Kent Conrad: “I thank the very able Senator from Michigan, Senator Stabenow, who is an extremely valuable member of the Budget…”

“I thank the very able Senator from Michigan, Senator Stabenow, who is an extremely valuable member of the Budget Committee, for her contribution throughout the budget process this year. She has been an absolute champion of the green jobs initiative. We have $2 billion in this conference report for green jobs, which is not only going to help the economy, but it is also going to be good environmentally, and we think even better long term in the economics of the country, because we are going to have, as the world turns its attention with greater concern to environmental issues, high-paying jobs here in this country. That takes some work, some investment. That is provided for in this conference report. Frankly, it is one of the things I am most proud of in this conference report. It would not have happened without the effort of the Senator from Michigan. She deserves great credit for that. She has also been one of the real leaders on making certain that our veterans coming home from Iraq and Afghanistan have the health care they need and deserve.”