Frank Lautenberg

These teams are vital. They protect sensitive coastal areas from terrorists and can be rapidly deployed by air, sea or ground.

What are you doing to improve the Department's ability to locate and help safely return American children who are victims of international parental abduction?

In the reconstruction process in Haiti, what is being done to enable local, community-based organizations to access funds?

My safer chemicals bill will have a simple goal: force chemical makers to prove that their products are safe before they end up in a store, in our homes, or in our bodies.

This budget makes the investments necessary to address the critical problems facing the health of our environment and our children.

When there's a fire, firefighters do not sit on their hands and wait for it to get worse. They run to put it out.

Some of our colleagues on this committee would have us believe that the science about global warming is in dispute, and we lack the proof to act.

I frankly think that when we are debating the reality of an issue that can bring devastatingly negative impact to this entire planet we become laughingstocks of the entire world.

It is dangerous to reject scientists.

I find it incredible, I really do, that in the year 2010 on this committee there are people who are saying there is a doubt about global warming.

You cannot go far enough or deep enough to satisfy our obligation to make sure that things that are dangerous are discovered and at an early enough point in time so that they do not do any harm.

Let me ask you this. So, are there new techniques for testing toxicity being developed so that scientists can move faster and with more accurate results without relying on animal testing?

My Safe Chemicals Bill will require testing of all chemicals under a standard similar to the one that applies to pesticides.

But what kind of protection do we owe those beautiful little babies?

If I could, if I did nothing in this, my term in the Senate, which has been pretty long, but to say to parents, do not worry about chemicals in kids' bodies because we know that those chemicals that are present cannot bring any harm, you…

Nothing is more painful than to see children with a disease that debilitates them and not be able to do things that healthy children should be able to do.

I guess I am one of those. I am not a paranoiac about a lot of things, but I am about children's health.

Senator Klobuchar's efforts with the Consumer Products Safety Initiative are, I think, one example of that.

Thank you very much. I thank each one of you on the panel for your illuminating, to say the least, testimony.

We need to start now.

Safe until proven harmful is not good enough for me or my baby.

I think we need to change these laws.

What we want to do is protect again even the least.

Thank you very much, Senator Klobuchar. As you can see, there is a very active interest in the testimony that each of you has given, and thank you for it.

We have a responsibility to America's families to ensure that the chemicals in the environment... are not put at risk.