resilient and i call on the senate to take up this legislation to pass it and move america forward with healthy forests. i yield my time to the gentleman from washington. . mr. newhouse: thank you mr. speaker. i've got something that i think is very important and something that i think you're going to enjoy. you know, sometimes we learn about some very remarkable people. individuals that, when you hear about them, they make you pause, they make you stop and think about how much they inspire and really make a difference. today i want to recognize one such person, a young lady of 12 years old by the name of mckena

schwab. she lives in the community of east wanachi washington, which happens to be in my legislative district in the state of washington. mckenna was born with something called larson syndrome which is a rare consecutive tissue disorder that causes bone dislocations and this affects her airway, her spine, her joints. this remarkable young lady has already undergone 14 surgeries in her short life. four years ago mckenna and her mother melissa, thought they wanted to give something back to seattle children's hospital which in many ways over the course of her life has been their home away from home. she said she wanted to give something back because seattle children's has made it so that she can walk and live independently.

so she decided to sell lemonade and cookies. perfectly natural thing for a 12-year-old to decide. but this young lady raised more than $6,700 that year for children's hospital. the family knew they could do more. they wanted to do more. so the next year she and her family collected over 650 new toys for the kids at the hospital. even that wasn't enough. the following year she wanted to do even more. so she sold 530 dozen doughnuts, raising more than $7,500 to go toward seattle children's hospital. this year mr. speaker she set her sights even higher. according to seattle children's hospital's catherine bluer mckenna's goal was to give the kids at the hospital something

that was very important, near and dear to her heart. she wanted to give them red radio flier wagons. i know you're smiling, mr. speaker, but that was an important thing because as it would be, in between her appointments throughout her young life between traveling between her room and to the operating room, to the play room, the red radio flier wagon was her ride. and she rode in style. she said that those wagons are a really good memory and they were less scary than a wheelchair. the support she got to reach her goal in this year's fundraising i think was nothing short of amazing. mckenna collected enough to purchase 33 wagons for the hospital. her friends her family, the mayor of the city wannachi high school, a group of local

dentists even an assisted living home helped in the effort. the whole community pitched in. actually the hospital had to tell her that that's enough. that's enough wagons. so she moved on to her things that were on the wish list. by the end of the drive she had those 33 wagons, but theys -- but she also had 36 d.v.d. players, 12 headphones, five baby swing, 280 gift cards, 300 new toys, and many other things. mckenna and her family have started a tradition that will live on, that has and will continue to make kids' day at the seattle children's hospital just a little less scary. as mckenna said, i want to give kids hope. in may, very deservedly so, mckenna received a national

make a difference day award for her volunteer project on behalf of the hospital. as i told you before, sometimes you hear of remarkable people and i am very proud to be able to share mckenna's story with you. i'm proud to say that she is a fine citizen of my congressional district in my state of washington. thank you, mr. speaker, and i yield back to the fine gentleman from arkansas. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. >> mr. speaker, how much time do we have left? the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman has 14 minutes remaining. >> thank you mr. speaker. mr. speaker, i would also like to talk about some other positive things that this body has done here as we approach the august break. mr. westerman: this has to do with the v.a. since the scandal was brought to the public's attention last year, mesh of american have -- americans have become all too

familiar with misconduct at the federal agency charged with helping our veterans. the house veterans affairs committee has held dozens of hearings -- veterans' affairs committee has held dozens of hearings. congress has enacted major reform legislation. the veterans access to care through choice, accountability and transparency act created a three-year program to allow veterans to seek care from private providers if they live too far from a v.a. facility or cannot otherwise get an appointment within 14 days. it also gave the v.a. secretary the authority to fire senior executives for poor performance and required a top to bottom study of the entire department to be completed within one year of enactment. however even with this oversight, the obama administration has failed to correct the problems. we continue to hear about unacceptable patient wait times unanswered benefit inquiries, patient safety concerns, medical malpractice, flagrant mismanagement

infighting corruption and years of construction delays that total millions of dollars. when government failure is exposed and legislation aimed at restoring accountability is enacted, it makes sense that action would be swift and immediate. people would be fired. wrongs would begin to be made right. unfortunately that has not been the case at the department of veteran affairs. while there are as many as 1,000 employees who could toentially face disciplinary actions, the v.a. has only fired three people for involvement in the scandal. our veterans have earned our respect and they shouldn't have to wait in line for months or years just to see a doctor. new documents show that one out of every three waiting for care at the v.a. has already died. in recent reports reveal there are now 50% more veterans on wait lists for a month or longer than last summer. when our brave service members come home, we have to keep our word to them by modernizing our v.a. system to deliver the best

