Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta and General Martin Dempsey acknowledge that a further reduction of defense spending would be detrimental to our national security.

DOD continues to notify us of new programs and new projects to fund with savings they have accumulated as opposed to returning those savings to American taxpayers.

It is important to bring our mission in Iraq to a successful conclusion.

I think it's a model for other States across the country.

If we don't restore fiscal sanity to Washington and reduce our national debt, one of the concerns that I have is that the rising debt payments will begin to significantly crowd out the finances we have to be able to protect our Nation and…

If confirmed, do you commit to working to address this modernization backlog at this and other important shipyards?

One of the concerns with a more aggressive recommendation, of course, is, as Senator McCain has outlined, given the progress we have made in Afghanistan, that that progress, we could see a regression of that progress.

25 percent of those that have been released from Guantanamo have gotten back in the fight against us.

America wants a normal, productive relationship with Iraq going forward--a partnership like we have with other nations around the world.

As part of our ongoing Comprehensive Defense Review, we are assessing how defense cuts of $400 billion would impact the DOD's ability to carry out contingency plans.

This disregard for the spending concerns of this committee is unacceptable.

I firmly believe that Guantanamo is a top rate facility having visited it and should be that facility.