Robert Aderholt

I support your efforts in trying to make a priority of the certain research mission that you are tasked to do at USDA.

Thank you all for being here and for your presence before the subcommittee today.

I want to dig a little deeper in the issue that Mr. Nunnelee had mentioned about the National School Lunch Program and Breakfast Program.

We do believe the way this is set up that 55 percent of the food that will be sold or utilized in this program will still come from American producers.

I did not vote for the FY 2014 budget request for two reasons.

Today we begin our review of USDA's fiscal 2014 budget request.

Thank you both for being here and for your testimony this morning. We look forward to working with you as we continue on with the fiscal year 2014 budget.

And certainly, as you rightly pointed out, our thoughts and prayers go out to the victims and their families in Boston.

Yeah, well, you know, the concern about it was, as far as the budget zeros out this program...

So you would agree with the Administrator that this is an important thing to move forward on?

Right, and how those compare so that when you do a comparison, you are comparing apples to apples as compares to, you know, to truly get a cost of what the real cost in comparing the private screeners as opposed to TSA.

What I would like to do at this point, we will go recess for the vote and then come back...

What my question would be and what I think has concerned a lot of people is with that out there and if that is--if these numbers are wrong, please, let me know, but what our concern is, is hurting the integrity of the program when you have…

I think a lot of Americans are very concerned right now about the exploding participation and cost of the SNAP program over the past 4 years.

I think it is important that Congress protects the integrity of the nutrition program so that they can serve those who need assistance.

When you look at the savings for taxpayers, $90 million saved over the course of 3 years because of the way that we are going to manage our resources.

It hurts the integrity of the program because we want to see the people who need the help receive it.

I think everybody at this dais realizes the importance of this program for the people who need it.

The impact of the furloughs alone has been estimated somewhere around $10 billion.

So building and forming those partnerships with the regulated CFATS community is vitally important?

But in the past, you feel like there was some discouragement?

We have heard from industry... the Department of Homeland Security has not fully developed or utilized the public-private partnerships.

Secretary Spaulding, why was the internal memo so closely guarded?

I would like to say that we would agree with the gentleman from Minnesota's amendment and would support it and think it's a good idea.

I rise reluctantly to to oppose the amendment of my good friend from Georgia. I do support privatized screening; however, I'm concerned how the amendment that has been proposed by the gentleman would be applied. The effect of the amendment…