care in the world. in the 114th congress, house republicans have passed numerous pieces of legislation designed to help veterans and increase accountability at the v.a. in february the clay hunt suicide prevention act was signed into law and provides veterans with access to the mental health care resources they need. last week the house passed the veterans information modernization act which would give congress and the public access to key data regarding the delivery of health care, medical services and nursing home care by the v.a. health care system. many veterans have contacted us expressing their frustration at having to carry official department of defense discharge papers to prove their military service. and last week legislation was signed into law to create an official identification card for veterans. just this week we have passed the v.a. accountability act which would provide the v.a. secretary with increased

flexibility in removing employees who fail our veterans. the hire more heroes act which would make it easier to hire veterans by exempting those who already have health insurance from being counted as full-time employees under obamacare. the veterans compensation cost of living adjustment which would provide an annual cost of living adjustment for veterans receiving disability compensation and the ruth moore act which would update regulations for veterans seeking financial compensation for mental health conditions linked to sexual assault while they were serving in the military. the house also had to pass legislation that included provisions to allow the v.a. to transfer funds within its budget to cover an unexpected $2.5 billion shortfall in hospital and medical care actions. without this fix, the agency said it would start shutting down hospital operations in august. it is critically important that we take care of those who have sacrificed so much in service

to our country. and this week congress has continued its efforts to meet our responsibility to america's veterans. however, we cannot transform the v.a. alone. it is the president's responsibility to ensure changes are made within the agency and employees are held accountable for their actions. america's veterans deserve a meaningful decisive plan to right the many wrongs that have been committed. it's past time for the obama administration to change the culture at the v.a. and end this agency-wide pattern of misconduct and neglect. mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. under the speaker's announced policy of january 6, 2015, the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from north carolina, ms. foxx, for 30 minutes. ms. foxx: thank you mr. speaker. mr. speaker, i want to compliment my two colleagues

two w.h.o. have just spoken on the floor -- who have just spoken on the floor, mr. newhouse from the state of washington, for highlighting a very important event in his district and a significant constituent of his, and i'd particularly like also to recognize mr. westerman from arkansas for getting past -- passed h.r. -- the forest acts of 2015. it is really a coup for a freshman to get such a significant bill passed so early in his or her career. it's a major bill, significant bill, and i want to compliment him on bringing his expertise in forestry to the house of representatives. we need people with all kinds of backgrounds here who can help get things done that the

american people need for us to do on their behalf and certainly that bill is going to do a lot for american people all across this country. mr. speaker, it's been said that no one hears about the plane that lands safely. what that very adage suggests is that we're often unaware of good work being done every day. and it isn't until something goes wrong that people take notice. so mr. speaker, i want to just highlight for a few minutes this evening the great work that this congress has been doing in the past 4 1/2 years, and particularly during the 114th congress, which began in january. under the leadership of house

republicans we have been doing very good work in tackling the difficult issues facing this nation. we're advancing solutions that build a healthy economy empowering every american to pursue his or her future to reach his or her full potential and achieve a better life. here mr. speaker, are just a few specifics of what we have been accomplishing. first, the house is more open. that may sound a little strange to people, but it is important that the american people understand that under the majority leadership of republicans, we have considered over 200 more amendments than the average that have been considered over the last 25

years in the house of representatives. the house is more collaborative . house committees have passed 10.2% of bills out of committee compared to a 40-year average of only 6% of bills being passed. the house is overall more productive. the house passed 193 bills in the first quarter, well above the 40-year average of 127. of those, 32 have also passed the senate, more than the 25-year average of 29. and the house is more effective. over the last 30 years only one other republican-controlled

house had more bills enacted into law to this point. and this congress is above the 40-year average of 29 bills enacted with 32. so the american people want us to come to washington use our time well and work on their behalf to get the things done that they see need to be done. . we are making on our main focus which are jobs and the economy. mr. speaker, tomorrow's good-paying jobs will come from the freedom to innovate from the bottom up with organic growth, not from top-down bureaucracies in washington, d.c. looking out for themselves and attempting

always to control the american people. mr. speaker we have passed many bills, as i have said before. one is the small business regulatory flexibility im profments act h.r. 527, which was approved by the house by a vote of 260-16 in february of this year. that's a bipartisan vote mr. speaker. we spassed the unfunded h.r. 50, by a bipartisan vote of 250-173. we passed the death tax repeal act, h.r. 1105, by a vote of

