Cleaning up the air is a primary focus.

Last year, this committee heard from four former EPA Administrators, all Republicans who served under Presidents Nixon and George W. Bush.

With terrorists all around us, Republicans are playing politics with the critical funding for the Department of Homeland Security and threatening a shutdown. It took them exactly a month in power to do that because they didn't like the…

Climate change is happening now. We cannot afford to wait.

Who are we working for, the people of this Country or the polluters?

Do not tell me that if you move forward on clean air, you destroy the economy or destroy your budget. It is quite the opposite.

We can move forward on the policies the President has put forward and that Republican Presidents have put forward.

The President's proposal will enable America to lead the way to avert the most calamitous impacts of climate change.

This is a situation where the Clean Air Act requires you to act.

I think what was noteworthy about the act is it codified all restrictions under the Cuban Assets Control Regulations that were promulgated by the Treasury Department in 1963, and it codified the Cuban embargo.

The reason we have relations are geopolitical reasons, that we want to work to change these places.

I think that is critical. And I am going to write a letter to Pope Francis thanking him for his leadership on this.