If confirmed, I will certainly continue to stress to Congress the importance of receiving an enacted fiscal year 2013 Defense Appropriations Bill.

I have never said that I support sequestration. I do not nor have I ever supported sequestration.

Adverting sequestration, as well as providing the Department a fiscal year 2013 appropriations bill, should be Congress' highest priority.

The ability to avoid sequestration and to pass a full-year appropriations bill for DOD is within the power of Congress.

I support the President's approach to missile defense in Europe, including the deployment of the Aegis Ashore sites in Romania and Poland as currently planned.

I believe that modernizing the nuclear weapons production infrastructure is very important.

In general, I agree that we must maintain the right balance of end-strength, modernization, and training to guard against a hollow force.

In my view, the increasing complexity and sophistication of the military threat to Taiwan from China means that Taiwan must devote greater attention to asymmetric concepts and innovative technologies.

I am deeply impressed by the caliber and capabilities of our military forces.

I believe in the President's long-term vision of a world without nuclear weapons.

I recognize the many shared interests and current cooperation between the United States and Azerbaijan across the foreign policy, economics, energy, and cultural spheres.

If confirmed, I will assess the balance of strike fighter capability, and the state of the F/A-18 production line.

One particular way to support the Nation's defense infrastructure is to support international sales of American defense manufacturing.

Continuing with this tradition will be one of my highest priorities if I am confirmed.

I'm fully committed to the President's goal of preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.

I support the administration position that NATO's door remains open.

In this imperfect world, sovereign nation states possession nuclear weapons capability, as opposed to stateless terrorist groups, will often respond with some degree of responsible, or at least sane, behavior.

The Nation's long-term energy security would benefit from a competitive, domestic renewable fuels industry; as a major consumer of liquid fuels, the Department would benefit, as well.