I yield back all time. The PRESIDING OFFICER. All time is yielded back. The question is, Will the Senate advise and consent to the Wilkie nomination?

I thank the Senator from Montana, Mr. Tester, for his remarks. I thank him more so for his hard work, as ranking member, over the last 2 years with me, as chairman, and for bringing us to the point at which we are today. Jon and I are very…

We are not interested in privatizing Social Security or the Veterans, either one.

Is it a mandatory participation program?

there are people out there who are getting ready to privatize things.

But for a few. And that is what worries me a lot about it: if it is a nationally mandated program and a mandatory participation program.

I have paid taxes since April 15, 1959, when I made $40 a week as a surveyor's assistant.

I hope as Commissioner of the IRS you will work towards completing that task to moving towards simplification of the system.

I believe the most recent tax change... have actually simplified the process of filing and paying income taxes.

I am a cosponsor of that legislation.

We are getting into a war that is going to cost lots of billions of dollars.

It's not going to go away, because it's entirely too expensive, and there are some big problems.

I appreciate what you've said about it, and I also appreciate the points that have been raised by many of the Members.

I think that Senator Bennet was right on target in talking about the confusion in the pricing of pharmaceutical services.

I was pleased that President Trump mentioned speeding up the approval process for over-the-counter drugs in his Rose Garden statement on pharmaceutical costs.

I certainly don't have the answer, but I know the problem is desperate, and we need to do whatever we can to start developing, and then we need to encourage it.

I was pleased with Bob Casey to sponsor the Monograph Reform bill, which we passed in this Committee a couple of months ago, which I think is going to be a contributor to lowering costs.

I have 7 requests for committees to meet during today's session of the Senate. They have the approval of the Majority and Minority leaders. Pursuant to rule XXVI, paragraph 5(a), of the Standing Rules of the Senate, the following…

I thank the distinguished Senator from Oklahoma. I will tell him that the story of his veteran from Muskogee led us to the way we wrote a lot of the provisions in section 101. Comfort, ease, and accessibility for the veteran are equally…

I come briefly to the floor to encourage all Members of the Senate to vote for the VA MISSION bill. It is long overdue, a lot of hard work went into it, and it had a great vote on cloture of 91 to 4. I am sure we will have an outstanding…

I am delighted to stand today, shoulder to shoulder with all my colleagues on the Veterans' Affairs Committees in the House and the Senate, to thank the Senate for a very strong vote on cloture yesterday to take us to a point today where…

I think Senator Coons was absolutely right to bring it up.

the Senator is correct. The term Indian Health Service includes Indian Tribes and Tribal organizations that operate healthcare facilities in lieu of the Indian Health Service pursuant to a contract or self-governance compact with the…

I want to thank Senator Shelby and Senator Leahy for their leadership on this issue and for their strong support of the VA MISSION Act. I understand their concerns regarding funding, and agree that the important reforms included in this…

before the Senator from Montana leaves, I wish to thank him for 3 years of dedicated service and the last 2 in particular as we put together the pieces of shrapnel--which was the original attempt to make Choice work--to be a streamlined…