140-179. this is often called the death tax and sometimes called the estate tax. but it hits, mr. speaker, not just wealthy people, but average people with huge unfair taxes. this would -- this bill would provide certainty for families and allow small businesses to focus on growing new jobs. and it's the smart thing to do for our economy. mr. speaker, much of the economic turmoil that has gripped this nation is a result of the federal government spending beyond its means. in north carolina i hear from constituents who are worried about our ballooning national debt which jeopardize ezz the

american dream. irresponsible spending isn't fair to our kids and it's not good for the economy. unknown to many americans, the house republican majority has cut federal spending in two years for the first time since the korean war. we banned earmarks and achieve the most significant reductions in modern history and we preekted tax cuts for 99% of vizz and families and passed the balance of the budget without raising taxes and achieves more than $5 trillion in savings. it's the first joint 10-year balanced budget recent like

since 2001. we passed the students success act which replaces no child left behind, by reducing the federal footprint in education, restoringing local control and empowering to hold schools accountable tore effectively educating students. we expanded and strengthened 529 college college savings plans by a vote of 401-20, a very strong bipartisan vote. we have passed an energy policy the keystone xl approval act, the natural gas pipeline act.

we passed the certainty and transparency act. we passed improving coal combustion resideal act of 2015. mr. speaker, we working on the economy on bringing down the cost of energy, on providing for national security. we passed the national defense authorization act, h.r. 175 and are in conference now with the senate on this bill. we passed the national cyber scurelt protection advancement act. again, by a large bipartisan vote 335-63. we passed protectings cyber networks act by 307-116.

and we passed a bill signed into law by the president into the june, the you u.s.a. act and prevents government overreach, strengthens protections for americans' civil liberties and increases the transparency of certain national authorities. as my friend from arkansas talked to my coming on the floor we passed several bills to honor our veterans. they have earned our respect and shouldn't have to wait in line for months or years to see a doctor. when our zwive of dwive service members come home we have to

modernize our system to deliver the best care in the world and we have kept our promises to our veterans. and mr. speaker we have focused also on the human side of what needs to be done in our society. we past the justice for victims of trafficking act. it was signed into law on may 29 2015. human trafficking is a major problem in our country and we are doing all we can to diminish it and eliminate. mr. officer, we passed the pain commable unborn protection act h.r. 36. we expect that bill to be passed in the senate. we have also passed no taxpayer

funding for abortion act. on it was approved by the house in january. this bill would permanently free taxpayers from subsidizing abortion for insurance coverage that includes abortion. mr. speaker, we care very much for the most vulnerable among us. we are also doing everything we can through our hearings to hold president obama and the executive branch accountable in conjunction with our constitutional duties. we continue to look for ways to improve what the department of veterans affairs does. we have witnessed the incompetence of office of personnel management which allowed its records of federal

employees to be hacked. we have held hearings on the secret service scandal. we have done everything we can to stop the e.p.a. from imposing its clean water rule, which is very tough on our farmers in particular but in people all over this country. we have challenged again the obamacare in court with the u.s. house of representatives versus burwell lawsuit and we hope for arp positive result from that. which also are continuing our investigations into other scandals of this administration, including the situation in benghazi. last fall, house investigators

learned that former secretary of state hillary clinton used a private email server located in her home rather than an official email account and failed to preserve her eye mails the speaker pro tempore: without the diligent work on the select committee on benghazi, this email arrangement would have remained secret. because of the deposition a former aid to bill clinton they demonstrated that despite her assertions to the contrary she did not produce all of her official emails to the state department. the select committee is depotsing firnls including clinton's aids and will call

clinton as soon as the state department produces all of the records owed to the committee. we are continuing our investigation of the i.r. s and its unlawful targeting of conservatives. mr. speaker, this is the people's house. and we, republicans in the majority, will continue to do the work of the american people by passing appropriate legislation and holding this tration accountable for what it should be doing and what it has done that is inappropriate. the republican-led house, mr. speaker, in the past seven months has delivered real results that would solve many of

the challenges that face our nation, but there's still more to do to make the outdated models in washington, d.c., more effective, efficient and accountable. and as we go home to our districts for the august recess not a dictation, but an opportunity for us to be in our districts, to be with our constituents to hear from our constituents what their concernsr we will be gathering more ideas nor legislation and come back torm congress in september with the renewed commitment to do the people's business and the people's house. with that, mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. does the gentlewoman have a megs.

