Thank you, Chairman McKeon. Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to the Johnson amendment. The Johnson amendment strikes from this bill the call for a study. A study is just the obtaining of knowledge. It strikes in this bill a study on what…

We certainly share our concern with the other side of the aisle as to how New START will be implemented and its effect on our missile defense system. The issue of President's secret deal with the Russians is not really one that's open to…

I want to thank Mr. Price. Mr. Chairman, I want to echo what he has just said about the importance of this amendment. This amendment merely says that the President shall not unilaterally do these reductions without it being pursuant to a…

Well, I must say that we certainly have to be concerned about troop reductions in light of the possible secret deal between the Russians and the President. I stand in opposition to this amendment because, first off, here you have Congress…

I appreciate the gentleman from New Mexico's statement that sometimes it's best to make things as simple as possible. So looking at this as the most simple as possible, the gentleman's amendment merely says: ``Strike.'' So we're striking a…

The letter that the gentleman from New Mexico just placed in the Record concerned fiscal year 2012. This bill is about fiscal 2013. And so it's irrelevant. It's fine to have in the Record so people can confirm that. I yield 1 minute to the…

All of the names of the companies that have been mentioned in this debate are not in this bill. This bill even requires competition. It's somewhat irrelevant to have the discussion on specific companies. I yield the balance of my time to…

I thank the Senator. I appreciate that explanation because this is a tax loophole that almost anybody who is fair-minded about this sees as a giveaway to some. They call it the Newt Gingrich-John Edwards tax loophole, to be bipartisan…

Senator Jack Reed from Rhode Island is one of the few graduates from West Point in this body and served his country in so many ways and still does. But I think about Jack Reed when I think about what happened with the GI Bill after World…

I appreciate the work of the Senator from Rhode Island and Senator Harkin. Of course, Senator Reed has been working on this issue for months and months. I am still amazed that the Senate refuses time and again and the House refuses to do…

I need to point out this is not an earmark. It has already been determined that this is not an earmark. This is a question of whether or not the United States of America is going to maintain its superiority as the world leader and protect…

I thank Chairman McKeon. Mr. Chairman, much of this bill is totally bipartisan. Two important provisions relate to missile defense and our nuclear weapons infrastructure modernization. Let me talk briefly about those two. The first, in…

This bill also authorizes a total of $642 billion for defense programs, including $88.5 billion to continue the Afghanistan war, on top of the more than $1.3 trillion we've spent thus far. It contains dangerous language that would pave the…

I thank the gentleman. Yesterday, we debated H. Res. 568, which draws a red line for military action at Iran's achieving a nuclear weapons ``capability,'' a nebulous and undefined term that could include a civilian nuclear program. As a…

Imagine if we took a fraction of the trillions of dollars we've spent for war and used it to deal directly with the root causes of domestic violence--spousal abuse, child abuse, violence in the schools, gang violence, gun violence, racial…

I thank my friend from California, but, unfortunately, I must disagree with him. This resolution contains broad and dangerous language that would undermine any diplomatic solution regarding Iran's nuclear program. Without explicit language…

Mr. President, I wish to continue to emphasize the remarks Senator Lautenberg made. I have not been here that long, but what I have seen happen in the last 2 or 3 years where judges appointed by the President of the United States are…

Growing up on that two-wheel wagon rut mule farm, I learned firsthand the critical role that America's farmers and ranchers play in our economy. And on the 150th anniversary of the United States Department of Agriculture, we are reminded…