Steve Lynch

I would rather have this done in a regulatory fashion by the folks that are on the ground.

If I have to legislate that they have the right to wear masks to protect themselves and their families and their communities, that is what I will do.

This is common sense.

These officers and agents should be allowed to take reasonable precautions in order to safeguard their health.

I shouldn't have to blow up the bureaucracy just to get something done.

Today's hearing is especially intended to review existing policies at key Federal agencies relating to employee precautionary behavior.

We give these folks at the border arrest authority. We give them guns to defend themselves and empower them to use deadly force if necessary.

These employees should be allowed to wear the mask when they feel the need for that mask.

It should be providing them with the protective equipment that they need and facilitating their use of that equipment.

I will take a moment before we introduce the first panel just to make a brief introductory statement.

You are not relying on CDC. I know you are trying to shift the responsibility to them, but you have already taken it upon yourselves to make a dual policy.

And it sort of points out the absurdity, I think, of the Department of Homeland Security's position on this

Your excuses are lame.

I cannot believe that employees would ever be put in this position again.

We own 80 percent of your company. You exist because the American taxpayer purchased, you know, 79.9 percent of your shares.

I don't think there's a majority shareholder in this country--only 80 percent of any company--that is being treated like the American taxpayer is in this case.

We're not going to be rolled on this and when we ask you a question and we get all these people together and we have a hearing, and we ask you a specific question to address on your testimony, by God we want the answer.

We need to stay in the loop. If you need more people, this is an important part of this.

I just am very concerned about, having worked on job sites for about 20 years, your ability to be out there on the ground.

I understand the idea of comparable salary. However, I don't agree with the premise that just because AIG or Merrill Lynch is giving people bonuses for driving the company into the ground that we should emulate that.

I don't want to face that.

I am inclined to be receptive of that.

Are you going to offer any type of incentive to any of these employees?

their local clerk is a very familiar face around town

I compared the practice of giving bonuses in the financial services industry to people who were losing money to the practice of giving bonuses to executives at the Post Office at a time when they are losing money.