carl levin has called for a 15,000 troop drawdowns this year. you see a tremendous shift in terms of both democrats and republicans. i have had so many conversations with colleagues on both sides of the aisle in the course of seeking to encourage people to sign this letter. the fact that 27 senators signed it, the fact that it was bipartisan, the fact that it include committee chairs shows you a huge shift and a shift that it is responding to the american people. the matter what kind of county town hall i am in, folks overwhelmingly, in conservative ambergris account is, overwhelmingly believe that we are misusing our resources and putting our sons and daughters at risk, not in the best interest of the u.s. national security. >tavis: what is your view on this debate about the debt ceiling and the republican demand to link it to deficit reduction? we're getting very close to defcon 1. >> as -- what is to happen is that the republicans need to stop defending the programs in the tax code that protect the wealthy. that is the type of vision that dem

i like to see carl levin's big brother. to our witnesses, thank you for joining us. one of the main reasons that tax reform has become necessary is that the corporation of new tax breaks we add to the tax code it seems like every year. i am told that if you add up the cost of these tax exemptions, the cost of the next 10 years is $15 trillion over the next decade. that is more than the federal government will spend on social security or on national defense. some of these tax incentives are for individuals and summer for corporations. other policies are good and some are not. many tax preferences are inefficiently designed and many lose more revenue than necessary. with those thoughts in mind, debt vs. equity is something that needs to be examined closely. one of the keys to tax reform in 1986 when i served in the house was that congress working with the relative administration cleaned up some of the tax preferences in exchange for lower rates. ord like to ask each of our witnesses to take a couple seconds -- i would like to ask each of our witnesses which one policy

a democrat carl levin chairs the senate armed services committee. >> good morning everybody. the committee meets this morning to consider the nomination ofmo general martin dempsey to bethii chairman of the joint chiefs of staff. it was not long ago that general dempsey came before us for his nomination hearing to become ago chief of staff of the army. we welcome him back. thanks again for his 36 years o dedicated service to the nation and his willingness to serve asm the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff. as we know from those decades of service, general dempsey is an exceptionally well qualified american soldier and leader.al we we were reminded of the last hearing, hell is also a proud we we husband, father and grandfathero huand,l dempsey, will you remain grateful for the sacrifices that you and your family have made over the years, for the devotion of your beloved wife and the military service for of your daughters and your son.ice o it is the tradition at the beginning of your testimony wil welcome the introducing of your family and friends that may beng with you th

the senate armed services committee is chaired by michigan senator, carl levin. this is two hours. >> good morning, everybody. the committee meets this money to consider nominations of three outstanding military officers for positions of leadership and command among the most important in the department of defense. our witnesses today are admiral cmb winnefeld come u.s.a. to be vice chairman of the joint chiefs of staff. general raymond odierno to be chief of staff of the united states army and general william fraser the third u.s. air force to be commander of the united states transportation command. we thank each of you for many decades of dedicated service and your willingness to continue that service to these positions of great responsibility and challenge. emma may also extend on behalf of the committee are thanks to your families who support has been so important to the success do you have and his support for you makes a difference for the nation of flow. as is a tradition that we particularly enjoyed, we would invite each of you to introduce any family memb