ms. foxx: i ask unanimous consent that when the house adjourns today it adjourn to meet at 1:00 p.m. on friday, july 31, 2015. does the gentlewoman have a motion to adjourn. ms. foxx: i move that the house do now adjourn. the speaker pro tempore: the question is on the motion to adjourn. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. the ayes have it. the motion is adopted. accordingly

keith laing: congress is coming pretty close to the deadline.

it extends spending levels for another three months, which will buy some time to work on another bill. they hope to get to another multi-your bill by the end of the year. >> we have not had a multi-year bill for a while on short-term funding. what is the impact on states with short-term funding versus our long-term deal? mr. laing: many have said that it makes it harder for them to plan a budget because they are only guaranteed funding if the extension was 2 months. it really makes it hard for them to planned projects. and that is weakening the nation's infrastructure. >> how many short-term funding bills has congress passed? >> this is the 34th since 2005, if you're talking about a bill that is longer than 2 years. >> the senate interviews work this week on a six-year bill. what is the status on what the

senate is doing for highway and transit funding? >> they are going to accept this pass about transportation funding i was speaking about earlier. they will also work on their multi-year bill. italy contains three years -- it only contains three years worth of funding. they say they will do a final vote on it tomorrow in hopes of putting pressure on the house to pass a multi-your bill of their own when they come back from recess. -- multi-year. >> only until october 29. if we go back to the house what kind of prospect is therefore a six-year deal coming out of the house? >> the house originally passed an extension that would've carried until december to provide even more time. they would like to work on a package that ties into corporate tax reform.

they can take money from what is called repatriation and put that back into the highway trust fund. there is skepticism about that in the senate. it remains to be seen whether the chambers can come together by october. >> leaders in the house and senate are working towards adding a high well-built put together. >> -- highway bill put together. >> this is at the highest levels of both parties. mitch mcconnell, barbara boxer paul ryan have all worked on this. it's not something that's being discussed in just committees anymore. >> are republicans and the democrats playing nice? are they working well together on highway funding? >> this is divided more along the chambers than in parties. you have republicans in the senate really pushing for this multi-year bill.

and republicans in the house fought that because they opposed to the inclusion of the export -- the inclusion of the renewal of the export-import bill. >> what about short-term versus long-term funding for highway transit, and where does the transportation secretary work into the mix? >> i'm not sure if president obama will sign this every patch. the white house doesn't want to see in interruption in transportation funding right now, especially after the height of the busy summit construction season. transportation secretary anthony foxx says his patience is wearing thin. he proposed a six-year bill of his own. he is saying that congress should take amendments when they come back. >> keith laing is also on

twitter and works on transportation funding on the hill. >> congress meant chaka fattah response to corruption charges. join cabinet secretaries testify about the iran nuclear agreement at a hearing on the senate armed services committee. and tsa administrator about aviation security. >> today, the justice department announced indictment against chaka fattah on 29 counts, including bribery, money laundering, and a bank fraud charges. he faces a sentence of up to 100 years if convicted on all charges. congressman the top responded been -- congress meant fattah responded to the indictments. >> what are your plans, sir? >> i'm on my way to have lunch

right now. but it's been an eight-year process. i think that we have leased have arrived at a moment at which we have actual allegations of wrongdoing. we have not received the indictment. i just spoke to my attorney in philadelphia. we have not had a chance to review it. i did hear a little bit about it. all i want to say is that i spent my time helping people. we helped at least 125 million. i want to help millions more. i will let my attorney handle this matter. it will obviously be important to my constituents that this matter not be distraction to my work. i will try not to have it do so. >> do you plan on staying on capital hill?

