Governor Jack Markell (D-DE) talked about the effects of national issues such as the economy, immigration, and gun violence his state, priorities for his state in 2013, and his role as the National Governors Association (NGA) chair. Other topics included workforce training and unemployment rates, sequestration and its impact on states, and his state’s sequestration preparations. He also responded to telephone calls and electronic communications.
“Sequestration,” a legal procedure in which every federal agency has the same percentage of its budget taken back in order to cut deficit spending, was agreed to in the Budget Control Act of 2011 and scheduled to happen on March 1, 2013.
Governor Markell spoke from the J.W. Marriott Hotel in Washington. D.C, where he was preparing for the opening of the NGA’s 2013 Winter Meeting.