The Secretary of the Navy, in consultation with the Chief of Naval Operations, signed a Record of Decision to develop a second nuclear-carrier homeport on the East Coast on January 14, 2009, and determined that it is in the best national…

If this is the experience--my experience is the experience that a lot of my constituents have, the traveling public has, their lives kinda stink when it comes to getting to and from their destinations.

I mean, don't you think that a lot of customers have a right to know which flights are chronically delayed or chronically canceled before they purchase their tickets?

I would welcome the opportunity to host you at Ellsworth and show you the work that's underway out there.

What I would like to share with you are some concerns I've heard from my constituents regarding TRICARE and customer satisfaction.

I am very concerned about the mixed messages that are sent by statements that are made here, not so much again as they are directed to constituencies back in the States, but more importantly what impact that has on the men and women who…

You mentioned some of the things, ethnic cleansing, other countries interfering, terrorist groups moving in, disruptions in the flow of oil.

If thought were being given to the effect on the troops and the conditions on the ground in Iraq, I do not think you would probably see as many of these resolutions floating around here on Capitol Hill.

I think the real opportunity here for Congress to have a say in this, if they wanted to, would be with respect to the purse and the power that we have in terms of appropriations.

What do you think the consequences should be if the Iraqi Government fails to step up and follow through on its promises?

But it seems to me that the bottom line concern that we have to have is that our troops understand that we are committed to them and support them and want to make sure that they have every opportunity to be victorious, to complete the…

I think that the questions that have been asked earlier--what is most important in the debate that is occurring up here right now, in my view at least, is the impact that it has on the men and women who are wearing the uniform.

Sectarian-motivated violence now inhibits political progress, effective governance, and economic development.

I believe that the commitment, the political commitment of the Iraqi government to the success of this plan, is probably more important right now than the additional troops.

let me echo what has been said repeatedly here and express my appreciation for your service to your country under extraordinarily difficult circumstances.

Thank you very much, gentlemen, for your service. I look forward to getting you confirmed.

I appreciate that and if you could answer it for the record it would be great, because that is such an important part of our success there...

Let me express my appreciation to all of you gentlemen for your willingness to serve.