Ben Cardin

The question that is frequently asked is, How well is the help being coordinated?

The cost of these storms, in loss of life and in the cost of rebuilding communities, is enormous and beyond the capacities of governments to be able to respond to.

The realities of more extreme weather require us to be engaged internationally on mitigating as much damage as we can with the new reality.

We know this is going to be a long-term project--first, of course, dealing with the immediate individuals that are still in harm's way, and then looking at how the United States properly can assist in dealing with the long-term needs.

The Philippines is a close ally of the United States.

I expressed our deep condolence on the loss of life as a result of the typhoon and America's interest to exercise leadership internationally in assisting the Filipinos in the recovery.

I am proud of the U.S. leadership committing $20 million in aid.

When they say the Senate cannot act quickly, we did act quickly on putting this hearing together.

There is strong compassion among the American people, generally, to be engaged. People want to help.

So, does the Government of the Philippines coordinate the capacities of the NGOs and the capacities of the participating international partners?

Well, thank both of you for testimony, and thank you for updating the dollar amount from the original $20 million.

It is good to be here with my colleague Senator Mikulski.

It is not an easy time, and obviously the process is not easy.

I thank all of them for their willingness to be able to step forward to serve in the public.

I am convinced that the fundamentals of the Affordable Care Act are sound.

I hope after this that my colleagues will work in their States to help this work for the American people.

I urge you to monitor the progress made on the State exchanges, because we want to make sure that assistance is available to those who have been disadvantaged.

What steps have you taken to protect those who may have suffered from the delay in getting the website working?

We now have stability in the market, and that is due to the Affordable Care Act.

I share the level of disappointment of every member of this committee as to how the website shopping and enrollment functions have performed since October 1st.

The United States was prepared to use our military to stop the use of chemical weapons. Are we prepared to use our political might to make sure that those who use chemical weapons are held responsible for their actions?

I hope at some point this administration will sit down and develop a strategy, not only for Syria, but for the region.

President Obama was very clear that we would not tolerate that, and if necessary we would use force.

Can you reassure this committee and the American public that our commitment is to make sure that President Assad is held accountable?

In another hearing, as the chairman knows, I will be bringing up tax legislation to try to give our producers and farmers and manufacturers a better break.