In December 2010 U.S. Senators Tom Udall, Tom Harkin, and Jeff Bingaman requested an independent study from the National Academy of Sciences on whether chimpanzees are necessary as invasive research subjects.

He knows the crucial role that Congress plays in setting policy and in overseeing how that policy is carried out.

I'm honored to be here with Senator Udall to strongly support the nomination of Mike Connor for the position of Deputy Secretary of the Department of the Interior.

I wouldn't be here without it.

He has demonstrated, on numerous occasions, his ability to find solutions to very difficult problems and to find solutions that could gain the support of Democrats, Republicans and Independents alike.

The President, in my view, could not have chosen a better nominee for the position than Mike.

I think all of us, if we were choosing a Secretary of Energy, would want to choose somebody with those attributes.

First we would want a person as Secretary of Energy who had a knowledge of science and engineering.

Second, we would want a person with demonstrated managerial abilities.

It's important that we have a person with substantial knowledge and many varied skills in order to succeed.

I would certainly like to thank Senator Bingaman, who just retired just very recently, for the strong support that he has shown me over the years, and including support for this nomination.