It is an absolute pleasure serving with him, and I salute his resiliency.

To take care of him, his orphan, and his widow is a cost of war.

Congress is taking a very careful look at budgets and spending levels; and DOD is not immune.

We must ensure our airmen and their families are safe, healthy, and resilient.

This is a program that's had kind of a complicated history.

Congress must do its part to make sure that funded programs are effective and efficient, in keeping with our roles as stewards of the public trust and of taxpayer dollars.

I can't believe two-thirds of America's youth can't meet the mark.

I start from the presumption that lifetime healthcare for career military personnel is part of a moral contract between our government and those who step forward to serve.

I am acutely mindful of our special obligation to see to the needs of servicemembers and their families and I take that responsibility very seriously.

Yes. I wouldn't disagree with you at all on that. It's just--the way that this has been characterized so often in the media has been a DOD issue, and it's a national issue in which DOD is attempting put some efficiencies into, in my view.

The national debt may be our biggest national security threat as we move forward.

It's kind of difficult to place cost-effectiveness on the use of a contractor if you don't know how many you're using.

The individual marine is our Corps' most sacred asset.

I think weight and education are two areas that the country needs to go after.

For the record, we'd like to see your best estimates on those numbers, as we move toward the Defense bill this year, which means fairly soon.

I have strong reservations regarding the administration's proposed enrollment fee increases, based on the fact that retirees have earned this healthcare benefit through their years of service--a moral contract, in my view.

It was a considerable shift, when they decided to do that, back in the 1980s.

I find that astounding.