Jerry McNerney

We need to get this right so that no claims are languishing and the veterans and their families and survivors get the benefits that they have earned and deserve without delay.

However, I remain concerned that, again, some of the VA's efforts move forward without direction, like a rudderless rowboat.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for holding today's hearing about Veterans' records, and how the VA is managing its transition to a paperless system and new technologies.

But you can hear our frustration in how long this is taking, and we just want to work together to get to the best result.

They have opposed efforts by the Department of Energy to promote research, demonstration projects, and commercialization of emerging technologies as picking winners and losers.

this is fungible. This is an international market. Those products are going to go overseas just like they are to this country.

we are going to be putting two to three times as much carbon into the atmosphere per unit of energy delivered.

I agree. There needs to be a fair look at all these sources, and I am not going to single out fossil fuels because corn-based ethanol has its problems, no question about it.

The lesson for today's hearing is from the Book of Matthew: 'For to the one who has, more will be given...'

Mr. Chairman, I would ask that you consider that a part of your bill, Mr. Hall, to give provisions, special provisions for training and hiring veterans if they are going to be used in this research.

The wind energy production tax credit is about to expire this year. That will throw about 40,000 people out of work.

The incumbent technologies have benefited from government research for generations, government subsidies for generations...

I just challenge my Republican colleagues to be as receptive toward spending dollars on clean energy as they are on fossil fuel energy.

the small fraction of money that goes to science as opposed to logistics.

It is our collective quest to vanquish BVA's backlog of claims and appeals.

Merely adding more people to the same broken system does not expedite benefits to veterans and their families.

My problem with this hearing is that it is kind of premature in my opinion to really make any conclusions.

We need to continue to look at the system with fresh eyes to help the VA with managing its claims processing mission.

We all want the same thing here. We want the VA claims processing to be fast and right.

I mean you must be sensitive to how this hurts the case for asking for those kinds of program funds?

So, Dr. Sullivan, has the improper programming had any impact whatsoever either way on the polar satellite procurements?

Today we will discuss a critical issue to the Delta communities, the ability to best prevent and respond to natural disasters, particularly floods.

Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

I think it is an important--it is important information.

I am really delighted to see many of my Republican colleagues agree on this.