Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor an American hero, Ara Parseghian, who has led a life dedicated to coaching and teaching others, serving others, and a life that has given hope to families all across the world. Many Americans know about…

The Senator was a county executive; I was a mayor of a community. We had to deal with the real-life aftermath of what happens around here, especially when it comes to these extensions. I know in my city, when I saw these extensions from…

I would like to lend my strong support for expanded coverage for military families affected by autism.

It is clear that this is a growing problem that we as a country have yet to address.

Mr. President, I rise to urge our colleagues to vote for cloture to proceed to the Postal Service bill. I will speak very briefly. This a great American institution, right there from the founding of our country. In fact, it is in the…

Nobody in America can figure out why we continue to pay dead people money--LIHEAP payments, Medicaid payments.

There is something wrong when 37 percent of the Senate would like to have a discussion about an issue and the Majority Leader will not bring it to the floor.

It is inexcusable that it is not happening.

I believe that our military families should be provided with the best available care.

The time to address this critical gap in TRICARE is now.

It's going to bankrupt us.

We are losing 25 to 35 square miles of wetlands per year--about a football field an hour--which places millions of lives and critical national resources at alarming risk.

For decades, the people of my State have been fighting a noble battle to save the most productive and environmentally significant coast and delta in the world.

I don't think we can have a net loss of wetlands.

So, Madam Chair, just think about this big picture for a minute. Of all the waterways in the country that bring in resources from the South, the East, and the West, our channels, this budget, is barely maintaining one-third of their…

This budget that we have in front of us... simply does not have enough money to maintain or invest or build the structures that we have to to build an economy that lasts.

Well, Madam Chair, I'm with you 1,000 percent. I serve on the Appropriations Committee, obviously, I'm on the subcommittee, but I can honestly say, of all the committees I serve on, there is no budget that is in more crisis than this one.

I do not agree with the funding level proposed by the administration for the NIH.