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.

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.

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

today I rise to introduce bipartisan legislation to reauthorize the Veterans' Advisory Committee on Education, a panel that provides much needed assistance to our Nation's veterans by advising the Secretary of Veterans Affairs on existing…

this afternoon I joined with Senator Warner and Senator Klobuchar and Senator Casey to point out just how much harm is caused to this country because we are governing from one manufactured crisis to another. The cost of the government…

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.

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?

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

Mr. Ducker, let me just underscore the point on the taxes. You mentioned the de minimis rule.

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.

If we continue to make these unilateral concessions, then it is not in America's interest and not in the global interest.

I hope we can successfully complete a TTIP agreement that does put us on a level playing field.

I ask unanimous consent to speak for an additional 3 minutes. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection? Without objection, it is so ordered.

I thank my colleague from Virginia for that extra time. We need to end sequestration, we need to invest in job growth, and we need to have a balance between revenue and spending so we have a way in which America can continue to grow. We…

I thank my friend from Virginia for yielding. Through the Chair, I thank Senator Warner for his help in making sure we do what is right for our Federal workforce. They suffered through furloughs because of sequestration, furloughs because…

we are obviously pleased that our Senate leaders, Senators McConnell and Reid, have negotiated a bipartisan way to end this crisis. This agreement will open government, will allow us to honor our bills, and it sets up a mechanism, using…

may I ask my colleague to yield? The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Maryland.

We have ten percent of our workforce that works for the Federal Government--ten percent of our workforce. It has had a huge impact on the Maryland economy.

We want to make sure government is open. We want to make sure we do not default on our obligations.

You know, we do not have the Federal workers who usually come in here and have lunch. I do not know how much longer we can deal with our current situation with the government shutdown.

There have been studies done that show that as a result of this manufactured crisis, consumer confidence has been more adversely affected than in any of our natural disasters, that is worse than the attack on our country on 9/11 as far as…

Thank you for pointing out so frequently on the floor of the Senate, in our caucus, and to the American people the harm being caused to our country as a result of the shutdown of government.

You hear the numbers, you hear the thousands of people and hundreds of thousands of people and millions of people, but until you can put a face on it so people can recognize it is their neighbors, it is their community that has been…

once again I wish to thank Senator Boxer for her comments and for her strength in coming to the floor and pointing out the danger and harm caused by the government shutdown and the risk of defaulting on our debt. Let me make it clear: Open…