Tom Harkin

But the key seems to be whether the services are indeed high quality.

As a matter of fact, one other area that I've been a long-time supporter of is early childhood programs.

I think we have to keep that activated, some way.

Overall, I think the President's budget is a good start.

Reducing healthcare fraud and abuse has been a priority of mine for many years.

I first want to start by commending you for the outstanding work you're doing to help enact healthcare reform.

You tell me where to get the money, and----

This is a real crisis that we have.

We have a real cliff problem right now.

Reauthorization gives us the opportunity to move beyond just identifying long-standing gaps in opportunity and achievement.

Standing still in education means losing ground in the 21st century economy.

A world class education for our students is directly linked to a world class economy for our Nation.

It is projected that by 2014, right around the corner, 75 percent of new jobs will require some post-secondary education.

President Obama has set an ambitious goal for Americans to reclaim the world's highest rate of college attainment by 2020.

Well-educated Americans are the single most important factor in maintaining our productivity and global leadership.

I met a lot of them last summer, in my own home State, and we had a meeting March 9.

Our long-term jobs strategy must address education.

This reporting requirement is, in large part, the reason behind the narrowing of the athletics gap at the college level.

As we continue to consider this issue during the 111th Congress, I look forward to the High School Sports Information Collection Act serving as a part of the solution.

Women are now actively participating in collegiate sports in large part due to the accountability requirements provided under the Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act of 1994.

I am so glad that you called this hearing today to examine the daunting problem of childhood obesity.

The harsh and sad reality is that, for the first time in our Nation's history, we're in danger of raising a generation of children who will live sicker and die younger than the generation before them.

I think it's extremely difficult to move forward with only protecting the higher income and the downtown areas, while increasing--actually increasing--the flood risk to those with lower incomes, modest incomes, on the other side of the…

Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. And, again, thank you, Mr. Secretary, for your great leadership, and that of your Deputy Secretary.

Thank you, Mr. Secretary.