Jay Rockefeller

as we conclude this debate on this reauthorization of the Federal Aviation Administration, I wish to thank my colleagues for their hard work, and I wish to do so with some specificity. First, I thank Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison, the…

We are here today because FAA reauthorization is about so much more than aviation. It has everything to do with safety for our people, it is about jobs, it is about our economy, it is about, frankly, our self-esteem as a nation in the…

I have no doubt that Major General Robert Harding is ready and qualified to lead the agency effectively.

We are here today to consider the nomination of Major General Robert Harding to be the Administrator, the long-awaited, the extremely long-awaited, the desperately needed Transportation Security Administrator of TSA.

I also expect you to work with Congress to make sure TSA has the funds it needs to secure our transportation system.

This is one of the toughest positions in Washington because the safety and security of our citizens is our most solemn responsibility.

I worry about that agency. I worry about morale. I worry about equipment.

With any new proposal or substantial investment we can never forget to ask that simple critically important question: does it work for our country--will it help our people?

I believe that CMSP has the potential to better assess and plan for cumulative impacts and competing uses.

Investments in technology innovation always carry tremendous potential.

This Federal aviation bill is enormous in scope, but we are doing it in little pieces and with little amendments, so sometimes it is hard. It has seven different titles in it. One of them has to do with community air service to rural…

Last month, the Obama Administration proposed a new path forward for NASA that refocuses the agency's overall direction.

We cannot forget how we got here: many of the enormous economic problems we face today are a direct result of weak consumer protections in the financial sector.

We have to do better for the American consumer.

The Federal Trade Commission is our Nation's premier consumer protection agency.

I rise to get back to something called the Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bill. It is the bill we are on. I do not hesitate to say my daughter was one of the cofounders of a charter school, very successful, in Washington…

I compliment the Senator from New Jersey who is complimented far too little for doing so many good things but did a lot of them on the floor this afternoon. I appreciate what he said which is not related to aviation, about the school bond…

I am sure I don't need to remind my colleagues about our Nation's fiscal situation. But let's review the facts anyway. This morning the Treasury Department announced that the government racked up a record high monthly budget deficit of…

I completely and totally agree. This is kind of a feast, I guess, for some who want to bring all their frustrations about government and put them into the aviation authorization bill, but it is so frustrating because we have been working…

a primary emphasis I have put into this Federal aviation bill over the last number of years is modernizing our air traffic control system. I have heard myself talk about it so much that I am tired of listening to myself. But, on the other…

The question is, is the House going to pass it. If there is going to be any health care reform at all, the House has to pass it. Now, if the House does pass it, it will then constitute about 85 to 90 percent of the entire health care bill…

Then I would further inquire: I don't see any possibility of the House changing a bill, which would have to come back over to the Senate, because it would be highly unlikely the Senate would be able to pass that bill. So I don't think that…

When consolidation occurs in these markets, we need to pay attention, therefore.

I have to be at the Capitol. Our FAA bill is on the floor, and so I have to be on the Senate floor.

I cannot overstate the importance of a vibrant and strong aviation system. It is fundamental to our Nation's long-term growth--from the largest cities to the very smallest of towns--because it connects our citizens and it connects our…