Absolutely, I would agree. I had a chance to chat with them earlier today, and there is no group that should stand ahead of our Nation's veterans when it comes time to making Federal funding decisions, so I'm glad that they are joining us…

I appreciate the gentleman opening the door for that issue, and health care is just one issue facing American families in the country today. I know that this group that meets periodically when we're done with session to have these…

It's been 7 years since the Congress enacted a long-term highway authorization; and since that law expired in 2009, State transportation agencies across America have had to deal with the uncertainty of looming funding expirations…

And I rise in opposition to the motion. The motion offered by the gentlewoman from Tennessee (Mrs. Black) seeks to eliminate a distracted driving grant program included in the Senate surface transportation authorization bill. I oppose this…

Yielding myself as much time as I would consume, I would, again, make the point that the program in question in no way sanctions, penalizes, disincentivizes, discourages or prohibits States from, in any way, addressing driver safety. It in…

We have no further speakers. I yield myself as much time as I may consume. The previous speaker talks about States being the innovators. I certainly agree on that. This motion that we are talking about right now involves a State incentive…

I urge my colleagues to oppose the motion. I yield back the balance of my time.

We all agree that rebuilding our Nation's infrastructure is the best way to create jobs today and ensure long- term economic growth tomorrow. Our failure to pass a long-term, fully funded transportation authorization has undermined our…

I would like to thank my friend, Congressman Poe, for his strong leadership on this issue and for again working with me this year to highlight the critical importance of expanded mobile communications along our southern border. {time} 1930…

Let me thank Chairman Culberson for his excellent work on this important bill which funds our Nation's military construction projects and provides support to the infrastructure that serves our Nation's veterans. {time} 1710 The Veterans…

Construction of the Keystone XL pipeline would create thousands of jobs for hardworking Americans, but it would also increase our energy independence. Canada has already confirmed its intention to build the pipeline. The only question now…

In March, ``NBC News'' ran a story about a soldier who was charged $41 for a three-second voicemail he left his wife from a pay phone in an airplane in Germany. {time} 1820 This is simply outrageous. For servicemembers in transit to and…

Social Security, Medicare, and veterans' benefit programs represent an agreement between citizens and the federal government.

Simply put, veterans and seniors are not the cause of our deficits, so we should not look to them to solve our current crisis.

Social Security, Medicare, and veterans benefit programs represent an ironclad agreement between citizens and the federal government, a promise that can never be broken.

The passage of last summer's Budget Control Act sent a strong, bipartisan message to the country that we are serious about reducing our deficit.

Every year around this time, the President submits a budget, the House and Senate debate their own budgets and, well, nothing happens. Congress has not adopted a budget in over 1,000 days, and it's been 15 years since Congress passed all…

Earlier, our colleague, Mr. Tonko, was talking about the Erie Canal and the foresight and the commitment that went in and just the unbelievable feat that it was to accomplish that. And I was thinking, as the gentleman was speaking, about…

The gentleman has given me so much to work with here on community colleges, and then I will transition into transportation, as the gentleman would like to do. I visited, just yesterday, the Community College of Allegheny County, outside of…

I wanted to transition into talking about the trade deficit that we're facing in this country. But before I did that, I wanted to close the loop with what Mr. Tonko and Mr. Garamendi have been talking about for my colleagues. {time} 2040 I…

I thank the gentleman from California and my friend from New York (Mr. Tonko). We have a discussion going now about manufacturing in America. And our colleagues understand the relationship that exists between manufacturing and R&D…

Right. You have to find a way to pay for it because it's only going to get worse if you ignore the problem. Now, you might say as a family, you know what, we can't take the kids out for that steak dinner. We can't go out to see the movies…

I thank the gentleman. And I would just say briefly, I am an original cosponsor of that bill. I don't know that my colleagues are. I presume they're cosponsors. But it's very simple, actually. All it says is we're going to do this…

A $4 billion bridge project. And the American taxpayer is funding the Chinese to give the steel to California to rebuild this bridge. And the infrastructure improvements that are being made, certainly we'll see some benefit, but those are…

I thank the gentleman from California for leading the hour and for yielding some time. I come from a region of the country in western Pennsylvania--the Pittsburgh area and surrounding region--that knows a little bit about manufacturing…