graves:, madam speaker. with that -- thank you, madam speaker. with that i would urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan piece of legislation and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 2258, as amended. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 having responded in the affirmative -- mr. graves: i ask for the yeas and nays, madam speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the yeas and nays are requested. all those in favor of taking this vote by the yeas and nays will rise and remain standing until counted. a sufficient number having arisen, the yeas and nays are ordered. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this uestion will be postponed. for what purpose does the gentleman from california, mr. hunter, seek recognition? mr. hunter: madam speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass h.r. 1726. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: union

thank you, madam president. i yield the floor. mr. burr: madam president. the presiding officer: morning business is closed. under the previous order, the senate will proceed to executive session to consider the following nomination which the clerk will report. the clerk: nomination, department of homeland security, brock long of north carolina to be administrator for the federal emergency management agency. the presiding officer: under the previous order, there will be 30 minutes of debate on the nomination, equally divided in the usual form. mr. burr: madam president. the presiding officer: the senator from north carolina. mr. burr: madam president, i rise today in strong support of william b. brock long as the administrator of the federal emergency management agency, and i might add that supposedly in 12 minutes we were going to vote on his confirmation, and unfortunately because of this unbelievable weather throughout the country, we have got members that can't make it back in, so this will roll until 11:00 tomorrow. but brock's a fellow north carolinia

president, madam president, maybe it's not too late. maybe the leader, maybe some of his colleagues on the other side of the aisle will say as much as they might disagree with the a.c.a. to have a process in the dark of night is wrong, we would welcome a discussion. that's why we wrote the leader and asked him to have a session, a session in the old senate chamber where democrats and republicans without press, without anything else could talk to each other. maybe he'll reconsider his rejection of that. so i'd ask the -- i'd make a few parliamentary inquiries. first, is the chair aware of the number of consecutive days in session and the number of hours that the senate considered h.r. 3590, the patient protection and affordable care act? the presiding officer: the secretary of the senate's office notes that h.r. 3590 was considered on each of 25 consecutive days of session and the senate library estimates approximately 169 hours in total consideration. mr. schumer: 25 days of consecutive session on a bill that was partisan in the sense t

madam president, with that i yield the floor. >> madam president? >> senator from california. >> madam president, i rise to speak on health care, but i'd like to ask unanimous consent that i be able to conclude my remarks prior to going intois executive session. >> is there objection? without objection. >> thank you very much. madam president, i rise today to speak against the republican effort, what it appears to be thus far, to repeal the affordable care act and the process they are using to do it. i have just got to say this is the least transparent process for a major piece of legislation i have seen in my 24 years in the senate. former senate historian don ritchie said that you have torl look back before world war i to find another example of such a secret partisan process for passing a major bill here they send it health care bill in fact, is being written behind closed doors. there's no draft for public review, no democratic senator has seen the bill. republican senators all say they haven't seen the bill either. when republican senators are

>> thank you, madam sect ter, for your time. last month the department of transportation approved $647 million of federal grant range during the last previous administration and the grant requires the state match the officials -- requires that a state match that officials have indicated will come from proposition 1a, approved by voters for california's high-speed rail project. with the use of those funds, it's being challenged in court. if the funds do not become available, what happens to the federal grant and california speed rail is very unlikely to secure private funding. do you have any confidence in them being able to match the prop 1a funds going forward? >> that is actually a concern that cal trans needs to consider very carefully themselves. the timing of this particular contract was very sensitive. it was signed off on january 17th of 2017, three days before the end of the previous administration. however, there's a process by which that goes up to the congress for 30 days. disputes or rebuttals or challenges can occur

>> thank you, madam speaker. in the wake of the financial crisis, 7.8 million american consumers lost their homes through foreclosure. the failure to have a responsibility regulatory environment also resulted in taxpayers paying $7 trillion to bail out financial institutions through loans and according to some reports, an additional $22 trillion through the federal government's purchase of assets . my home state of new jersey was severely impacted by this crisis and is still feeling the effects, so thrs personal. mrs. watson coleman: this bill guts many of the commonsense protections outlined in the dodd-frank and severely restrict the consumer finance protections bureau from doing its job. the wrong choice act gives wall street a hand while ignoring the needs of hardworking americans. it will allow predatory lending practices to go unchecked and those on wall street to skirt consequences. wall street reform and other reforms have given our consumers the strongest protections in history. i will continue to stand

lowey: that leaves a question, madam secretary. so think about it while i ask another question because i'm really surprised that you wouldn't say, of course, congresswoman, you know me. i'll respond whether it's a democrat or a republican. one more chance. secretary chao: it's always been my history. i've always done it that way. but there is precedent that if the administration has oversight -- if the ministration does have the previous practice of conducting answers to certain oversight questions in a certain way. mrs. lowey: let me just say i'll get on to another substantive question because the chairman is being very onruss with me you don't have to agree with me. you don't have to agree with my distinguished colleagues. and we could have healthy debates because that's what congress is all about. but i am really shocked that you wouldn't just say, of course i'll respond whether it's a democrat or a republican or a citizen. so i'll go on to the next question. and i would like to follow-up on mr. price's infrastructure plan quest

schumer: madam president, i heard what the leader had to say. i think anyone who observes the reconciliation process knows it's not a robust process. there are ways to correct that. and certainly we have our differences pretty much on partisan lines between repealing a.c.a. or rather amending it and making it better. but what we ought to be doing is discussing it with one another.

