Debbie Wasserman Schultz

The irony of not allowing introduction of information into the record which is a typical action for--

Mr. Chair, I ask for a recorded vote.

Those are connected. Those two things are important information to highlight--

Their objection to information being squelched is not lost one me, and I vote no.

We are attacking civil servants who work to keep America safe.

Twenty years of Committee hearings in Congress I have never seen a denial of being allowed to insert information into the record, ever. Mr. Chair, you have to fix this. This cannot be how we proceed going forward, and I vote no.

This is outrageous. We are not able to answer--put anything into the record now? Are you kidding me?

In Florida, voter suppression is a real concern.

Eventually the consequences are that you could end up having more and more moves toward privatization, more restrictions on the ability of the VA to fully serve the veterans.

I mean, forcing a robbing of Peter to pay Paul, and on top of that, adding a capped situation really squeezes VA on the decisions that they can make.

I have appreciated the opportunity to work with the most communicative, open, collaborative VA secretary that we have had during my tenure.

Thank you. And now that the reporting is outside the chain of command thanks to a change in the law and the President's executive order this should be a priority because you have that mechanism.

There is a $16 million cut to the oversight funding in what you proposed.

So when he says let us know if--and I will just add, we know your constraints in terms of what you might have requested and that goes up the chain and to OMB and what comes back to you after you have sent it up.

So, Madam Secretary, I mentioned the concern that I have over there being only one quality-of-life project in your budget request.

Too many of our leaders... abdicated their responsibility, you know, to their service members and those families in providing that oversight.

I commend the Department for finally expanding its previously discriminatory IVF policy by now allowing eligible troops to access IVF regardless of their marital status or sexual orientation.

We have got to meet the moment and manage risk and move quicker and parse out these planning processes.

President Biden has shown time and time again, both through his actions and in his budget requests, that he stands firmly with Israel and our relationship.

That would not be a step in the right direction, in my opinion.

I want to thank the five witnesses here today. Mr. Chairman, I think we have probably the newest minted collection of enlisted leaders that we have ever had at one time.

The potential economic impacts to south Florida cannot be understated, but it is more than just an infrastructure project.

To maintain a lethal fighting force, we must invest in their quality of life and mission critical infrastructure.

We shouldn't be structuring the way we allocate funds in the same way just because that is the way we have always done it.

Note to self, do not make Judge Carter mad.