My goal for this hearing is to ensure that all of our Members have an opportunity to ask questions, raise concerns and debate important topics.

I also highlighted the use of social media during Hurricane Sandy where millions of people went to social media, shared information, watched live Twitter feeds, and checked up on loved ones.

Thank you, Chairwoman Brooks, and thank you for holding this timely, relevant, and extremely important hearing especially because we are only 39 days into hurricane season.

I highlighted the fact that when Hurricane Katrina devastated my district in the Gulf Coast in 2005, Facebook was still an infant relatively speaking, Twitter was nonexistent, and the first iPhone wouldn't come out for almost a year later.

as Congressman Palazzo said, that was a long time ago in terms of the development of digital tools.

I can tell you just the other day we had a severe weather event and my phone went off and I did not apply for the app.

Human exploration has always had its challenges, but the United States has always risen to the occasion.

If nothing else comes out of this hearing, I hope it is clear to those inside and outside the Administration that this Committee is devoted to human exploration and we intend to ensure this year's authorization reflects that commitment.

I definitely agree there are international partners looking to us for space leadership, and hopefully, in the days and years and decades to come, we will be able to provide it.

We don't need another study, we need action.

We can't continue changing our program of record every time there is a new President.

I stress, however, that if we intend to involve international partners in a deep, meaningful way in this adventure to Mars, we need to recognize that those international partners should have a seat at the table when it comes to the…

I am not convinced this mission is the right way to go and that it may actually prove a detour for a Mars mission.

I am committed to the success of these assets and ensuring their continued on-time development and appropriate prioritization moving forward.

Reductions in these programs make me question the Administration's sincere commitment to their success.

I think the first element is, as you say, to more adequately fund SLS and Orion so that they can be developed and proven out on a pace that really supports, I think, a safe pathway towards developing these cislunar orbit capabilities that…

This discovery has broad implications not only for the scientific community, but for all mankind.

I want to thank the witnesses for their valuable testimony and the Members for their questions.

I look forward to hearing about NASA and NSF's plan for continuing exoplanet research using these unique capabilities.

I understand that their testimony was late because the Office of Management and Budget failed to manage their time and resources wisely.

8 months from now, the Affordable Care Act's individual mandate will begin to punish Americans with a tax simply because they refuse to purchase health care. The mandate sets a dangerous new precedent. If Congress has the power to tax our…

Given its serious flaws, I have called on the agency to abandon the report and return to a collaborative effort with the State of Wyoming on how to resolve these issues around Pavillion.

Former Administrator Jackson even admitted to me during questioning at another committee that the EPA was not confident it had discovered groundwater contamination in Pavillion related to fracking.

I look forward to hearing more about this mission and how NASA intends to cover the $2.6 billion that the Keck Institute for Space Studies estimated it would cost.

I am committed to making sure NASA is using its resources strategically for a cohesive exploration program that bolsters our economy, improves life on Earth and raises the bar of what humans can achieve.