Pat Roberts

By allowing businesses to get out of offering health insurance to any employee working less than 40 hours, this bill will actually create the problems it claims to solve.

I believe strongly that the work did not end when we passed the Affordable Care Act. Far from it.

We will have new data to share with Committee members later this year about the meaningful distributions paid out to employee owners for retirement.

Congress needs to renew Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) in short order.

There is more we need to do to build on the law and make our health care system work better.

For these reasons, I have made tax reform my highest legislative priority for this Congress.

The ONLY way for Congress to effectively assert its role in these negotiations is through TPA.

Unfortunately, just weeks into the new Congress, we have already seen bill after bill introduced that would roll back the progress we have made.

The United States has a long tradition of breaking down barriers and providing access for American goods and services in foreign markets.

We created five working groups, all assigned to study different areas of tax reform and come up with proposals.

I know research from the Hoover Institute has shown that women, younger workers, and workers without a college degree would be disproportionately affected by this 30-hour rule.

the President has already announced he would veto legislation, along with six others, six other vetoes, to help restore hours and therefore wages for these hard-working students.

I just don't think Washington has any business dictating to States and school districts what is best for the students that they serve.

I cite Senator Roberts' Kansas, which now has a Supreme Court decision, of course, indicating that the State's funding of its schools is unconstitutional by Kansas' own constitutional requirement.

If there is a synonym for 'perseverance,' it has to be 'Debbie Stabenow.'

There is, however, a palpable fear, particularly in the western part of my State, that the Federal Government is already too close to mandating how cattlemen raise livestock.

Things will not change much.

We are going to be of help to you, sir.

In the immediate aftermath, I called President Bush. He was at Camp David. I told him he needed to get FEMA out to Greensburg right away.

I just wanted to take a moment to reflect on the critical importance of tax relief and assistance available to cities and towns that have been hit by natural disasters.

I would like to see those transitions come back to the Congress so we would at least have some consequential involvement.

I would change that from concern and frustration and possibly even fear.

I share their concerns, and I would hope now with the Farm Bill signed into law that at least... the department could focus on delivering farm and food programs, not new regulations.

I hope more toward October when Kansas State plays Iowa State as opposed to Thanksgiving.

the full Committee should have the opportunity to have a more in-depth discussion and review of the new USDA climate change hubs.