student debt is a big and growing concern for millions of American graduates. As we look at ways of addressing this problem, it is important to keep in mind that about 90 percent of that debt is owed to the Federal Government. The Federal…

this is a critically important debate on a nuclear deal that is going to have long-lasting impacts on our national security and the security of our friends and our allies. This debate is happening because 98 Senators expressed the desire…

This deal is a result of President Obama's philosophy of leading from behind. As a result of this philosophy, we now have enemies who don't fear us and friends and allies who don't follow us because they question our credibility and they…

I come to the floor today to congratulate a constituent and a great friend of mine, Katie Roth of West Des Moines. This summer Katie was named the 2015 Woman Business Owner of the Year, presented by the Business Record. In the spring of…

I intend to object to any unanimous consent request at the present time relating to the appointment of Bradley Duane Arsenault, of FL; Bret Thomas Campbell, of TX; Karen Stone Exel, of CA; Gloria Jean Garland, of CA; Michael H…

I come to the floor, as I often do, to speak about the efforts of whistleblowers. Many of you know my belief in and my respect for those patriotic people--men and women who, often at great cost to their own careers and personal well-being…

I intend to object to any unanimous consent request at the present time relating to the nomination of David Malcolm Robinson to be Assistant Secretary for Conflict and Stabilization Operations and Coordinator for Reconstruction and…

To be an effective agency watchdog, the Inspector General needs complete and full access to agency information.

My understanding is few, if any, disciplinary actions were taken against mid-level managers who were directly involved in the improper targeting.

It is a waste of time and money for two divisions of the same government department to be fighting over access to the department's own records.

It sounds to me like a lot of red tape and waste of manpower that doesn't accomplish anything

I think the time is right to once again revisit the issue of taxpayers' rights and IRS structural reforms.

We have to ensure our open government laws are strong and protected or we do not hold departments accountable.

It is evident from the report that, at the very least, a dysfunctional culture and poor management led to the mistreatment of groups with a conservative philosophy applying for tax-exempt status.

the role that each of you plays, that Inspectors General play, is absolutely critical to the functioning of our democracy and for our capacity for self-government.

That's simply unacceptable.

The IG Act means what it says. The Department of Justice IG is legally entitled to all department records, period.

We intend to fix this. We will get it fixed and we will have IGs do their job, which is very important.

Inspectors General are central to this mission, and I applaud all who are here today.

I will work closely with Senator Grassley to craft a legislative solution.

The targeting scandal, coupled with poor customer service and general mismanagement, has shaken what confidence taxpayers had in the IRS.

Those responsible for what happened ought to be held accountable. Mr. Blair wants us to believe the muffed opinion was the result of a routine dispute between opposing auditors' judgments over evidence and a mere difference of opinion…

I ask unanimous consent to complete this. I was told I would be given the time to do it, and I have about 4 minutes. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?

yesterday a very important Government Accountability Office report came out. I am going to present my view of that report in a little bit backward way by giving a summary before I speak about the fine points of this report. Broken…

I would agree to that, and I will speak to that point right now. It is very appropriate that my colleague would know exactly what I was going to say to answer his question.