Tim Kaine

But as we all know now, it did not work out that way.

We need to tackle our deficits and debt in a balanced way, with a mix of spending cuts and new revenue from those who can afford it most.

I know Democrats here in the Senate feel very strongly that protecting our fragile economic recovery is paramount.

Leaving the sequester in place would lead to massive, self-inflicted damage that would hurt middle-class families.

When his bill to raise the tax rate on the highest-earning Americans passed the Senate and House without a single Republican vote, the top Republican on the Senate Budget Committee at the time said it would 'devastate the economy.'

That is why I believe very strongly that we should replace the sequester with a balanced package of responsible spending cuts and revenue from the wealthiest Americans.

Our work in the 1990s proved that calling on the wealthy to pay their fair share is not incompatible with strong economic growth.

We all know sequestration was never intended to take effect.

I am going to continue making sure the voices of the American people are heard loud and clear throughout this process.

What effect would decisions such as delaying the deployment of the USS Truman and deferring the refueling and overhaul of the USS Lincoln have on the combatant commanders' ability to perform their missions?

Our Nation's shipbuilding plans cannot be carried out as planned with a fiscal year 2013 CR.

An appropriation bill would put funds in the correct appropriations and allow us to execute fiscal year 2013 in accordance with our original plan.

What will be the impact of aircraft carrier availability in the future?

If Congress were to pass a fiscal year 2013 omnibus appropriations bill, what positive impacts would we see to DOD's and overall readiness?

Sequestration and a full-year CR will negatively impact companies in the industrial base.

I continue to urge Congress, in the strongest possible terms, to avoid sequestration by devising a comprehensive and balanced deficit reduction package.

Not a time to take a peace dividend.

What does it mean, when CENTCOM has decided that there should be two carriers in the Middle East and decides purely because of sequester we can't do that, what does that mean to our readiness posture and what message does it send to allies…

In terms just of the sheer organizational effort, I assume it's thousands of hours for your personnel to try to figure out how to contort your budget to comply with the sequester, that would much better be spent looking forward and working…

I believe that we ought to do everything we can to avoid those catastrophic consequences of across-the-board cuts.

What is your current assessment of Afghan readiness and force effectiveness in preparation for 2014 and beyond?

The uncertainty is affecting them not only in the work arena but home has been absolutely heartbreaking to see.

If we keep giving them this level of uncertainty, this level of personal pain, we may lose them.

I have real concerns about the morale of both our Armed Forces and the Federal workers based on the current climate.

I am not feeling that we are that exceptional right now.