$87 billion for Iraq just like that, no problem; $8 billion and we are hurting our people.

I am concerned about this. Have you changed EPA's position on whether children are more vulnerable? Do you think they are more vulnerable or they may be more vulnerable?

As a small person, I do not think it is in stature so much as that they are developing and also they tend to play around on the ground and they put things in their mouth from the ground, et cetera.

I want to know about the Administration's position.

Mr. Administrator, seeing that box you are giving to Senator Wyden, if it has everything in there that he wants, that is a good change from the past, because it has been tough to get information.

On January 28, 2004, Senator Boxer and I wrote you concerning EPA's proposal to deregulate over 3 billion pounds of toxic hazardous waste from government oversight.

I think it does send a chilling message, and I think you are fooling yourself or you are not looking at what you did.

Americans were punished in the fifties and in Hollywood it was called 'blacklisting.'

He has a right to say that.

we want to really make sure that the American people are not--we always get back to this--deprived of a diversity of voices, be it political voices, music voices, all voices.

I would argue that when people were blacklisted in the fifties the movie industry will tell you that it was for business purposes.

But it was not good business for you to play the Dixie Chicks, right?

When Rush Limbaugh calls women members of the Senate 'femi-Nazis,' it is a hue and cry among certain people who take great offense at that.

I think that you are not understanding the bigger picture, so let me try another way.

I think it is important, Mr. Chairman, as we go along to recognize that.

Thanks so much, Mr. Chairman, for this hearing and for your leadership of this Committee.

Even if they said, we do not want to hear this candidate because we think he or she is quite offensive?

When I heard about what had happened to the Dixie Chicks, I was literally stunned.

I think it is so important and is very much related to how much power an individual network has to reach Americans.

I think that America really loses out when the new voices are not heard.

I would also argue that when you lead a rally, encourage people to bring CDs of a particular group because of what they said, and stand there and roll over these CDs, that I would argue on its face that seems way over the line to me.

We cannot let this happen.

If Congress goes along with the Administration's proposed funding cut, 570,000 kids already in programs will be turned out onto the streets.

The Bush proposal, as you noted, would take this down a huge amount, 40 percent. That means the number of children kicked out of the program, 570,000.

Young people need someone to look up to and someone to help them. I want to give them what people gave to me.