Dan Coats: “having previously served in the Senate, I came to the floor once again for the second time as a freshman Senator, in the…”

“having previously served in the Senate, I came to the floor once again for the second time as a freshman Senator, in the early months of 2011, full of optimism and a sense of purpose. Back for a second time as a newly elected freshman, I delivered my inaugural speech, which included the following thoughts: For each of us serving today, I believe it is our duty to rise to the immediate challenge and resolve the problems which now confront us. It will take all of us, united behind a common purpose--that above all else we must first restore and strengthen our fiscal security. We must articulate a clear vision, set specific goals and make the tough decisions needed to bring our nation out of debt and preserve prosperity and opportunity for future generations. Those remarks outline a major part of my vision for what I hope to achieve in my term as a Senator. It is now 5 years later. What I came back to try to accomplish hasn't been accomplished. At the time, I saw--and it was the reason why I answered the call to come back--that our fiscal health was eroding right before our very eyes. I didn't want to be a part of the first generation of Americans to leave our children and the country worse off than the one we inherited.…”