Frank Wolf

I appreciate your identifying education as an important priority for NASA.

When do you see NASA issuing a contract for heavy-lift system?

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And I apologize for not being here at the outset. I was Chairing a hearing on Human Rights and Religious Freedom in Vietnam.

If the Administration were, Dr. Holdren, to succeed in canceling the Constellation Program, what space vehicle as we sit here today is capable of carrying humans into space and how soon?

I am not going to say everything you have said is right, or everything you said is wrong, but it was sort of a surprising decision.

You know, 50 percent of the STEM funding last year as laid on the table was not accessed.

I support strongly what Mr. Ruppersberger does in his committee, and how important those intelligent assets are in orbit.

NASA sparks vision and hope and inspiration in young people where no other government agency can.

I don't represent Alabama, I don't represent Texas, I don't represent Florida. I represent the Northern Virginia area.

I think it is an abdication of America's leadership. The thought of having to abdicate leadership to the Chinese...

I voted against the stimulus package, but there were some members, and I thought it made some sense that asked the Administration...

We are going to stay ahead of them because we are going to have better technology than they do.

I do not think we are ceding leadership in space to the Russians and the Chinese at all.

If you lose somebody after sixth grade, maybe it is fifth grade, maybe it is seventh grade, you are not going to find them again.

I think the real danger is, and I think we could be approaching the point, is that the fewer manufacturing and fewer things we do in this country...

This is an important hearing. I know that looking at the STEM money for higher education grants last year that almost 50 percent of the STEM money that was appropriated laid on the table and no one accessed it.

I was disappointed that Secretary Shinseki was unwilling to grant a recent request to eliminate unfair work-at-home policies.

Okay. Yes, I would agree with that.

And whether other alternatives exist.

America is going broke.

With Representative Wolf's support, World Vision was able to launch the Community Mobilization Initiative in Northern Virginia.

The Pete Peterson Institute just did a survey. 56 percent of the people, bipartisan, in every part of the country favored this concept.

I have little faith that this Congress will act through regular order and believe it will take a commission with teeth for Congress to act.

It's time for Congress to deliver on its responsibilities to the American people and have an honest conversation about the state of our finances.

I am not going to stand by and allow this country to collapse simply because this Congress can't come together.