Rosa DeLauro

I would just like to say to you and ask the Department to take that lead in protecting students from these agreements, and protecting the integrity of the student loan program for Federal taxpayers.

These are the very students that our Federal programs are in place to support, and I think our country will be seeing the negative consequences from school closures for years and years to come.

The sad truth is we can never give those children back those years of their lives, and some of these wounds may never heal.

I fear the proposed 15 percent increase for the Department of Education will leave the next generation saddled with the highest national debt our Nation has ever seen.

Your budget recognizes the immense value of higher education by providing key investments to make college more affordable and accessible for low-income and minority students.

As we begin the 2023 budget process, we need to build on these critical investments to help even more students and families to achieve that American dream.

We were able to meet the needs of communities all across our Nation through district-specific funding for programs that support students with intellectual and developmental disabilities, mentorship, tutoring initiatives, college success…

Strengthening our educational system and our students' learning begins with a strong Department of Education.

$6,800,000,000 in loan debt has been canceled for more than 113,000 public servants.

$170,000,000,000 in the American Rescue Plan fund that were secured by congressional Democrats and President Biden.

The banning of books from public schools and libraries, restricting free speech and access to books is divisive.

After the pandemic, I dare say we have a very robust consensus on the need to support the social and emotional and mental health of our children.

One of the lessons, for instance, we teach to high school children is how to disagree without being disagreeable, which is, in my understanding at least, an extraordinarily important skill in Congress, right?

Congresswoman DeLauro, we have thought at times, I have talked about maybe we need social and emotional learning in Congress

We need to let you know and our law enforcement agencies around the Nation that we are here to fund the police.

That is why I am proud that we were able to include an increase of $87 million for the Capitol Police in the fiscal year 2022 government funding package.

The Capitol Police continue to be called upon to protect the Congress, not only here in D.C. but also in our districts.

It has been just a little over a year since a mob of violent insurrectionists stormed the Capitol.

Thank you very much, Chairman Ryan and Ranking Member Herrera Beutler. This is an incredibly important hearing.

Thank you for the great work that has been done since January 6 and the kind of rigor on the assessments.

Our job is, through the FDA, is to be able to make sure that those who do produce it are held to a standard.

What the FDA needs to do is to understand that they are a regulatory agency and what that entails.

Parents should not have to choose between the supply of products and food safety.

In the wealthiest nation in the world, babies should not be at risk of going hungry.

That says it all, Dr. Califf. It says it all.