I am worried that HSAs, an idea that has merit for some well-off consumers, are being twisted into a quick fix that will only exacerbate the challenges in New Mexico such as our ongoing fight against the opioid epidemic.

Thank you for the indulgence of allowing me to sit on the Committee today.

Each backlogged permit represents New Mexicans losing out on good-paying jobs and rural communities losing out on economic growth.

Today alone, my state will lose out on approximately $2 million in tax revenue due to a backlog of applications for permit to drill by the Bureau of Land Management in just our state.

The traditional idea is that war at its base is an extension of politics.

They are very expansive claims, and I think a lot of us thought that the Libya opinion was about as aggressive and as expansive as one could be, and that was only topped last week with the one on Syria.

I find that OLC opinion extremely alarming.

If the Federal Government is losing $1.3 billion per year from New Mexico alone, it should concern all of us to think what the national loss in revenue must be.

I think that the notion that there can be public comment when there are no requirements is one of the challenges that we have that we need to correct.

I want to thank you for going down, as you have done with other natural disasters in New Mexico.

We need to get some answers here, because we cannot just push back on estimates that are being put forth.

I want to express my strong support for Peace Colombia.

Congress has failed to exert its legitimate constitutional authority, even in the face of the most clearly unauthorized use of military force to date.

Since President Trump announced the United States withdrawal from the JCPOA, there has been a lot of talk about the possibility of the U.S. using military force against Iran, a possibility that is concerning to me and many of my colleagues.

We must be clear about the baseline we are considering approving so that we do not end up in the situation where we are today with AUMFs being stretched to the point of breaking.

Congress has not approved the use of military action against Iran, but, more importantly, the power to wage war was intentionally restrained by writers of the Constitution.

Is that not the role of Congress that the Constitution calls for?

War forces our will on an opponent or through military means to reach a political objective.