Daniel Inouye

Madam Chair, thank you very much for this opportunity to say a few words about the President's fiscal year 2013 budget relating to the Commerce Department.

I sincerely congratulate you and the President on your willingness and desire to think creatively about how we may make Federal activities more efficient.

I want to applaud you and the President for working to find ways to support our small businesses and decrease our trade deficit even in these perilous budget times.

Most importantly, the strategy reaffirms the administration's support of the All-Volunteer Force and maintaining the readiness of this force as a vital component of our national security.

This strategy moves from having a capability to fight two major theater wars, to instead defeating a major adversary in one theater while denying aggression or applying unacceptable costs on another aggressor.

This subcommittee has that assignment of preventing sequestration, and we will do our absolute best. I can assure you that.

Chairman Inouye, as a Medal of Honor winner who has personally witnessed the horrors of combat, I wanted to bring to your attention...

You've brought up a matter that's very personal to me because during the war I got about 30 transfusions. I just must have been lucky.

Our economy, our country is facing a budget deficit, and you have been tasked with significantly reducing the Department of Defense's (DOD) budget plans in an effort to cut down spending.

If a deficit reduction agreement is not reached, DOD will take its first increment of an across-the-board reduction of nearly $500 billion over the next 10 years.

Chairman Inouye and Ranking Member Cochran, you and this entire subcommittee have been leaders in the effort to continue this innovative investment in breast cancer research.

Since the very beginning of this program in 1992, the Congress has stood with us in support of this important approach in the fight against breast cancer.

This year's budget proposes significant force structure changes for the Air National Guard, reducing end-strength by 5,100 billets and aircraft inventory of 134 aircraft.

I'm certain you're aware that this subcommittee is deeply concerned about the rising rate of suicides. We will make certain that these funds are used for research and prevention.

The Congress has provided additional equipment funding for the Guard and Reserve in each of the last 32 years because year after year, the President's budget fails to sufficiently fund Reserve components.

On behalf of the subcommittee, I thank the Surgeons General, and the Chief of the Nurses Corps, and we look forward to working with you in the coming months.

I find this rather strange.

I look forward to working with you to make certain that the fiscal year 2013 appropriations bill reflects the current and future needs of the U.S. Army.

What assurances can you provide that NIH supports the IDeA program and will continue to sustain research infrastructure support targeting the chronically underfunded IDeA States?

In this challenging fiscal environment, I will do my best to support the continued progress of science and U.S. competitiveness.

In 1986, the United States entered into Compacts of Free Association with the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of the Marshall Islands.

I will continue to do all I can to support your vision of good jobs for everyone, because a strong economy depends on a strong middle class.

I appreciate that under your leadership the budget request for the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) continues to support the Native Hawaiian Health Care Program.

The President has proposed a nearly 50 percent cut to the Community Services Block Grants.

Every $1 that CMS spends on reducing fraud and waste returns $7 to the U.S. Treasury in real dollars.