congressman fattah: this is not deflate gate. this is a normal allegation after an eight-year investigation. for your own coverage, you know that is not true until the facts are revealed. we now have actual allegations. we have a chance to respond, but i stand by my previous statement that i have never been involved in any wrongdoing, any unlawful activity, and any misappropriations of federal funds. i think there is a lot for us to digest once we see the indictment. what is unusual is that none of the people involved have ever been involved in wrongdoing before. the one thing i can agree with

the u.s. attorney in philadelphia is that this is one of the more important things. the people involved are innocent until proven otherwise. >> what he did speaker boehner have to say? congressman fattah: i did not speak to him. i would like to remain silent until this matter is cleared up. [inaudible] congressman fattah: i'm not the one making an allegation. we will see how it goes. i have not been distracted yet. i will keep doing my work. >> on the next washington

journal, tom udall of mexico -- new mexico on to deal with chemical relations. john hoeven on climate change and that congress will reject the keystone xl pipeline. washington journal on c-span. phone in order connect to us through facebook or twitter. >> this weekend on the c-span network, politics, books, and american history. saturday night at 8:00 eastern on c-span, netroos nation talks about -- netroots nation talks about illegal immigration. chris christie on national security. he speaks at the university of new hampshire in manchester. on c-span2, saturday night at 10:00 eastern on book tv's "afterwards" michael turner

talks about the growing national debt and talks about restructuring entitlement as a solution. and glenn beck presents his thoughts on islamic extremist. and on islamic history -- we commemorate the 50th anniversary of president lyndon johnson signing of the 1965 voting rights act. coverage includes white house phone conversations between johnson and his aides, civil rights leader dr. martin luther king jr., and congressional members about strategy on how to enact in enforcement law. in lbj's speech at the u.s. capitol and the signing of the bill. also this weekend, saturday night at 7:10, university of california berkeley brian delay looks at the history of gun production in europe and how arms trading contributed to an american history during the revolution. get a complete schedule on c-span.org. >> 4 white house cabinet members

and chairs of the joint chiefs of staff testified about the iran nuclear agreement at a hearing of the senate armed services committee. this hearing focused on the military perspective on the deal, with much of the testimony coming from defense secretary ashton carter and general martin dempsey. senator john mccain chairs this three-hour meeting. sen. mccain: good morning. the committee meets today on the joint country has a plan of action which the u.s. and other major powers have signed with iran. we welcome our distinguished witnesses and thank them for joining us today. we appreciate the senators and secretary moniz and lew being here. for the record, i did not request the presence of it secretary kerry or moniz or

secretary lew. i'm glad they are here, as their desire to do so. since this focus is today's hearing it's on a strategic and military implications of the iran agreement. what we want to know, among other things, is how this agreement will affect regional security proliferation, and the balance of power in the middle east, and what impact it may have on iran's maligned activities and hegemonic ambitions in the region. what it means for perceptions of american credit ability and resolve among our allies and partners, and what the consequences are for u.s. defense public hearing -- defense, policy. we concerted these broader strategic consequences of the agreement. what is already a bad deal only looks that much worse. to this committee perhaps the most concern about the agreement

itself pertains to the verification and monitoring mechanisms, as has been verbally recorded,-- there will be no americans allowed on the ground. the details of how these monitoring activities will occur in certain important instances are contained in a separate agreement between the ieaa and iran which the u.s. and congress have not seen. furthermore, the mechanism to resolve these long-standing concerns about the possible military dimensions of iran's nuclear program is contained in another side agreement between iran. which the u.s. government and the congress have also not seen. to be sure, much is known about iran's past weaponization activities but we can never know what we do not know, which

is why the director of the ieaaea depends on resolution of the pod issue. how that will occur we do not know. this presents a major problem. all of us will soon vote on the iran agreement and the merits of this agreement hinges on its verifiability. and yet we cannot even read key documents pertaining to these verification others, and our government is not even a party to those agreements. i find it deeply troubling. what is more troubling are the broader military implications to this agreement. iran is not just an arms control challenge, it is a geopolitical challenge. for years many of us have urged the administration to adopt a broader strategy to counter iran's maligned activities in the middle east. unfortunately, that is not happened. instead, we have watched with alarm as iran's military and

intelligence operatives have stepped up their destabilizing activities and increased their influence and control in places like syria iraq, lebanon yemen, bahrain, and gaza. iran has done all of this under the full pressure of sanctions. now iran will soon receive a windfall of sanctions relief estimated at roughly $60 billion or possibly as much as twice that. yes, a good amount of that money will surely go to iran's domestic priorities. but it's only fair to assume that billions of dollars will flow to iran's revolutionary guards. money that will likely be used to boost arms supplies to iran's terrorist proxies to sew chaos and instability across the region and to double down on a bashar assad right when he needs it most. this posts a series of new

