Joe Lieberman

Obviously you served in the DOD before you were in this position. We have continued to be troubled, hounded, frustrated, and infuriated by the fact that these systems that we need so much are costing so much more than we expect, hoped…

This position is most recently reflected in the fiscal year 2011 President's budget submission which once again does not include funding for the JSF F136 alternate engine.

It is, as you know, a very bipartisan Committee and I think that is part of why we have been able to accomplish a lot over the years.

We're in a critical period in the coming year with national elections next month, which are the first in more than 2 decades.

Thanks to the bipartisan leadership shown by your Committee, DHS and regulated facilities are deep in the middle of implementing this vital program in a focused and cooperative manner.

The legislation which I have introduced with Senators Pryor, Voinovich, and Landrieu would extend the CFATS program for 5 more years.

I note that the deadline for that report is March 1, 2010--can you reconfirm that you will submit this report by that deadline?

We are not at war with Islam. We are at war with a particular extremist, violent terrorist expression, which is, in my opinion, a corruption, a perversion of Islam.

Has the Administration made a decision to avoid any public reference to violent Islamist extremism or Muslim terrorists--which is really why they are terrorists.

I was about to run for the fire extinguisher there.

I do not think we do a favor to Muslim Americans or people who are followers of Islam anywhere in the world by not saying that this is an extreme expression, a violent expression of one of the world's great religions.

Thank you, Senator Carper, both for your astute questioning and your kind words about my birthday.

Obviously, my point is that if the trial of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed is moved from New York City, insofar as our Committee and the Appropriations Committee are concerned, that hopefully would mean that there would be $200 million that could…

I believe I am correct that Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Commissioner of Police Raymond Kelly in New York both said that New York itself would require $200 million in the coming year if the trials went forward there.

I have been strongly opposed to trying suspected terrorists in Article III civilian Federal courts.

The President's budget could also undermine our State and local partners who usually are the first to respond, whether it is a natural disaster or a terrorist threat.

The Coast Guard, in my view, actually needs reinforcement, not retrenchment

I also support the President's request for $53 million for the Domestic Nuclear Detection Office to acquire handheld or portable radiation detection equipment for Department of Homeland Security agencies next year.

The numbers here are astounding, and obviously, if you have a short-term need for an employee, then it makes sense to do it by contract.

To me this is a shocking and unacceptable number because Federal full-time employees generally actually cost less than contract employees.

And there have even been intimations that there has been a decision not to go forward with the trials in New York City.

We must ensure that the Department's budget priorities are aligned to counter the threat that we face from a determined enemy.

The budget cuts the spending on cybersecurity by 5 percent

I will tell you they are astounding and unsettling because they say that the Department of Homeland Security now has just about as many contract employees as it has Federal employees--about 200,000.

The bottom line, as I said at the beginning, I think this budget continues the Department moving forward.