Securing this Nation is not just, as you know, Madam Secretary, a Federal Government responsibility.

I look forward to working with you and hearing from all of our subcommittee members this year.

To me that does not make any sense.

the House recently passed a continuing resolution that cut funding by $2.5 billion in this Department, which is 6 percent below the 2010 budget.

It reminded me that this was the largest reorganization of the Federal Government since Harry Truman organized the aspects of the military.

In the spirit of bipartisanship, I am actually going to pass the gavel to Senator Coats so he can continue.

Since 2005, for example, importers of shrimp from China have failed to pay more than $58 million in dumping duties.

We have to be mindful that we are building, not streamlining this Department.

If the President does not request and the Congress does not approve supplemental funding, that account under our calculations will literally run out of money in June.

I do not believe the notion of reducing spending to 2008 levels is either appropriate or responsible for the Department of Homeland Security.

We must all learn from history while confronting the evolving threats to this Nation.

Do you share my view there are practical changes we can make to FEMA policy that might mitigate some of the concerns of communities without adversely affecting risk identification or the solvency of the NFIP?

But right now along the gulf coast, we are having such serious issues, you know, with the moratorium, the gulf coast spill, still recovering from Katrina and Rita.

We must have the fortitude and the discipline and the tenacity I think, Senator Coats and others, to continue to fund adequately this effort and not become lax or distracted.

I hope that we can be a little bit more positive so that the industry gets some more positive signals from you all in the near future.

But the jobs have.

We're so far off the historic level. We've got to get it back up as quickly as possible.

International adoptions is an important issue to me to make sure that we are doing the very best we can in customs.