Jon Tester

Would it be fair to say--and I do not want to box you in--these would be done by the end of the year?

Thank you, Inspector General Griffin, for your work and for your professionalism.

Thank you very much.

When can we expect a report from you guys on these 93 facilities, a full report?

Is it fair to say that the scheduling problems are pretty pervasive throughout the VA?

I hope it is not a first step to privatize the VA. I hope it is a first step to make the VA stronger.

I would like to announce that the Committee on Indian Affairs will meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, July 30, 2014, in room SD-628 of the Dirksen Senate Office Building, at 2:30 p.m., to conduct a business meeting to…

Thank you very much, Madame Chair, Ranking Member Murkowski, for your time.

Finally, Madame Chair, I understand that you're also going to be discussing a bill today by Senator Tom Udall, the BLM Permit Processing Improvement Act. I am a co-sponsor of that bill.

I believe the expansion of wind and solar development is compatible with public land protection.

Protecting our public lands and keeping them public is vital to this American economy.

This is a popular bipartisan piece of legislation that will move this country forward.

I am proud to introduce it with many of the colleagues here today, Senator Heller and Senator Heinrich, along with the Udall cousins, Mark and Tom and Senator Risch.

Together, these two bills will help streamline energy production on our public lands.

I am proud to cosponsor this bill, which streamlines the permitting process for renewable energy projects on public lands.

I have come to realize that we are never going to get politics completely out of the legislative process. In the system we have today, there is always another election and there is always another campaign. This political posturing must be…

Are we in morning business? The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senate is postcloture on the motion to proceed.

I want to once again thank you, Administrator Fugate, for your hard work.

I think it helps policyholders with affordability, and affordability is the big concern that I have heard so far today.

My dad always told me that if you build on a floodplain or in the middle of the forest, you better be able to expect to be flooded or burnt.

There is no doubt about that.

This is something that we can do that we don't have to worry about storms. We can do it.

The same argument could be made for the Affordable Care Act, reducing risk by broadening the pool.

Tribal sovereignty and self-governance are important issues for me and for this Committee.

We thank Chairman Tester, Vice Chairman Barrasso, and the members of the U.S. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, including Senators John Hoeven and Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota, our university's home state, for this opportunity to…