Thank you, Madam Chair.

I defy anyone in this room to look around them and not see something, a tie, these paintings, you know, the curtains behind the chairman, every one of these things, designed by an artist.

You can judge an individual by how that individual spends his or her money. And you can judge government by how that government spends the taxpayers' money.

It is appropriate that this is our first hearing this congress, both because we are here to focus on the first years of a child's life and because there is no issue more important than early childhood development.

Because ensuring that children and their families have access to high-quality, comprehensive services that help the children develop cognitively, physically, socially and emotionally enables them to succeed in school and in life.

Last month, in his address to a joint session of Congress, President Obama set a goal of ensuring that every child has access to a complete, competitive education from birth forward.

I agree that Congress should look at ways through which we can support the work states are currently doing to guarantee our youngest children are provided the early learning opportunities they need to succeed in school and in life.

Children who receive quality early childhood education and development services do better in reading and math, and are more likely to graduate from high school attend college, and hold higher paying jobs.

That is why I was so pleased to see that President Obama's budget will commit significant new resources to early childhood.

Because the federal budget should reflect our values as a nation. And that is just what the President's budget will do.

Those words weren't put there just willy nilly. Our founding fathers really were trying to figure out a way to position the Federal government vis-a-vis the Indians.