I hope that this Committee and my colleagues do not make the mistake we too often make around here of letting the perfect get in the way of the good.

We strongly believe, as part of the debate to increase the debt limit, Congress needs to put in place a special process that allows Congress and the administration to face up to our Nation's long-term fiscal imbalances and allows for…

Congress is not willing to take short-term pain for long-term gain, period.

The system is broken. In my 29 years in Congress, I have never... seen more partisanship and divisive Congress than I have today.

Our failure to act now will guarantee that they are right.

Well done. Very important question.

what really troubles me about this is the matter that we have talked about, which is the difficulty and really ultimately the impossibility of exercising our oversight authority with regard to people in the White House

we both share a desire to do something about this to help Congress uphold our constitutional responsibility for oversight.

A democracy requires accountability, and accountability requires transparency.

Simply put, end to end, extending benefits to same-sex partners is a good, sound business decision.

this is a no-brainer for us in terms of a good deal for the Federal taxpayer.

We believe it is the fair and right thing to do, and also because we believe it makes practical sense for the Federal Government as an employer.

I think there is significance in that.

It is a good point, and it is certainly validated by the differing opinions among different age groups on questions of gay rights generally, including this one.

Just as important, this bill shows that we recognize the value of every American family and are committed to the ideal of equal treatment under the law that our Founding Fathers envisioned.

This legislation is a valuable opportunity for the Federal Government to enhance an essential recruitment and retention tool.

I thank Congresswoman Baldwin.

It seems to us to be just plain sensible that we do all we can to attract and retain the 'best and the brightest' to serve in the Federal Government in the years ahead.

Providing Federal employees with domestic partner benefits will bring us a significant step closer to the principle of equality under the law.

the intermediary lending pilot offered by Senator Levin

Senators Lieberman and Collins have taken a strong leadership role in introducing the Weapons of Mass Destruction Prevention and Preparedness Act.

This is very disappointing, that two of the five labs with the most dangerous pathogens... still have great gaps in their security.

We could not agree with you more. I mean, it is obvious.

So the threat is real.

Today, we are going to hear testimony on legislation that Senator Collins and I introduced earlier this month to prevent and prepare to respond to attacks against our homeland by weapons of mass destruction (WMD), particularly biological…