Speaker 1: Bloomberg Audio Studios, podcasts, radio news.
Speaker 2: Surely that is the discussion here, how to understand what
Speaker 2: national security is, how to correctly regulate technology at a
Speaker 2: time where people are talking about the potential influence of
Speaker 2: artificial intelligence.
Speaker 1: We turned out to someone who is brave.
Speaker 2: Enough to make the commute directly from the inauguration festivities
Speaker 2: in Washington, DC to the alpine vistas of Davos, Switzerland,
Speaker 2: Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders joining us now here in Davos.
Speaker 2: I am wondering, Governor Sanders, given the fact that a
Speaker 2: lot of people didn't decide to make that journey, are
Speaker 2: you acting like an ambassador, fielding a lot of questions?
Speaker 1: What are some of the questions people have for you?
Speaker 3: Certainly don't need an ambassador. President Trump will address the
Speaker 3: group here today, although he can't be here in person,
Speaker 3: certainly dominating almost every conversation, but.
Speaker 1: Not just here.
Speaker 3: Across the globe, I think there is so much excitement,
Speaker 3: so much optim about him coming back into the White House.
Speaker 1: People across the world are.
Speaker 3: Excited to see what he's going to do, and he's
Speaker 3: hit the ground running and gotten a lot done in
Speaker 3: a short amount of time. This is somebody who now
Speaker 3: is coming in as a seasoned veteran. He has been
Speaker 3: there before, and there's no learning curve. He is getting
Speaker 3: a lot of things done and in short order, and
Speaker 3: the people are excited to see what's happening.
Speaker 2: Henry was just talking about some of the discussions around
Speaker 2: TikTok last night on Fox News and this question around
Speaker 2: what is national security? How do you adequately regulate big
Speaker 2: tech when you have also this focus on celebrating the
Speaker 2: national champions of US tech companies. You're here to talk
Speaker 2: about tech, how do you reconcile that you know.
Speaker 3: One of the things that we're looking at, and certainly
Speaker 3: one of the places that we're leading in Arkansas and
Speaker 3: as governor, is you can protect national security. You can
Speaker 3: look at continuing to grow some of the technology and innovation.
Speaker 3: But one of the places I think that we have
Speaker 3: to do a better job is on our young people.
Speaker 3: We've seen a mental health crisis take place and nobody
Speaker 3: is immune from it, and so one of the things
Speaker 3: that we can do is a better job protecting the
Speaker 3: young people from constant access and infiltration of NonStop device
Speaker 3: in their hand. They still need to get outside, They
Speaker 3: still need to pay attention in class. That's one of
Speaker 3: the things we've been doing in Arkansas, one of the
Speaker 3: things that we've talked about here, and I think one
Speaker 3: of the things that I hope to see the United
Speaker 3: States lead on.
Speaker 2: And as a mother and someone who sees a lot
Speaker 2: of children, and I think there are a lot of
Speaker 2: people who would.
Speaker 1: Agree with you.
Speaker 2: There is this large attention though, and last night we
Speaker 2: really saw that display when President Trump was talking about
Speaker 2: they're just a bunch of kids looking at some silly videos.
Speaker 2: Do we really need to care about that so much?
Speaker 2: Do you agree with that premise? Or is this something
Speaker 2: that goes to national security but also the heart of
Speaker 2: something else about what it means to have appropriate technology.
Speaker 3: Certainly, there can be a great resource in technology. It's
Speaker 3: a tool that a lot of us used to I
Speaker 3: think one of the reasons that Donald Trump became president
Speaker 3: is because he was able to use technology to get
Speaker 3: his own message out and go around the mainstream media
Speaker 3: and talk directly.
Speaker 1: To the people. And so I think it can be
Speaker 1: a great tool.
Speaker 3: However, it can't be something that our kids are spending
Speaker 3: ten hours a day doing.
Speaker 1: And that's one of the things I think that we.
Speaker 3: Have to look at one of the things we're talking
Speaker 3: about a lot, the pressure, the anxiety, the depression, the
Speaker 3: suicide rates that have skyrocketed in large part because a
Speaker 3: total access and connection to social media, and so protecting
Speaker 3: kids I think has to be one of the big
Speaker 3: topics of conversation.
Speaker 1: Do you think the President Trump agrees?
Speaker 3: You know, that's a conversation I haven't had with him,
Speaker 3: but it's something certainly that I look forward to talking
Speaker 3: about with him as he takes the reins here.
Speaker 1: At the White House.
Speaker 2: Do you think there is clarity about what national security
Speaker 2: is and what isn't.
Speaker 3: I think there are some big differences in kids versus
Speaker 3: national security, and whether or not they can focus in
Speaker 3: the classroom, and whether or not other countries are taking
Speaker 3: all of our data.
Speaker 1: Those are very different conversations.
Speaker 3: This is a president who I know cares a lot
Speaker 3: about protecting American interest and is always going to do
Speaker 3: what is necessary to protect our country. You've seen him
Speaker 3: taking action on day one, so I have no doubt,
Speaker 3: no concern over that.
Speaker 1: One of the things I do think that has.
Speaker 3: To be a greater part of the discussion is the
Speaker 3: mental health impact that it is having on young people.
Speaker 1: You're on two panels. One of them is talking about this.
