Debbie Stabenow

Yes, that is correct; the Dairy Industry Advisory Committee has recommended such action. Further, I believe that a study of pricing alternatives, followed by a rigorous prehearing process, would cut to the heart of the issue. This would…

Yes, I believe that not only does the Secretary have the authority to act upon a petition, but as was said earlier, the USDA has the ability to conduct a thoroughly researched prehearing procedure to consider alternative pricing formulas…

Yes, the USDA has the economists and experts that can analyze various alternatives to the current system of pricing milk--and if the system is not working well for most of the players in the dairy industry, especially the farmers, the…

I want to thank the Senator from Maine. This legislation addresses many aspects of agriculture including dairy. During our deliberations we heard clearly from various dairy stakeholders who argued that the class III and class IV milk…

Before the Senator from Montana leaves the floor, I wish to thank him for his wise counsel throughout the process of writing the farm bill. It is nice to have a farmer in the Senate who can give practical ideas and reactions. This is…

And I might just add that it is also an area where we have not allowed refinancing at the low rates that you have created for other parts of purchasing in the home market and so on, which is why many of us have joined with Senator Warren…

We have a deficit, Madam Chair, as you know, that since 2009, since the President came into office, is down by about two-thirds, about 66 percent.

I think there are a lot of great reasons in terms of rule of law and stability and the manufacturing renaissance that is coming.

We certainly appreciate and need there to be an understanding that they did not cause what happened.

I appreciate very much your thoughtful, deliberate approach.

Thank you very much, Madam Chair, for holding the hearing, and, Dr. Yellen, thank you very much for being here.

We are seeing stock markets double, basically double since the spring of 2009.

What you are suggesting is that rather than raising the minimum wage so there is a decent livable wage, that Government, taxpayers, should be paying more money through their earned income tax credit or food help or Medicaid and so on.

I think we need to be doing more on work, job training, and similar efforts.

We should be focused on jobs and investments certainly in the future.

But when you talk about how the middle class is better today, boy, that is not what I am hearing.

We are giving a choice to someone in my family, in fact, right now where this is very real who wants to stay home with her 18-month-old.

Did the February 2014 report on the budget and economic outlook find that the affordable health care law will end 2.5 million jobs?

So your position would be that rather than reward work so if someone is working 40 hours a week, so they would be out of poverty, that they work 40 hours a week, they stay in poverty, but Government subsidizes that poverty?

What do you say to somebody who is working 40 hours, 50 hours, 60 hours, two, three jobs, and still in poverty?

I am so proud that we are going to be able to give moms and dads that choice.

So when we are looking at a global economy competing with China, with those around the world investing like crazy to lower their costs of college, to build their countries, to invest in clean energy and so on, we in America are actually…

So that is a pretty big drop. A pretty big drop.

So I just want to say it is going down. It has dramatically gone down.

We need more, but certainly in the last few years, and that is a good thing.