Ben Cardin

I have had misgivings about USAID's new Global Climate Change Initiative, which under this budget would receive $470 million.

Our demands on Hamas are the Quartet demands on Hamas which is, you know, Hamas, to be accepted as a responsible player, needs to accept the Quartet conditions of recognition of Israel, renunciation of violence, and adherence to all the…

We watched what you were doing in Syria and I know the international community was also, and it was a bright moment, I think, for United States leadership.

The challenge, though, is that until that happens, the humanitarian disasters will only get worse.

You need international unity, and the Security Council is where we normally start that.

What can we do in leadership to minimize the sufferings that are taking place and will take place until the Assad regime is removed?

I thank Senator Boxer. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to speak for up to 10 minutes. The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so ordered. ____________________

We should lift the volume caps on private activity bonds issued for water infrastructure projects.

We will continue to advocate for other governments to adopt transparency standards along the lines of those in the Dodd-Frank Act.

The State Department will play an increasingly important role in explaining the importance of transparency to foreign governments.

Energy Security Through Transparency, part of which became the Cardin-Lugar amendment S. 1504 to Dodd-Frank.

Let me just say and you don't need to respond, in regards to Alan Gross in Cuba, we appreciate the fact that you are working to get him released from the Cuban prison.

There is nothing conservative about starving our foreign policy budget of a few billion dollars today in order to spend a trillion dollars later on when an otherwise avoidable crisis strikes or an armed conflict looms.

We support voluntary participation in the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative.

We must not leave any doubt that this country will break its oil dependence on unstable and unfriendly regimes.

Smart and able diplomacy and development policy can neutralize threats before they become crises.

I do think we can do both, and I know there are many Members of the Senate who agree on that.

Lasting peace and stability depends just as much on meeting our citizens' legitimate aspirations as they do our military security.

The United States would regard such a disruption as a threat to United States national security interests.

The stakes are enormous in the coming years. We will have great opportunities to build and redefine our relationships around the world, particularly in the Middle East.

I would encourage Secretary Clinton to recommend to the President that it is in our national security interests to immediately approve the Keystone XL pipeline.

Our international affairs budget is, in my judgment, a smart investment that ultimately yields outsized returns and saves us money over the long haul.

I agree. I think there is bipartisan support here, as Senator Sessions indicated in his opening comments.

I appreciate that, because I think all three parts are important.

I am looking at the transportation bill as an opportunity to deal with storm runoff.