challenges for our defense. totally could this strengthen iran's maligned activities in the region, but it will also enhance their acquisition of military capabilities. an international arms embargo has significantly hurt iran's ability to moderate sign -- to modernize its aging military. throughout the nuclear negotiations, the administration insisted that it's the policy was -- that it's diplomacy was limited to the nuclear file. general dempsey told the committee that " under no circumstances should we relieve pressure on iran relative to ballistic missile capabilities and arms trafficking." and yet thanks to less misconceptions -- thanks to last-minute concessions that is exactly what this agreement would do. the international arms embargo would disappear, and iran would be able to acquire advanced

military keep abilities like attack helicopters warships, and anti-access weapons. restrictions on ballistic missile programs will disappear and iran will be able to acquire through entirely illicit means the necessary material forevermore sophisticated ballistic missiles, including icmbs. and throughout this, iran will not only have billions of dollars to go on a shopping spree in the international arms market but it is also sure to find plenty of states eager to sell those weapons especially russia and china. in this way the iran agreement not only paves iran's path to a nuclear capability, it will further iran's emergence as a dominant military power in the middle east. this has i direct and dangerous implications for u.s. armed forces. the ultimate guarantee that iran

will not give a nuclear weapon is not a 109 page document, it is the capability of the u.s. military to do what is necessary if all else fails. and yet, this agreement would enable iran to construct a kind of advanced military arsenal that could make our military option. instead of enhancing our deterrence-- is this agreement fails, the u.s. service members called upon to take direction against the rim, their lives could be at greater risk because of this agreement. that is perhaps the most troubling aspect of all of this agreement. what is means for america's credibility in the middle east. since 1979, republican and democratic administrations thought to contain the islamic republic of iran and prevent it from acquiring nuclear weapons capabilities. our allies and partners have

entrusted much of their own security to the u.s. because they believed that our commitment. i fear this agreement will undermine our willingness to play that vital stabilizing role. our allies and partners in the middle east have increasingly come to believe that america is withdrawing from the region and doing so at a time when i ran is aggressively seeking really -- seeking to advance its hegemonic indigents. now we reached an agreement that will not only legitimized the islamic republic with a new -- nuclear enrichment capability, but will also unshackle this regime in its pursuit of conventional military power and may actually consolidate the islamic republic control in iran

for years to come. after turning three decades of u.s. foreign policy on its head, is it any wonder that this agreement may lead our allies and partners to question america's commitment to their security? if that happens, these states are increasingly likely to take matters into their own hands and indeed, we already see evidence of that. these fatal decisions may well manifest themselves in regional security competition in arms races, nuclear proliferation and possibly conflict. all of which would demand more, not less, u.s. leadership and presence in the region. it would be ironic, but not historically unprecedented, that a diplomatic agreement intended to decrease risk of conflict actually increased those risks instead. all of us hope that will not be the case now. but it is the job of the defense department to be ready if our highest hopes fail us.

and i fear there is much work to do. i welcome the witnesses, senator reed. >> thank you very much mr. chairman. your appearance before the committee comes 2 weeks after the news that after 20 months of negotiations with p5 +1 that iran agreed on the company has a plan of action. the agreement and your position on it is historic and is lamented scrupulously in the world relations with iran for international nonproliferation efforts and for the political dynamics in the middle east. i commend the president and his negotiation team for their persistence and hard work. in the weeks ahead congress has a solemn obligation to carefully review the details of this historic agreement and independently validate that the

agreement will meet our common goal of stopping iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. today's hearing is part of that obligation, and i look forward to your testimony. >> secretary kerry you were the key architect of this agreement. your witness to take this thankless endeavor is commended. we would like to hear white you believe this is a good deal and how you intend to direct our did let's and partners in the region to address iran's destabilizing activities in the region. secretary moniz you played an aborted role in the negotiations, and you too have been a strong advocate for a company has of plan of action. -- comprehensive plan of action. is your -- cutting off iran's pathways to nuclear weapons. access and affordability of the supply chain. three, the dedicated procurement

channel and dual-use items. and four, the iaea particles -- articles to-- secretary carter, you are a unique secretary of defense with a phd in physics. i look forward to your expertise on these elements as well. both secretary carter and general density, while neither of you will part of the negotiations, you both traveled to the middle east to speak with her counterparts about the potential locations for regional security. during your meetings, you spoke with our allies and partners on a range of issues. these are serious concerns and

ones which i share. our partners in israel see iran as an ongoing threat to their national security interest. while prime minister and yahoo! is ever likely to endorse this historic deal, -- prime minister netanyahu is never likely to endorse this historic deal. it is better or us to understand the concerns of the israelis. we will continue to stand alongside them as we confront common state and nonstate threats. in may 2015, the joint statement involving the corporation counsel meetings at camp david provided a roadmap for house in ministration. it also makes clear that they will be at the forefront of these efforts.

