Jeff Bingaman: “I think this is a very useful hearing.”

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.

I thank my colleague Senator Leahy. Madam President, what is the pending business before the Senate now? Is it an amendment to this legislation? The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Amendment No. 3371 is the pending business. Amendment No…

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

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