Even Start, as a result of the 2-week C.R., the Continuing Resolution, that we are currently living under, has been in effect killed.

Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.

I truly do want to see the numbers, Madam Secretary, because I think those numbers ought to see the light of day.

It is unquestionably the most effective early childhood development program ever developed.

I want to get to a bunch of questions about the number; why the rapid increase in Pell recipients?

Research shows that the programs are investments. There is no more effective investment than the focus on high-quality early learning.

It serves 20 million patients. It improves access, quality of care.

If Pell Grants are cut, the result is students and families will borrow more.

If you talk to any economist about what stimulates the economy, it isn't the tax cuts for the richest 2 percent...

I would like to add that the big losers in moving to direct lending are the banks.

cutting the Pell Grant funding, and I have the citation here, will reduce the number of low-income students receiving bachelors degrees each year by about 61,000.

So every opportunity is gone as a result of H.R. 1.

Let's create a balance here. We do have to get out of this hole, but it is not going to be just on the backs of 12 percent of this budget.

Job Corps successfully prepares 60,000 economically disadvantaged youth for jobs, military, higher education, with an astounding 80 percent success rate.

As a Nation how we can go back on the commitment to literacy is absolutely, I believe, unacceptable and it is irresponsible.

I am a very strong supporter, as you quoted my remarks, of Head Start.

The President's budget includes an increase for ESEA Title I, but it is not targeted to those students and schools with the greatest need.

the Republican budget looks to cut in half programs that work.

So if we are going to try to evaluate programs and see whether or not they are effective or not, it would seem to me that we would want to put some money in there to actually do so.

If the majority is successful in this massive cut to Head Start, what is the effect?

to cut the deficit, the majority could have ended $40,000,000,000 in subsidies to oil companies, $8,000,000,000 in agricultural subsidies to big businesses, $8,000,000,000 in giveaways to multinational corporations who send their jobs…

the backlog was something that needed to be addressed.

I think it is important to reiterate again that today the average earnings of a college-educated person is $43,000 while someone with just a high school diploma averages about $27,000.

It does not make sense to roll back our critical investments in education.

Montanans rely on community health centers, and the centers rely on Congress to provide adequate funding.