We could pass a health care reform bill this week with more than 60 votes, and it would be bipartisan, if he just took a few things out of the bill.

The claim that President Trump had no authority to order this attack without constitutional approval is constitutionally untenable and practically senseless.

Democrats should leave partisan politics at the water's edge and stand together against Iran and dangerous leaders like Soleimani.

nobody in the Government could actually tell us how much we were spending on biodefense.

If Congress were to formally authorize something that exists now, the National Veterinary Stockpile, that would send a strong message that this is a necessary national asset.

you just cannot do it.

we think this is an important area because the National Veterinary Stockpile was created pursuant to Homeland Security Presidential Directive 9, and it has never been funded.

Part of the problem there has been--and this goes to early warning and intelligence--how do you stop an outbreak, of either a bioterrorist attack or naturally occurring, from spreading.

Al Qaeda may be down, but they are not out, and that notion of hurting us economically is one that is pretty prevalent among those that want to cause us harm.

next year will be the 100th anniversary of the influenza outbreak of 1918. They estimate that at least 50 million and maybe as many as 100 million people died from that flu in 1 year globally.

I appreciate the leadership that the Committee is showing, because this really is a threat to our country.

Perhaps you saw over the weekend in the Washington Post there was an article about the evidence that the North Koreans, Kim Jong-un has an active pathogen development program.

So there is a really important leadership role for Congress here and, of course, the executive branch.

The Department of Agriculture I gather is in the final stages and close to issuing a rule on reportable animal disease.

That is just--you cannot do that because they have got to report early, and that is the way to stop it and really secure the agricultural sector of our economy.

it would show that this is not fantasy, that this is real.

Thanks very much, Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member Stabenow, and members of the Committee.

I applaud the Chairman for bringing this issue. I think it is something that we should be talking about.

I think the reality of this threat to agricultural security has quite naturally now hit the people in the industry more than people outside.

One of the challenges I think we are experiencing is the sense of complacency.

None of the progress which the AFC has achieved very specifically for those 400,000-plus kids would have occurred without Betsy's leadership.

Do I agree with everything he has ever said or done? Of course not. But I do not agree with everything anyone I know has ever said and done, including myself. If I were in the Senate today, I would vote aye on his nomination.

the United States is unprepared for biological threats.

On the 15th anniversary of 9/11 the United States should not be rewarding Iran for its deadly actions with gifts of sanctions relief and the easing of arms embargoes and ballistic missile restrictions. It is time to hold the regime…

Unless there is somebody to coordinate this and put together a biodefense strategy, then all the specific recommendations... are not going to work.