CUNA President/CEO Jim Nussle and former Secretary of State John Kerry were the highlights of a busy first full day of general sessions Monday at the CUNA Governmental Affairs Conference (GAC). A record-breaking more than 5,300 credit union leaders were in attendance for the day’s events, which also saw Nussle make a surprise announcement about a guest speaker Tuesday.

Vice President Mike Pence will address CUNA GAC Tuesday morning. Pence’s visit follows up last year’s successful GAC in which Nussle and a group of credit unions met with President Donald Trump to discuss their support for the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief and Consumer Protection Act, which was later signed into law.

Other highlights of Monday at CUNA GAC include:

• A look at the successes of 360-degree advocacy from CUNA Chief Advocacy Officer Ryan Donovan and a discussion of how credit unions can mobilize their members from Chief Political Officer Richard Gose;
• CUNA’s Annual General Meeting, featuring the remarks of Maurice Smith, outgoing board chair;
• An address from National Federation of the Blind President Mark Riccobono on how credit unions and the NFB can team up to ensure accessibility; and
• A lively day of conversations between Credit Union Magazine and credit union leaders, vendors and other stakeholders.

In addition to Pence, Tuesday’s agenda is jam-packed with speakers, including author Malcolm Gladwell, Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.), Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Rep. Lacy Clay (D-Mo.), NCUA Chairman J. Mark McWatters and board member Rick Metsger.

Other items scheduled for Tuesday include:

• A panel discussion on CUNA’s Awareness initiative;
• A panel discussion on grassroots advocacy led by CUNA Deputy Chief Advocacy Officer for Political Action Trey Hawkins; and
• Breakout sessions on the state of the economy, regulatory and litigation threats to credit unions, one’s role in credit union advocacy, cybersecurity in 2019 and beyond, flood insurance and a credit union CEO roundtable.

►Read more conference coverage from CUNA News, and get live updates on Twitter via @CUNA_News,@cumagazine, @CUNA, and by using the #CUNAGAC hashtag. You can also follow the conference on Facebook and Instagram. For a complete schedule and information on keynote speakers and breakout sessions, visit the CUNA GAC event page.