Amy Klobuchar

The bill that we have gives the State Department an economic incentive for increasing the efficiency.

We've been working with the State Department and I know they have someone here today so we're going to be hearing from them.

Sadly, since 9/11, we've lost 16 percent of the international tourism business.

We've always had a very bipartisan approach to this Subcommittee and we'll continue to do that, and that's how we're producing some results.

There are a lot of good ideas out there and we want to discuss a few common sense solutions, simple fixes that can expand our country's tourism sector at no cost to taxpayers.

Tourism is about so much more, as we all know, than hospitality. It's about jobs.

I want to thank all the witnesses that are here from all over the country for this important discussion about tourism and the impact on our economy.

I've been working very hard on this drug-shortage issue.

We're having our hearing Thursday to speed up the--help the State Department to speed up their visa approvals.

The last thing, last month I introduced a bill with Senator Bill Nelson of Florida on guardianship.

Well, thank you, and I still think there are a lot of people in America--I know when I was a prosecutor, I did not even know about this issue.

These bills are unfortunately stalled. I think there was unanimous support in this Committee, but they are stalled, Senator Durbin, because one Senator--not Senator Durbin--has put a hold on these bills.

It is about protecting everyone's rights, from a children's writer in Minneapolis to a first-time guitarist with their first CD in Nashville.

We are looking at how can we show best practices in some of the States so that we can do a better job of oversight.

Yes, it is a new phenomenon. Not a new phenomenon to hold things in the Senate, but on this bill we were surprised, and so we are trying to work with the Senator who has put on the hold.

I want to thank you for that and urge you also to continue to support our local law enforcement.

I have always believed that our laws and our prosecutors have to be as sophisticated as the crooks that are breaking them.

I know that Senator Coons raised the issue of intellectual property theft. It is an issue which I have been very focused on.

This has got to be a public-private partnership.

We do not want to change your security, but we really believe...that you can process these faster.

Thank you, Madam Secretary, for being here and for the work that you are doing every single day.

I think people were kind of shocked a few weeks ago, months ago, when that one worker working on the power grid--was that in Arizona?

I do think more has to be done to protect the power grid and what should our priorities be there, and I am looking at this from a cybersecurity issue.

And Dr. Kutcher, the Academy of Neurology headquarters based in Minnesota, we are proud of the work of the Neurology Association in our state.

Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.