There's an old saying, 'If you don't care where you're going, you're never going to be lost.' The point is, we need to have a direction, here, as a country.

It seems to me that the lack of some sort of central goal or aspiration for our country has been prevalent for a long, long while.

If we're going to move toward an electric-drive-vehicle future, nearly 70 percent of the oil we use in the transportation fleet comes from outside of our country--if we're going to do all this, it seems to me you logically have to create…

We are all disappointed that the House did not complete the job in 2008, but we are not discouraged.

I would like to thank Chairman Dorgan and Senator Murkowski and indeed, the entire Committee for all the hard work that they have done on behalf of the Indian people and the Indian health care system.

I fully understand the sovereignty issue. I think perhaps more than most, I understand that.

I urge the Committee to consider adding important provisions back into the bill.

If we are saying to people that money is only available for life and limb, we are consigning a whole lot of folks to a lifetime of pain and suffering.

I don't think there is a population in this Country that is as affected with unemployment, poverty, lack of health care, good housing and education challenges than this population.

It is critically important that reforming and improving the health care system for American Indians remains a high priority.

I also urge the Committee to take opportunities to improve the Indian health system during health reform.

I hope that in the new Congress, that we can move forward on the critical issues facing the Indian health care system.

The NIHB urgently requests that Congress finish work on an IHCIA bill within the next 90 days.

I hope at the end of that journey, we all will have felt we have done something that advances Indian health care in this Country.

The question of eligibility is obviously important.

We desperately need the new authorities offered by the Indian Health Care Improvement legislation.

I think it would make sense to me if I and Senator Barrasso and others members of this Committee, working with all of you, can try to evaluate what should be the new approach in this legislation.

Congress has repeatedly stated that the trust responsibility to provide health care extends to American Indians regardless of where they reside.