Speaker 2: The other one is with Kentucky Governor Andy Basheer, who
Speaker 2: is a Democrat, and I believe you guys are staying
Speaker 2: in a similar place and imagining the sharks and jets
Speaker 2: walking past each other. It's a panel about the role
Speaker 2: of governors and states in a presidential transition in implementing policy.
Speaker 2: And this comes at a time where President Trump has
Speaker 2: basically said get on board or face the consequences. Do
Speaker 2: you think that that is the right way to get
Speaker 2: states on board?
Speaker 1: I have a great partnership.
Speaker 3: I want Arkansas to be one of the leaders of
Speaker 3: a lot of the initiatives of the president is pushing
Speaker 3: We're going to be one of the biggest champions, and
Speaker 3: I want us to be a place of innovation and
Speaker 3: use Arkansas as a pilot for some of the programs
Speaker 3: that we're rolling out. I think on healthcare, there is
Speaker 3: a lot of opportunity to do things in a better
Speaker 3: way than what we've done, and I think this is
Speaker 3: a president that's going to be able to do that.
Speaker 3: A good relationship with the states.
Speaker 1: Is a good thing.
Speaker 3: We shouldn't be in constant battle between the federal government
Speaker 3: and our state governments, and.
Speaker 1: I think that's one of the things that you'll see
Speaker 1: both of us talk about how we can have.
Speaker 3: Good cooperation and get things done that benefit the people
Speaker 3: that we govern.
Speaker 2: Do you think it's a good precedent for funding to
Speaker 2: be withdrawn though, from states that don't comply with certain
Speaker 2: orders from the president?
Speaker 3: Look, I am in agreement with where the president is
Speaker 3: and the things that he's trying to do, and I
Speaker 3: think we're going to be able to not only improve
Speaker 3: things happening in Arkansas, but hopefully things happening in all
Speaker 3: fifty states. This is a president who's coming in with
Speaker 3: a huge mandate. People want to see his policies enacted.
Speaker 3: They know exactly what they signed up for because they've
Speaker 3: seen his leadership style and one in an overwhelming margin,
Speaker 3: and that's what people are hoping. He's going to come
Speaker 3: in and deliver on all the things that he's been
Speaker 3: talking about over the last couple of years.
Speaker 2: Have you talked with Governor Visher yet?
Speaker 3: I haven't yet, but I'm looking forward to spend some
Speaker 3: time with him this afternoon.
Speaker 2: But you guys, both are the children of governors, I believe,
Speaker 2: and you both are coming to the stage, but from
Speaker 2: opposite sides, one Democrat yourself a Republican.
Speaker 1: Do you expect it to be collegial, Do.
Speaker 2: You expect it to be a working together kind of feeling,
Speaker 2: or do you feel like that divide is getting more entrenched.
Speaker 3: Absolutely, I think that governors have a unique perspective, and
Speaker 3: certainly I want to promote and bring business and economic
Speaker 3: development to my state. I know he wants to do
Speaker 3: the same. But there's some common threads and some common
Speaker 3: challenges that we're.
Speaker 1: Both dealing with. I think that.
Speaker 3: We'll have a great conversation. I'm really looking forward to it.
Speaker 2: One other reason why you're here is sweet with all
Speaker 2: these business leaders about potentially investing in Arkansas.
Speaker 1: Are there specific.
Speaker 2: Projects that you would like to see finance?
Speaker 1: So there's specific streams of.
Speaker 2: Business that you think would be helpful to get international investment.
Speaker 3: Certainly, one of the biggest areas of growth in our
Speaker 3: state is aerospace and defense. It's now the number one
Speaker 3: export from Arkansas. Arkansas has the best economic growth of
Speaker 3: any state in the country over the last year. We're
Speaker 3: the number one state for people to move into anywhere
Speaker 3: in the country. There's a lot of great things happening
Speaker 3: in our state. We like to tout that we are
Speaker 3: home to fortune, one little retailer you may have heard
Speaker 3: of called Walmart. So we're not afraid of big business
Speaker 3: and success stories in Arkansas. And we have the opportunity
Speaker 3: to meet with a lot of companies and let them
Speaker 3: know that we're open and we're ready for them to
Speaker 3: invest and make Arkansas their home as well.
Speaker 2: How many meetings are you having me? How much did
Speaker 2: you get just an influx of people who wanted to
Speaker 2: meet with you, And did anyone surprise you or any
Speaker 2: places surprise you where they came from.
Speaker 3: It's certainly a busy couple days, and look forward to
Speaker 3: making them a really productive few days with a lot
Speaker 3: of good.
Speaker 1: Things to take back home to Arkansas.
Speaker 2: Are you concerned, though, that there's this feeling that maybe
Speaker 2: the US is putting itself first of the loss of
Speaker 2: other countries.
Speaker 1: Not at all. I think it's important.
Speaker 3: Everybody is going to be competing for the people that
Speaker 3: they either governor or lead, and that's exactly what you're
Speaker 3: going to get in Donald Trump. It's somebody he hasn't
Speaker 3: been shy about the fact that he wants America to win.
Speaker 3: There's nothing negative about wanting the best for your country
Speaker 3: and the people that you lead, and I think that
Speaker 3: people want to see him do that, and that's why
Speaker 3: he won reelection in such a big way.
Speaker 2: Governor Sanders, really appreciate your time, and you're making the
Speaker 2: track from Washington, d C. Too, Davos. Not many people
Speaker 2: did that, Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders did