William M. ``Mac'' Thornberry

like many Americans, I feel a real and personal sense of loss with the death of President Ronald Reagan. He was a great man and a great President, ranking in the top tier of all of our chief executives. He will be remembered as a pivotal…

this amendment tries to eliminate a research program designed to explore whether or not we can threaten deeply buried targets with an existing nuclear warhead. As the chairman of the subcommittee just said, to build an actual weapon…

Members come to this Congress with a policy agenda or a political agenda. We spend our time and effort trying to make some change we think is good for the country. Yet there is something bigger and more enduring than any one of us or any…

generally I think we can be faulted on this floor for saying the same thing over and over again in our debates; but in this case, I think it is important to say over and over again so it is heard clearly and definitively that the conduct…

Mr. Chairman, the first priority of the Federal Government is to defend the country, and there is no greater priority in this budget than protecting America. I think all of us realize that the world in which we live and the world in which…

like most bills brought before us, this bill is a mixture of provisional I support and provisions I oppose. Unlike most bills brought before us, it affects every American and will have significant, long-term consequences for our Nation. I…

health care is an important but complex issue for Congress and for America's seniors. Two facts, however, seem clear: One fact is that Medicare is currently headed toward financial collapse. The last report of the Medicare trustees shows…

I rise in support of this technical corrections bill. I also want to acknowledge that there is a lot of work left to be done. We will not make our country as secure as it needs to be in just a few short weeks, months or possibly even…

let me begin by making two points as completely clear as I can: Number one, it is not a choice between attacking hardened targets with a conventional or a nuclear capability. There is nearly $300 million in this bill to explore…

the seven astronauts who perished last Saturday on the space shuttle Columbia are heroes who gave their lives serving our Nation and mankind. Their loss has been felt deeply not only across America, but in Israel, India, and elsewhere…

Mr. Chairman, earlier this year a bipartisan group of House and Senate Members, a bipartisan group of Members from both bodies, introduced identical bills, and basically we said that this issue of collective bargaining ought to be the…

I hope my colleagues can remember that what we are trying to do is create an integrated Department of Homeland Security to make us safer. This is no place for political agendas. This is no place for conspiracy theories. This is no place to…

Mr. Chairman, since the end of the Cold War, there have been some disturbing trends. One is that chemical, biological, nuclear and radiological weapons are spreading to more and more nations and more and more groups. In addition to that…

I have always found it rather odd that some of our most difficult battles in the area of national security are preventing our own people by limiting our options and tying our hands behind our back. There are some military capabilities that…

For 57 years nuclear weapons have played a central role in maintaining our freedom and in preventing the kind of world wars which plagued the early part of the 20th century. There can be no doubt that nuclear weapons will continue to be…

Mr. Speaker, I think it may be appropriate at this stage to say a few words about the context in which we are considering this defense authorization bill this year, for it is truly different than the context, the environment, the…

the other side has said repeatedly in committee and on the floor that they support the President and his efforts to prosecute the war and to defend the homeland. But the fact is, without the specific budget alterative to compare, we do not…

every year during the debate on the budget, someone says it is about more than just numbers, it is about priorities. Certainly since September 11, the priorities of the country have changed. National security is not just something that…

like other Members, I rise in appreciation and admiration for the leadership shown by our chairman, the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Stump), and by the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Skelton) in moving this bill, particularly at this…

there have been many times over the past two days when an analogy has been made to Pearl Harbor. I am struck by a different analogy from the same war. In August 1940, the Battle of Britain raged in the skies. It was different from previous…

I will vote for the Patient Protection Act legislation that the House is considering. I voted for a similar bill two years ago because I believe that if an insurance company makes health care decisions like a doctor, it should be held…

I share the desire of the gentlewoman from California that we become more energy independent, but it would be a great mistake to take further funds away from our nuclear weapons program. What the gentleman from New York may not realize is…

this resolution deals with a special function entrusted to Congress under article I, section 10 of the Constitution. I want to express my gratitude to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Chairman Gekas) and also the gentleman from New York…

I fully agree and I think the committee and Congress fully agrees that we want to be very cautious about saying to any particular group ``We don't want you,'' because the fact is, we have to get and keep top quality people in our National…

I rise in support of H.R. 8, although I would prefer to abolish the death tax immediately and completely. But, the unusual budgetary scoring rules which we must follow do not allow us to take into account real world consequences of changes…