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

We protected the operations of the nuclear forces under sequester.

I will take the $52 billion, too.

Historians should look back at what might have happened, but didn't thanks to Nunn-Lugar.

the U.S. rebalance towards Asia is durable and will persist and grow regardless of automatic, widespread budget cuts this fiscal year and lower overall spending levels in future years.

I urge the Congress to act to prevent sequestration and ensure the safety, security, and resiliency of our Nation.

We know that these programs are being abused; we just can't agree on what extent they're being abused.

The sequester will impact long-term readiness, as well as future defense research, in favor of a reckless plan to reduce the budget.

There has to be some accountability there. They have to apply for jobs.

We have been very concerned now, Secretary Panetta and I and the entire DOD leadership, about what we have called the devastating effects of the sequester on our Nation's defense.

the world is watching us.

Sequestration Must be Avoided

We are not going to be able to carry out the defense strategy, the new defense strategy, that we crafted under President Obama's leadership just 1 year ago.

I am concerned about it. It, as Mr. Werfel says, at a minimum, stretches out all the stockpile life extension programs, which is not good, because it makes them, first of all, more expensive, and second of all, we don't have time in many…

Sequestration will almost certainly challenge our ability to do so to the fullest extent our servicemembers and their families deserve.

Our friends and our enemies are watching us, Madam Chairwoman, and they need to know that we have the political will to forestall sequestration.

It will place an unreasonable burden on the shoulders of our soldiers and civilians.

Funding required for Phase 1 of the Defense Production Act Title III (approximately $24 million) is from the FY 2012 appropriation.

There is a real cost to having that uncertainty.

We are hoping... to work our way towards what we all need, which is a comprehensive solution to this.

Sequestration will have a disruptive and negative impact on both the Department's long-term research and on investments in STEM education.

If I may, I would like to get back to you on that, in specificity on that matter.

It doesn't take a genius to figure out what the consequences of sequester are.

Let me just start with the Secretary and I. The Secretary and I have been saying for 16 months that sequestration would be devastating.

I would certainly use the red line. That makes perfect sense to me.