I just want you to know, having watched your work for many years and having worked with a number of the people involved in your programs, we so appreciate what you are doing.

I wish to associate myself with the comment of my friend from Montana and affirm that I too share the commitments he described. These payments extend a vital lifeline to counties across America, many of which are perched on the edge of…

before he leaves the floor, I commend my colleague from New York for a very fine statement. He and I sit next to each other on the Finance Committee, and we are going to be working very closely together on these issues. I have long felt…

today I am introducing the Wildfire Disaster Funding Act of 2013 to end the destructive cycle of underfunding wildfire prevention and then having to spend even greater amounts fighting wildfires than if our forests were properly managed…

They are talking about hopes and dreams that they had had for years essentially evaporating because their pension is not going to be there.

I commend you for scheduling a very important hearing on a topic that really gets short shrift.

I would like to announce for the information of the Senate and the public that a business meeting has been scheduled before the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources on Thursday, December 19, 2013, at 9:30 a.m., in room SD-366…

I will just note that for the record.

In nominating Mr. Kornze, the President has chosen a voice for the west and common-sense conservation to lead this vital agency.

I believe that we found a way to do it.

I would like to announce for the information of the Senate and the public that a hearing has been scheduled before the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources on Thursday, December 12, 2013, at 9 a.m., in room SD-366 of the…

I would like to announce for the information of the Senate and the public that a business meeting and hearing have been scheduled before the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources on Tuesday, December 17, 2013, at 10 a.m., in…

today I rise to introduce a bill to end the gridlock on the Oregon and California, O&C, lands and secure a new future. I recently unveiled my legislation in Oregon alongside Governor Kitzhaber, premier forest scientists, and a…

I want to pick up on Chairman Baucus's point with respect to tax simplification.

I just hope you will send the strongest possible message with your actions and your words early on that you want people in this country to understand that impartiality is going to be the coin of the realm.

I hope that you will make that a priority early on.

A simpler tax code could help you stretch your resources at the Service in order to focus on areas of greater need.

today I rise to join Senator Merkley and cosponsor a bill that strikes a balance between the competing demands for a scarce resource, Crooked River water. The Crooked River Collaborative Water Security Act of 2013 is the product of long…

before he yields the floor, I wish to commend my colleague from Connecticut in terms particularly--and I am going to go into some of the history with respect to this so-called zero tolerance policy because I think when we look back over…

I thank Senator Udall for his exceptional leadership in our effort to put together a comprehensive bipartisan reform bill. I also thank the Presiding Officer from Connecticut because, as we all know, he has really been the ringleader in…

I thank my colleague. First, let me just mention in closing that this bill is directly relevant to work done at the Department of Defense, as the NSA is an integral part of the Department of Defense. In fact, this bill already contains…

When tribes are empowered, they create jobs for Indians and non-Indians alike.

That, obviously, is a skill in short supply here in the Nation's capitol, if you look at the events of the last couple of months.

These bills are necessary to enable the tribes to exercise their authority as sovereign entities and to write historical wrongs.

Restoring these tribes' homelands so that they can exercise their sovereignty is very important to these tribes.