In the May 6 inaugural Saul G. Cohen Memorial Lecture, U.S. Senator Charles Schumer of New York-the third-ranking Democrat in the Senate-said that in order for the U.S. to grow economically, the country must transition from being a "consumption giant" to a "production giant.""This is the first decade during which median income actually declined," and median income is an indicator of the well being of the middle class, explained Schumer.

This decline in median income creates "anguish" in the middle class, forcing individuals to question if the "American dream is bright," he said.

During the lecture, Schumer spoke in a full Carl J. Shapiro Theater and proposed six policy areas-education, immigration, infrastructure, scientific research, the tax system and regulation-in which the government can assist the middle class and promote economic growth.

First, Schumer pointed to education as "the key" to economic growth. "America grows when we are better educated, and America doesn't when we're not," he said.

In order to improve education, Schumer suggested drawing from ideas proposed by both the Democrats and Republicans. These include increasing salaries for teachers while raising standards in primary and secondary education.

With regards to higher education, Schumer said the "quality [of education] is excellent," but the government should help the middle class pay for college.

Cutting back on Pell Grants, federally funded financial aid packages, "makes no sense," he said.

Schumer then noted the importance of immigration reform for the U.S. to grow.

"It is absolutely absurd that the best and brightest people around the world want to come to our universities and then we send them home to compete against us," he said. "We need comprehensive immigration reform. . Immigrants are the lifeblood of America."

Schumer said he is working on a bipartisan proposal with Senator Lindsey Graham that suggests "you get a green card the day you get your diploma." This program would help keep the "best and brightest" students who study at institutions in the U.S, said Schumer.

On the topics of infrastructure and scientific research, Schumer stressed the importance of federal investment to create jobs and help the economy grow.

"If you don't have infrastructure, . your country can't grow," he said. "When the federal government invests in scientific research, . it creates thousands and thousands of companies and millions and millions of jobs for every area of research and development."

Schumer added that the tax system "encourages" consumption rather than production and it is "filled, it's riddled with holes, that make no sense, that were done for political purposes."

Finally, Schumer said the government needs to analyze regulations relative to their impact on job and wealth creation.

In the question-and-answer session following Schumer's talk, University President Frederick Lawrence asked Schumer about the University's role in helping the U.S. remain ascendant.

Schumer answered, "The number one thing that you can do . is allow people who deserve to go to Brandeis to come to Brandeis."

He added that the Brandeis Transitional Year Program and Posse scholar programs make "eminent sense" and emphasized that the University should provide "encouragement" and "support" to its students.

Schumer also fielded a question that he summarized as "Given the need to balance the budget, why don't we take our troops out of Afghanistan"?

"We are not going to balance the budget by just cuts alone, we are going to have to increase revenues and we shouldn't balance the budget by just slashing across the board. . We need to deal with our deficit problems," he responded.

Schumer added that it is "hard to have much faith in [President of Afghanistan Hamid] Karzai," but that the U.S. can probably ensure its security even with a smaller force in Afghanistan.

Schumer made these remarks at the inaugural Saul G. Cohen Memorial Lecture.

Family and friends of Professor Emeritus Saul Cohen established the Cohen Lecture Series in his memory. Cohen, who died April 2010, taught at Brandeis from 1950 to 1986. While at Brandeis, Cohen became the first chairman of the Chemistry department and science school, the first dean of the faculty and the first University professor.

According to Prof. Irving Epstein (CHEM), Cohen "was, perhaps more than any other individual responsible for Brandeis becoming the quintessential liberal arts university." Cohen was the first dean of the faculty from 1955 until 1959 during which time he played a crucial role in "transforming" Brandeis from a liberal arts college into a research university, said Epstein.

Elisabeth Cohen, the daughter of Saul Cohen, said, "Schumer was the best person to begin this series devoted to the theme of citizen of the world."

"My father was a renaissance man with knowledge and interests in a wide range of fields. It is fitting that this lectureship be devoted to leadership not only in science but also in politics, the humanities and the arts," she added.

President of the Brandeis Democrats Jake Weiner '13, who attended the event, said in an interview with the Justice, "I really enjoyed hearing [Schumer] speak. I liked that-at least from my perspective-he offered a lot of solutions that a lot of people are talking about but he offered them in a way that was concise.