telling me,
44:24if you're a coal miner today,
you make 82 bucks an hour.
44:28Which, in the poorest county in West
Virginia, is an unbelievable amount of
44:33money, and the next stop is
probably 25 bucks an hour.
44:36So coal mining is not
the world's greatest job.
44:40It's a really well paid
job with good benefits.
44:43And that's really what
we're talking about.
44:45We're talking about what are we going
to do for the people in our society who
44:50think, look, there are 50,000 coal
miners in the United States of America.
44:55It's a very, very, very,
very small number of people,
44:59but there's a broader question here,
and that's what Trump was referring to.
45:03There are a group of people in the United
States of America who do not live in
45:07Palo Alto, California.
45:08They do not live in New York City.
45:11They do not live in the parts of
the country that are seeing real growth.
45:16They are not connected to
the information technology revolution.
45:20They are not connected to the positive
aspects of globalization.
45:24And they can see the climate changing,
but for
45:27them, that is not the immediate
problem they're dealing with.
45:32That's just something that
may put them out of work.
45:35So they feel completely
scared by the fact,
45:38all of the fact that
the world is changing.
45:41That people in Palo Alto go like, whoa,
just killed it on my latest investment.
45:46They're going, whoa, the world is
changing, and they just closed the plant.
45:50And there's only one plant, or
they just closed the coal mine, and
45:54now what do we do?
45:55But now we're going to get less than half
the dollars per hour that we thought we
45:58were going to get or that we were getting.
46:01So the question to me is not
the macro question you asked,
46:05but the micro question.
46:06What do we say to the people
in rural America or
46:10poor urban America who are not
connected to the growth for
46:14whom the rapid pace of change in
our society is scary as anything?
46:19And that is what Trump was dealing with,
that fear, that uncertainty, and
46:24that sense that no one was listening.
46:28And I think his answer
was a dishonest one.
46:31And I think it was absolutely, we're
not going back to a lot of coal miners.
46:38Even if we dug a ton more coal,
it's all mechanized.
46:40No one is going into a coal face with
a pick and shovel anymore, period.
46:45But it was a perfect symbol for
going back to a time when being
46:50a hard working American who was
willing to go to work every day and
46:54kill yourself meant you got a middle
class job, including in rural America.
47:00So the question is when we talk to those
people who are hard working and scared,
47:04how are we actually,
not how are we going to fake it,
47:07how are we actually going to include them?
47:10And to me, the question is two-fold.
47:12One is, we need to invest in
the people of the United States.
47:16That means education, training.
47:18We need to connect them to this world
that you guys are in right here in this
47:23auditorium.
47:24If you don't have
broadband in the community,
47:27you cannot compete in the first world.
47:30When I was in West Virginia,
the roads were bad, literally.
47:35So the question is,
if you're in that community,
47:38how can you possibly compete in this
world or even be part of this world?
47:43And this includes rural California.
47:46If you're not connected real-time,
it can't happen.
47:49Secondly, if we're not investing in
those people, we lose, they lose,
47:53the country loses.
47:54The idea that we're going to
cut education, training,
47:59healthcare, food for
poor kids from the budget is insane.
48:05It's morally wrong, but it's also crazy.
48:08This country will do well
if Americans do well.
48:11We should be taking our money and
investing in those people.
48:14So that they think I'm going
to be connected to the world,
48:18I'm going to be trained for the world.
48:19I'm going to participate in this world,
in the 21st century, so that every change
48:24doesn't actually push me further away
from what's going on in the real world.
48:29Because if we were in rural Wisconsin,
and there was one plant in our town,
48:37and that plant closed, we wouldn't
know what to do either, except leave.
48:43That's what's going on in this world.
48:44We need to invest and frankly, clean
energy, it means rebuilding this country,
48:50and it actually means this country
with millions of net new jobs.
48:56We have to do it.
48:57It's a way for us in the short-term to get
every community rural, poor urban people.
49:04People in rural America,
we have to do it every where.
49:07It's good jobs every where.
49:08The question is,
what do the jobs pay and who gets them?
49:12The last thing I'll say is this, I was
in Cleveland talking to some inner city
49:18ministers about clean energy jobs,
and they were excited,
49:23I promise you, at the idea that we
could bring thousands of jobs to urban,
49:28poor Cleveland with high unemployment for
their people, in their communities.
49:35It's true in rural Wisconsin too.
49:37So when I hear it I know he's talking,
the president was dealing with
49:42a real emotional problem that is
absolutely felt in this country but
49:47he wasn't giving a fair answer.
49:49And the answer I'm giving about invest
in Americans, rebuild the country and
49:53connect us all together, is actually the
way that somebody living in a rural part
49:57of this country can connect
with you guys in this room.
50:01Or you can choose to live in
a rural part of California and
50:04still connect with the fastest growing,
50:06most vibrant companies in the world.
>> We are almost out of time,
50:12so I'm just going to take the final
question, so we can wrap up, so
50:15officially according to the clock.
50:18But the holidays are right around the
corner, and I've read that you are known
50:22for requiring guests at your annual
Christmas lunch to bring a poem to read.
50:28What's the best poem you've heard?
50:33Well, I would say there are some
great American poets right now.
50:42The two that I would recommend to you if
you're not reading your poetry every night
50:46before bed, Billy Collins is hilarious and
50:51really profound and
Mary Oliver is fantastic and super fun.
50:58And wow, if you read just those two poets,
51:03they are, I promise you,
51:07you will laugh really hard and
you will walk away happier, and
51:12with a sense of some, the world being
a place where we can all make it better.
51:18We can have a positive impact.
51:20And that's what we're all trying,
the one thing I would say to you guys is,
51:22look, having a meaningful life
is what you should be going for.
51:28That is what will make you happy.
51:30If you sit there and
think I'm having a positive impact.
51:35I'm having a meaningful life.
51:37That is what you will
want when you're my age.
51:40And so when people say you're really
trying to do this to make more money,
51:43I'm like no, selfishly I'm trying
to have a positive impact.
51:46I'm not trying to say it's not selfish.
51:48But that's what, I promise you guys,
if you're doing that,
51:52you will find great joy in that, and
that's what I've observed in myself and
51:57all the people who I meet.
>> Ladies and gentlemen,
51:59please join me in thanking Tom.
>> [APPLAUSE]
52:05[MUSIC]
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