the camp david statement outlines our commitment to enhancing the ballistic missile defense keep abilities and improving our operability to increase collective defense in order to counter iran's terrorist proxies. the joint statement indicates that we will increase our training and exercises with gcc special operations elements to better enable our partners to confront iran's asymmetric capabilities. i look forward to hearing about these elements today. i want to make one final point. these negotiations focused on denying iran a pathway to nuclear weapons. a nuclear iran would be a more formidable force in the region, and as it has repeatedly demonstrated, not a force for peace and stability, but one that supports terror and seeks to impose its will across the middle east. moreover a nuclear iran would prompt in arms race in the region that could lead to catastrophe. none of us would condone or

ignore iran's support of terror or other destabilizing activities in the region. but the focus of these negotiations will focus on nuclear weapons. as fred kaplan, an expert, pointed out, science throughout the cold war didn't require the soviet union to disavow communism. but the deals were still very useful. they reversed the nuclear arms race and provided a form or diplomacy -- a forum for diplomacy. i look forward to your responses as we continue to understand this agreement and evaluate pathways to nuclear devices and appropriate responses.

sen. mccain: secretary carter, can we begin with you? secretary carter: in your lead, if only i and general density may make opening statements. -- and a general dempsey. thank you all the members of the committee for giving me the opportunity to testify this morning on our defense strategy towards this critical region. in the wake of my travels to the region last week, 2 weeks after the conclusion of the joint apprehensive plan of action. i am pleased to be joined mby my fellow cabinet members who can talk in detail about the

agreement reached. that deal is an important step. one brought about by the leadership of president obama the persistent diplomacy of secretary kerry moniz, and that congress helped put in place. it is a good deal because it prevents iran from getting the nuclear weapon in a confidence of and verifiable way. -- in a company has a -- in a comprehensive and verifiable way. it will remove the one element of risk and uncertainty, but a critical element in the region. for those reasons, and those my colleagues have provided in testimony before other congressional committees, i urge you to support it. i also urge you to support the broader elements of the defense strategy in the middle east i will describe, including, and especially, by supporting a stable and reformed defense budget.

the successful negotiation of this deal is one part of our broader foreign defense policy. as the most influential power in the world, we have responsibilities all over the world. the middle east remains important to america's national interests. as a result, the permit of defense is committed to confronting the region's two principal security challenges. iran and isil. the department's strategic approach to protecting our interests and confronting those challenges will remain unchanged. we will continue to maintain a strong military posture and deter aggression to bolster the security of our friends and allies in the region, especially israel. to ensure freedom of navigation in the gulf. to check iran's maligned influence into the great and ultimately defeat isil. -- and to degrade and to

ultimately defeat isil. we are also upgrading our military could abilities, should iran walk away from its commitment during this deal. last week, i was in the middle east and had the opportunity to visit with some of our men and women in uniform who were carrying out this strategy. i know how much all of you care for them. and like me, you are proud of their impressive work. i will tell you this morning what i told them -- we are continuing for speed ahead. standing with our friends standing up to isil, and standing against iran's maligned activity. on isil, as i testified earlier this month, we have the right strategy in placem built on nine think revised lines of effort to achieve isil's lasting defeat. but we continue to strengthen execution. today in iraq and other places we are working with partners on the ground in global coalition

to enable capable and motivated ground forces to win back iraq's sovereignty and peace on its own territory. i saw several parts of that effort last week and spoke with our partners on the ground. we are headed in the right effort. we have made some progress, but we need to make more. anna ran -- on iran, this new deal when implemented, will place significant limitations on iran that will significantly cut off its pathways to material for a nuclear bomb. but it is also important to note that it places no limitations -- let me repeat that -- no limitations on what the department of defense can and will do to pursue our defense strategy in the region. it places no limits on our forces our partnerships and