Chris Van Hollen

I am very concerned, also as the Ranking Member, that we need to do more to create a balanced approach.

The very deep and very rapid cuts imposed by the sequester place these objectives at risk.

Speaker Boehner unfortunately continues to block the creation of a budget conference.

I also want to convey our gratitude to the men and women in the Armed Forces for the sacrifices they make every day for our country.

The choices we make in our federal budget should reflect those goals.

I just have a simple question, which is: How is it that we are going to get agreement from the House and the Senate in a conference committee if the Speaker of the House continues to refuse to go to conference? How are we going to get that…

That is the case. The gentleman should go read the Appropriations Committee 302(b) allocations.

I'm not questioning the integrity of the chairman of the Budget Committee. This is not just about process. As I indicated, you adopt this rule and you're essentially applying a 20 percent cut below sequester to the part of the budget that…

My colleague, what I know are the facts, which is just today, as I said on the floor, the chairwoman of the Senate Budget Committee, for the 11th time, said to Mr. Ryan, Let's go to conference so we can work out these differences in a…

As I said, Mr. Speaker, I find it especially cynical that we would use a good bill to provide spending and support to our veterans as the vehicle to impose this scheme on the Congress which will have terrible, negative effects on other…

Well, she has. She has said, Mr. Speaker, that she wants to go to conference right away, and that's why we're waiting for the Speaker in this House to go to conference.

You mentioned Chairman Ryan and the chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, Patty Murray. Senator Murray was one of the people just the other day on the Senate floor asking for unanimous consent to go to conference, because she and…

Our nation's infrastructure is falling behind.

NSSGA supports all efforts to find a viable, long-term solution to the pending insolvency facing the Highway Trust Fund.

I would suggest that if we had done that in the past we would not have the interstate highway that we have that most people believe has been an important economic growth.

Thank very much, Mr. Chairman. Again, let me thank all the witness for their testimony.

The budget that House Democrats put forward, the budget the president put forward, the Senate Democrats put forward, did two things.

The American Society for Civil Engineers has looked at our national infrastructure and given it the abysmal grade of a D, D as in dog, plus.

I appreciate his persistence in calling for the hearing.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you for calling the hearing on this very important matter.

It's a no-brainer that we would increase our investment here in our national infrastructure in order to meet these needs.

It is a no-brainer that we would increase our investment here in our national infrastructure.

The idea that the federal government should invest in our national infrastructure for the purpose of building our economy and maintaining our economic competitiveness has been a bipartisan idea.

I hope that since the president has gone way out there and moved to meet the Republicans at least halfway, that in the coming weeks, we will see our Republican colleagues put back on the table the things the Speaker himself had called for.

I do not disagree with the notion that we need to encourage small business.