Mike Lee

A storm of unprecedented ferocity is approaching.

It takes education, it takes people on the ground doing enrollment.

Thank you, Madam Chairwoman.

I find it difficult to understand how the decision by this cadet... could possibly be deemed offensive.

The fact that it was taken down is itself alarming.

Last year, the Senate Armed Services Committee passed an amendment that I introduced in connection with the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2014.

The Bible verse in question that he was quoting was not one that I would regard as offensive.

It's an honor to have you here with us.

Do you perceive the transition of power to cause much disruption of the day-to-day military cooperation between U.S. and Afghan forces?

President Karzai will be out of office by the end of this year.

The primary efforts to fight recruitment of insurgent forces are Afghan led with media campaigns highlighting the ANA and ANP.

What is the goal of insurgent groups who are fighting against our forces in Afghanistan?

A continued counterterrorism mission will also be needed to ensure al Qaeda remains focused on survival and not on regeneration.

Without continued pressure, al Qaeda will regenerate and once again directly threaten the United States and its interests.

A stable Afghanistan can contribute to the reduction of those spaces and contribute in the aggregate to denying enemies access to the homeland and ultimately neutralizing terrorist networks.

A residual force would be tasked with preventing the enemy from attacking the homeland and continue to build sustainable partnerships that would protect national interests from potential threats from the region.

Our objective for Afghanistan beyond 2014 remains developing a sustainable, inclusive, and increasingly stable political order committed to and capable of denying safe haven to al Qaeda.

That policy, to the extent that it's interpreted that way, I think runs afoul of section 532 of the NDAA for Fiscal Year 2014.

I appreciate that a lot, Madam Secretary, and I'd love to follow up with you after that happens.

The State of Utah is very pleased, couldn't be more pleased, with the fact that Hill Air Force Base was ultimately selected to host the first operational F-35s.

I do think that's significant.

I do have some concerns about getting there by divesting the valuable and very cost-effective national defense asset that we have in our National Guard Apache battalions.

No, we cannot guarantee the assistance we provide doesn't fall into the wrong hands.

What do you believe is the biggest national security threat to the United States currently stemming from the Syrian crisis?

Recent attacks in the Middle East and North Africa, such as the attack in Benghazi, highlight the evolution of al Qaeda over the past decade into decentralized, regional organizations