If it were up to the Kurds, there would be 50,000 American troops in Kurdistan.

The cascading effect of the numbers being reduced were not the Iraqis saying, 'We can't have all that many troops,' it was that our own White House was saying, 'We just don't agree with the commander's recommendation.'

I believe we're at a pivotal moment in the war in Afghanistan.

He told me he did not think he would be here in another year because there will be a million Syrian refugees and it is destabilizing Jordan.

It would be damaging and not do it.

It would be a horrible thing for the Mideast, would it not?

If the Russians said we want you gone tomorrow, would it matter to Assad? Absolutely.

We have said that it is the Nation's policy that Assad must go.

It would be a very important gamechanger, absolutely.

Meanwhile, the International Atomic Energy Agency has reported that Iran continues to increase and improve its uranium enrichment activities, causing concerns over the potential military dimensions of its nuclear program.

If I were the Iranians, I would send a thank you note to Congress for grounding more Air Force planes than they could on their own.

This committee has a bipartisan reputation of holding Presidents accountable.

From Israel's standpoint, one of the worst nightmares for them, short of an Iranian nuclear weapon, would be Hezbollah getting advanced weapons sold to Assad by Russia.

I think he is in the mainstream of thinking. I think he will do a good job for the country.

What signal would that be sending to our troops and to our enemies? What kind of national security impact would it be in the times in which we live if there was no agreement to fund the Government?

It is a series of votes and statements that paint an unusually disturbing picture.

I want to end it well. Like Senator Levin, I think we can be successful in Afghanistan.

Iraq would just begin to fall apart at a faster rate--do you agree with that--because it is destabilizing the country?

All the problems that we have, however important, will be dwarfed by this messianistic, apocalyptic, extreme regime that would have an atomic bomb.

Iran also continues improving the lethality and accuracy of its ballistic missiles and conducts military exercises with the stated purpose of closing the Strait of Hormuz, threatening not only its neighbors but also the global economy.

I do not think they would get a fair trial.

The United States should ratchet up the sanctions and make it clear to Iran that they will not get away with it, and if sanctions do not work, then they have to know that you will be prepared--us, the United States--to take military action.

It would lead to what I believe would be a fractured state, a larger safe haven for al Qaeda types, and over time would be a disaster.

So that means it is worse for us for him to stay and we not be able to achieve our policy.

I think I am speaking for a lot of people when they say we are heartbroken when a family member is taken through an act of gun violence, whether it be a child or anyone else, but particularly children.