George Voinovich

Your heart goes out to these people.

Well, where are you right now? You are on a continuing resolution. What does that mean to you?

It is an American tragedy, in my view. And I am sure it is not consistent with the intent of Congress.

In other words, you have 48 percent more cases than you had in, what, 2008?

One of our concerns, is the training level of the employees.

Does their performance have anything to do with their pay?

If I had been mayor and had not gotten our appropriations done on time, or Governor, I would have been impeached.

The situation has gotten worse because of the fact that we have had a 21-percent increase in the number of people who are asking for disability benefits.

A great opportunity to witness the second great commandment.

But if the DDS did a lot better job, there would be less claims that needed lawyers.

We are changing that system, aren't we, Senator Akaka?

I think it is an area ripe for some oversight hearings and legislation.

If you are an attorney out there and you get a chance to get a lifetime appointment if you become an administrative law judge for Social Security, that is quite an incentive.

So often people get lost in the shuffle here, and I have several cases here, I mean, unbelievable situations where people have been out there delayed.

I hate to ask for your help one more time, but any contact you could make with your new Governors would be very helpful.

Great. Well, listen, we thank you very much. I think that I have learned a lot today, and, again, I appreciate your coming here to Akron.

If the State level is the first level of determination, then to me that is the most important.

But the fact of the matter is there are some wonderful things that do happen in the Senate, and one of them is this wonderful relationship that I have had with Senator Akaka.

You are making a difference in people's lives.

This is an issue that Senator Akaka and I have been working on a long time.

Well, it should have been done a couple years ago.

But the fact of the matter is if you get somebody out there that is not doing a job, what do you do?

Could you not work that out with John Berry and say, 'John, we have to give him your insight in terms of the kind of people that----'

If you can get a much better DDS operation--you say that if they go on the Federal payroll they might get more money.

I do not think the public understands what a disadvantage it puts an agency when we pass continuing resolutions and we do not do our appropriations work.