These four areas--economic health, sustainability, a focus on people and communities, and safety--will be major priorities for me if I am confirmed.

the President opposes earmarks and that, were I to join the Administration, I would have a clear policy to carry out as a part of the executive branch.

We have to get the bureaucracy at DOT to make sure that people are held accountable.

That is a clarion call for Congress, and the Department, to act.

There are no Republican or Democratic transportation issues. There are national issues that affect us all.

While maintaining transportation safety as the Department's preeminent goal, the most immediate need will be to implement the Economic Recovery Act rapidly...

I think it kind of defeats the purpose then to go back and say that you're going to auction those off.

Yes. It is the case that the 35 mile-per-gallon figure is only a minimum statutory requirement.

President Obama has made it very clear that, in the Stimulus bill, the lion's share... will not be earmarked money.

I do not need to tell anyone here about the severe economic challenges we face.

It's an honor for me to appear before you as President Obama's candidate for the United States Secretary of Transportation.

As I see it this means a strong focus in at least four areas.

I said that it was, and that people already dread getting stuck in their cars in traffic for hours.

So, there are big divisions within our own party and, in some cases, within the leadership of the House and Senate that are both governed by Republican leaders.

I urge all members who are interested in real campaign finance reform to carefully consider cosponsoring this bill.

I am hopeful that our fellow members on both sides of the aisle will stand with us by cosponsoring this important piece of legislation.

The problem that needs to be addressed is the use of the frank as a campaign tool whose real 'informational' purpose is to make constituents aware of how deserving we are of reelection.

The legislation I am reintroducing would simply strike mailings of this type from the code, thereby disallowing future use of the frank for these purposes.

Such an occurrence would clearly not be in the best interest of the people, for they would be denied the ability to directly elect those who serve in our highest offices.

My bill specifically targets franking abuse by cracking down on the use of mass mailings.

I hope that the timing of this bill's introduction will only underscore the fact that the time has come to put an end to this archaic practice that we must endure every four years.

This outcome has, in fact, occurred three times in our history and resulted in the elections of John Quincy Adams (1824), Rutherford B. Hayes (1876), and Benjamin Harrison (1888).

Today I am proud to reintroduce, along with Congressman Wise from West Virginia, a constitutional amendment that seeks to end the arcane and obsolete institution known as the Electoral College.

last year I introduced H.R. 642, a bill that ends the most pervasive abuse of the frank--sending out unsolicited, self-promotional mass mailings.

Our bill will replace the complicated electoral college system with the simple method of using the popular vote to decide the winner of a presidential election.