Mike Lee

Are you suggesting that because only 5 percent of the audits that could be conducted, in fact, are being conducted?

I see that my time has expired. Thank you very much.

But they are not getting enough value out of it, the value is not being passed along to the consumer.

I certainly believe with the emerging health care reimbursement models, this will be even more important.

Are you confident that this merger would not, in effect, squeeze them out?

I would like to start with some questions for Mr. Balto.

So that is much of what you are referring to when you talk about the lack of transparency, is that most of the time that audit is not, in fact, being conducted.

Each of us, when we're sworn in as Members of Congress, are required to take an oath to 'uphold the Constitution and to bear true faith and allegiance to the same'.

I think that plays in exactly to my point about how Members of Congress, particularly when they understand that the buck stops with them as far as their interpretation of a particular constitutional provision.

The problem is that that power has been abused to the point where we're now $15 trillion in debt.

But aren't there countless circumstances in which we benefit from the fact that there is some perhaps minimal uncertainty, the Sword of Damocles effect, in the fact that the courts could step in in a given circumstance? Doesn't that that…

I feel so strongly about the fact that we need a balanced budget amendment that I've even written a book about it.

So the specific excess has to be identified and then the specific excess above the spending rates of this provision would be limited to that military conflict.

This isn't a situation in which we can just do nothing because doing nothing will bring about a situation in which we're forced to make abrupt, draconian, and very painful cuts.

I find this interesting in the sense that here the requirement outlined in Section 2518 of Title 18 requires an analysis at the Department of Justice level.

You have acknowledged today that mistakes were made, obviously, within the Department of Justice related to the Fast and Furious program but without specifying who made those mistakes.

Right. Once that's used in the fracking fluid, then that changes the regulatory framework that you apply.

The members of our committee know I'm a strong advocate for the domestic production of natural gas.

How often is diesel fuel used in the injection fluid?

Requested that they do them so it could give them----

But you were, I assume, somewhat relieved by the findings that you did make, by what you discovered, the lack of contamination that you saw?

Thank you, Madam Chair.

So do you know what it is you're looking for? I mean, what is it you're looking for?

So as to give them some guidance; they were looking for guidance?

How would you characterize the quality of the water that you sampled, then?