That is our fundamental purpose. That is who we are as Americans.

I would like to thank you and the members of the Committee for a very good hearing.

Mr. Speaker, we are all still reeling from the senseless violence that was perpetrated on the community of Boston. I live a long way from Boston; but, like many Americans, I'm trying to make sense of the senseless. How can someone so…

there are new entrepreneurial, returning to traditional means of production that are creating a whole host of new opportunities for younger farmers.

Keep looking for that pathway. Because here is an individual who was assisting you on your mission----

strong rural communities are the key to a stronger America.

the strength of agriculture in rural communities is essentially tied to production agriculture, and that is a source of a great and economic wellbeing for America.

it is not in competition with anything else. It is all part of the family.

do you lose the original spirit whereby you were targeting a particular area of need with a specialized program.

Well, we would prefer, as you are suggesting, to have a longer-term fix and decrease the uncertainty about this.

It is still not clear enough to make any conclusive adjustments to a policy recommendation.

If the President asks for a recommendation on any of this, yes, we will be prepared, but we also have to factor into that: at what cost is this going to be for the men and women having to fight that war?

There is little disagreement that the nuclear weapons complex must be modernized.

Do you believe that there is sufficient funding in the out-years so that you are going to keep that 2025 date for the first production unit?

DOD takes its treaty obligations seriously and reviews its plans carefully to ensure compliance.

. . . it hasn't achieved the objective, obviously.

The United States is heavily engaged in supporting the SOC and SMC as a counterweight to extremist elements in Syria.

If we did not get into this the right way, if we get into it, there could be more bloodshed.