Ed Markey

So, Attorney General, will these two changes in the budget and transportation laws on robocalls and robotext provisions make it harder for consumers to protect themselves from fraudulent tax and debt collectors?

It's absolutely irresponsible.

I authored this law in 1991--I am the author of it--it was because there was an epidemic of calls that were going into people's homes.

Now it's easier to harass them by phone.

Last year's surface transportation bill, the FAST Act, included a provision requiring the IRS to hire private debt collectors to collect certain unpaid taxes.

Be careful of the difference between that defensive side, which, again, we would support bolstering--don't make exceptions because you've suddenly picked winners and losers.

We should try to figure out how to make the laws tougher so that these offshore overseas calls are harder to make.

We have a responsibility to our constituents.

Thank you for holding this hearing.

So thank you for helping to focus us upon these issues.

Is there an opportunity to engage the fishing industry in cleaning up debris to improve the health of fisheries which they depend upon?

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Ghost fishing is a term that is used for the take of fish or shellfish after fishing equipment is either abandoned intentionally or somehow gets washed overboard, and it is very significant.

So if it applied to Assad and the opposition groups, could Russia support it?

Well, I think that if the Iranians seem to feel that they are exempt from this process and they are a continuing and increasing problem in Syria, then unless the United States raises this issue in a formal way that puts Russia on the spot…

Even on humanitarian aid.

So in your opinion then that whole process just cannot come to anything because the Russians would be unwilling at any time to stand up and say that the Iranians as well must be bound by any restrictions that are placed on the transfer of…

I agree that 1,800 refugees being taken in by the United States this year from Syria is unacceptably low.

Unless we can think through and apply the right pressure, especially to the Iranians, on this Iraqi Sadr agenda, that, ultimately, all of our efforts are just not going to bear the long-term fruit that we are hoping for, for that region.

We need to support him in that effort.

The governance efforts in Baghdad are as important as the anti-ISIS efforts outside of Baghdad.

I do not think there is any doubt in the world that Iran is most important foreign-nation player in Iraq today.

I think we left too soon.

I think that would have made a big difference.

If Maliki had allowed for 10,000 American troops to stay in Iraq ----