Robert C. Byrd

I think of what this spending magnitude would bring to our national priorities--our schools, our healthcare, our ability to fix Medicare or Social Security.

When Americans saw the $87 billion price tag it gave Americans sticker-shock-and-awe.

I believe that the best approach for this administration is to garner more dollars, more men, and more expertise from the United Nations.

The Iraqi war was the wrong war for the wrong reasons against the wrong enemy.

What has become tragically clear is that the United States has no strong plan for reconstruction, and no clear concept for maintaining order.

The cost of the President's war in Iraq grows by the day.

The Bush administration's single-minded focus on Iraq has ignored, in large respect, the terrorist threat that produced the attack of September 11, 2001.

The President's unsubstantiated justification for his war in Iraq has left the Nation questioning the White House's current efforts.

By refusing to pay for this war today and, instead, exacerbating the largest deficit in the Nation's history, President Bush is forcing those young Americans, who are now in kindergarten, to pick up the tab for his war in Iraq.

I hope that we will not be in such a rush.

We ought to examine this request line by line and see if the high-minded rhetoric coming out of the White House matches its proposal.

This administration, in my view, has not wanted to ask questions, not wanted to answer questions.

This is a lot of money. I understand the need to expedite the action, but this does not shield us from the responsibility to ask questions.

We're going to need more time than it appears is going to be provided.

You see, that's not the way we ought to do things.

I'm here on behalf, as you are, of millions of Americans. This is a very serious matter that we are going to be studying.

You did not exactly answer my question. Let me ask a different question.

Do I understand you to say that you will provide this committee, if it requests such, a copy of any management plan or competitive outsourcing proposal that the Department of Agriculture submits to the OMB?

I believe that this is an important issue for every agency in your Department.

In order to ensure that adequate funding is available to maintain no less than 50 humane slaughter inspectors throughout fiscal year 2004, the future funding needs must be determined.

I will be pursuing this with interest, and I hope that the Department will proceed expeditiously to get the 50 new humane slaughter inspectors on board.

I think we ought to write it into the bill.

I do not think that I said you did not intend it.

I appreciate what you said.

They need to be aware that this has completely destroyed our lives.