Ash Carter

I strongly incline toward opening them all to women, but I am also respectful of the circumstances and of professional military judgment in this regard.

The more we dig into it, the more dimensions of it we come to understand.

Continuing quality and excellence in the nuclear enterprise is very important. I am committed to that.

I am a strong believer in a safe, secure, and reliable nuclear arsenal for the United States.

I think that we have two immediate substantial dangers in the Middle East. One is ISIL, and one is Iran.

I very much incline in that direction, Mr. Chairman, because I think we need to support the Ukrainians in defending themselves.

Our ends with respect to ISIL needs to be its lasting defeat.

I believe I understand our strategy at this time, Mr. Chairman.

I look forward to partnership with this committee in what can be a period of historic advance.

I cannot suggest support and stability for the defense budget without at the same time frankly noting that not every defense dollar is spent as well as it should be.

I strongly support the President's request for relief from the sequester caps in fiscal year 2016.

I very much hope that we can find a way together out of the wilderness of sequester.

I also thank Senator Lieberman for his warm and generous introduction--this is not the first time he has done so--and also for his service to this body and to the Nation.

I am honored by his trust and confidence, and also by the prospect of serving once again the troops and the country that I love so much.

If confirmed as Secretary of Defense, I pledge to make needed change in the Pentagon, but also to seek support from Congress because I know that in the end, Congress holds the power of the purse.

Our country has friends and allies in every corner of the world, and our adversaries have few.

The United States remains the strongest, most resilient, and most influential nation on earth.

If confirmed as Secretary of Defense, my responsibilities would be to protect America and its friends and allies in a turbulent and dangerous world.

We have the finest fighting force the world has ever known.

What is particularly tragic is that sequestration is not a result of an economic emergency or a recession.

We want them to continue to be isolated as a military and limited in terms of the kinds of equipment and materials they are able to get.

I urge Congress to develop a comprehensive and balanced deficit reduction package that the House and Senate can pass, and that the President can sign.

Sequester is irrational, mindless, and damaging.

It is important that people in the region, both our friends and potential opponents, understand that we have the capacity and will to do that.

The rebalance to the Asia-Pacific theater is a central tenet of our strategy.