Thank you for the invitation, Mr. Chairman.

the idea that folks focused on the Northern Triangle--Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador--would like to get out of there and apply for asylum, there is legislation that has been introduced--I am co-sponsor and you may be as well--that would…

They are sportswomen, and they take great pride in that.

In our day and age when our budget deficit for last year it was like $750 billion; this year it is expected to be $950 billion, and we are looking for ways to save money on the spending side and to leverage Federal money more effectively.

I think it really makes sense, if you look at what has happened in Colombia, 20 years, Colombia has actually turned the country around and got people not trying to get out of there to come up here.

Given what they face in terms of danger and lack of opportunity and hope, we would be tempted to pull out and release their kids and their families to a safer place.

I rise in response to a unanimous consent request from my good friend, the senior Senator from Tennessee, to consider the nomination of John L. Ryder of Tennessee to be a member of the board of directors of the Tennessee Valley Authority…

I think it is maybe one of the chief accomplishments of the past year, maybe in this present Congress.

I think once it is lost, it is lost forever.

I have also placed a priority on reauthorizing the Endangered Species Act, which has not been significantly updated since 1988, 30 years ago.

The existing State-Federal partnerships work more often than not, as it has in Delaware's case.

I also stand prepared to work with our colleagues to tackle wildlife funding issues in the 116th Congress.

Because we were the first to ratify the Constitution, 231 years ago, on December 7th. But who is counting?

It is my hope that we can come together in a bipartisan way to ensure that those tasked with wildlife conservation, recovery, and management have the tools necessary to preserve our Country's wildlife heritage.

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

Yesterday, the Senate passed by, I think, a 94 to 6 vote the reauthorization of the Coast Guard.

President Trump appears determined to continue to implement what I think are ill-considered, maybe legally questionable immigration policies that use scarce Federal resources without making us any safer.

I support robust funding for wildlife conservation at the State and Federal levels, but I believe we must be mindful of where the money is coming from and what other priorities exist for these same resources.

I think people have to have the expectations that their property and their safety is well cared for in those locations, and then you have to have economic opportunity and hope in those locations as well.

This legislation would authorize funding for the program for the first time since 2011 at $100 million a year.

I will yield one more minute to the Senator.

I think we basically agreed that the reason why is because, in Mexico, there is more hope, more opportunity.

Additional marsh, forest, and beach restoration activities will benefit all types of species, including birds, reptiles, fish, and mammals.

I will just start out by saying it is good to see you. It is good to be back. I hope you had a good break. We have business to do--serious business to do. Before we took our recess around election time, we closed off by passing, I think, a…

I don't know what it is like in Alaska, Wyoming, or Tennessee these days, but a lot of times, when I am going home or back and forth, people are saying to me: I wouldn't want your job for all the tea in China. I say: Well, I actually feel…