As Tocqueville said in 1831, America is great because it is good. Once it ceases its goodness, it will cease to be great.

The Chinese Government has been rewarded for their brutality by us being silent.

If he did not stop that trend, China would be set free.

They will yell and scream for a few years. And then they will come back because we are such a big piece of meat.

Obviously, here in Washington, we face unprecedented challenges in balancing our budget.

Obviously, we are facing--and I want to thank each of you for being here today and providing information to this committee about this proposal.

But the bottom line is if the states don't dance to the tune, the nonscientific tune that is being set, there are backstops that will be imposed, penalties imposed from the Federal Government.

Are you serious? I mean for 25 years farmers, localities, and others across the Chesapeake Bay region have substantially reduced the amount of nitrogen, phosphorous, and sediment going into the streams that go into the Chesapeake Bay and…

But how can you make effective decisions about what should go into a TMDL and how can you expect the states to comply when you haven't even given them the evidence of what needs to be done and how it will benefit the Chesapeake Bay?

Is it more important to develop implementation plans with the correct science or to meet an artificial deadline?

I considered that an attack on Pennsylvania farmers in a broad brush, and I also considered it insensitive and certainly overstated.

the House of Representatives has voted to cut off the funding not for programs that help farmers comply with existing regulations, that keep cattle out of streams and so on, but simply to cut off the funding for the implementation of…

But the TMDL itself includes thousands of allocations based upon a tool that you admit is not ready for those finer allocations.

I find that unbelievable.

What are we supposed to do in the meantime?

Because you have threatened them if they don't undertake it with actions that most of us here on this panel who are in the United States Congress and involved in writing laws don't think the laws of the land allow you to do.

A great country can't live on borrowed money forever. You can't have a strong and growing economy by having a huge deficit and debt.

Gentlemen, thank you so much for your service to our Nation. And I want to begin by noting that everybody that serves in our Armed Forces is special.