the settlement does, as has been said by Senator Sarbanes and others, represents a failure of the Securities and Exchange Commission.

I believe that this hearing and the testimony that we receive today is merely the start--or I hope it is, anyway--of renewed vigilance in restoring the trust that the American people have lost in the securities industry.

I am hopeful that the ongoing investigations will lead to the appropriate prosecution of bad actors.

The jury is still out on the value of the settlement.

Permanent means permanent.

We should expect more from the leaders of the financial services industry.

More than $560 million in AIP funding was used for security related expenses in 2002, which was up from only $57 million the previous year.

How is your $20 bill program working?

Are you going to be involved, directly or indirectly, as the Treasury Secretary in recommending the formation of a central bank, an independent central bank for Iraq?

Mr. Secretary, could you do that for the record?

I hope that we will do the same again this year.