Kent Conrad: “We fully fund the President's defense and war costs request. So let's not have any misunderstanding about that for the…”

I wish I could look you in the eye and say, you know, if we just had the will, we could reverse this, and we could go back to a time when defined benefit plans were on the increase. I do not think that is in the cards.

I do, and I made that argument to the commission, and others on the commission made some of the points that you are making now.

The one thing I know for sure is that what is happening now is not working.

We admire that, and I can say on both sides of the aisle, people recognize the job he did as Budget Committee Chairman.