[inaudible] >> thank you, madam. mr. young. >> thank you, mr. -- >> have to be at built less lenient than we were with the chairman and ranking member. >> you just took five second -- >> you can have those. we have not started the clock yet. >> that's right. for being so nice i'll give you five minutes and five second. >> woo. thank you. secretary chao, thank you fog being here today and thank you for your past public service and other departments and what you're doing today. always admired you bipartisan approach, fair approach to your role in leadership and administrations so thank you for that. i want to ask about -- talk about infrastructure. you talked about in your statement you say our transportation frustration -- infrastructure is aging and we can all agree to that. we need a focused approach to address the problem. think we also need other focused approach to address new advancements in transportation, new technologies, new vehicles, when it comes to taking a look at what an infrastructure looks like when you h

madam president, i yield back. speed hearing that the senate will vote on the new version by the end of the month. the american people are still in the dark about this bill. there is no text, there is no legislative analysis of the bi bill. much of the senate is in the dark about how much costs are going to rise and pre-existing insura used against them by insurance companies. if that's all you've got right p now is a vote on the massive proposal affecting the lives of virtually all people is the casa of a. they do their part and make sure the voices are heard on an issud that is so vital to our people and families. if and when the bill hits the floor it is going to go veryew quickly. this afternoon i want to be perfect with a few key points for those across the country to remember. the healthcare plan is going to raise the cost for the typical american. if you are an older person nearing retirement, this divided 58, 61 you are going to get hammered within h. tax and be forced to pay several times as much as a youn

madam secretary, welcome. the current extension of the faa set to expire the end of september, i'm hopeful that we we're going to have a bipartisan and a long-term reauthorizationn bill ready to go in the coming weeks. and what i had expressed my preference to you just a few minutes ago, a bill summer in the range of five years to give you certainty over time that you have the authorization with which you need to execute the executive branch of government. i remind our committee that we passed this one year extension with a lot of substantive stuff in it. 95 to three in the senate. and at the time the chairman and i focus on areas of agreement. this resulted in legislation that addressed the safe integration of drones in the national airspace, significant reforms to the faa certification process, and broad ranging aviation consumer issues. this was a win for aviation stakeholders as well as the traveling public, which was reflected in that overwhelming vote. now, any further progress on that bill was thwarted

thank you, madam president. a senator: madam president. the presiding officer: the senator from rhode island. mr. whitehouse: madam president, may i ask unanimous consent that any pending quorum call be lifted. the presiding officer: we are not in a quorum call. and the senator is recognized. mr. whitehouse: thank you. madam president, i would ask unanimous consent that -- i understand that senator mccain is potentially coming to the floor. i will yield to him as the chairman of the armed services committee if he appears, and i'd ask unanimous consent that the remainder of my remarks be connected in the record to this first part of my remarks should that transpire. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. whitehouse: thank you. madam president, the united states of america has suffered an unprecedented intrusion into our american presidential elections. in january, our intelligence agencies disclosed that agents of russia on the orders of president vladimir putin engaged in a massive election influence campaign throughout 2016. this e

. >> madam president, madam president of the council, distinguished members. when i addressed the paris conference in november of '15, i saw the world united around the simple goal to hand over to future generations a healthier planet, more stable societies and more prosperous and modern economies. thanks to the negotiations, i think in particular to the chief conversation of the european union, my good friend a historic deal was made. they can save the one and only home. doing justice to its traditional name, gifts from god, the marshall islands took action becoming one of the first to ratify the paris green light. here is a fact. every morning international date lines begin at the marshall islands. and the president, we work to help your country continue to mark the beginning of our days. we will not allow the denial of the very few to be the end of the days of the marshall islands. sth is more than the he haven't. it's a signing that is a sign of the fate of our planet. we're disappointed and we regret that decision. but the decision by the u.s. administrat

madam president, mr. mueller represents the best of public service. he will pursue this investigation without regard to politics or pressure of any kind, and that's exactly what america needs. the chorus of extreme commentators and media personalities who seek to curry favor with the president by trying to tear down in man of great integrity are only heaping dishonor on themselves. worse yet, they're trying to discredit our most important democratic institution, the rule of law. these critics know mr. mueller is a straight arrow and many of them said as much when he was appointed. but because he's in a position to examine the president's actions and perhaps take action, they're attacking his character. this is not, my colleagues -- this is not a political game. this is a very serious investigation about foreign interference in our elections, something that eats at, that corrodes the roots of our democracy, the very well-spring and -- the very wellstring and being and pride of our nation. the man leading this investigation ought to be trusted by the am

thank you for coming to talk to as madam president. -- us madam president. climate change skeptics in the u.k. also threaten european global protection. the british elections delivered a disastrous result. mrs. may battles on. she has appointed a new environment secretary, mr. michael gove. he has a shocking record. he wanted to get climate change off school curriculums. he voted to sell off all of england's publicly owned forests and woodlands. he is voted 12 times against measures to event climate change including opposing limits on greenhouse gas emissions. he supports fracking and drilling in national parks. he opposed refitting homes for carbon locks. to quote a past colleague of this house, caroline lucas,," michael gove is an environmental disaster waiting to happen." he stated he had had enough of experts. frankly the public has had enough of him. just as a president trump. colleagues please be tough during the brexit negotiations when it comes to the environment. as you will be with mr. trump. climate deniers like gove need to know they have interna

madam speaker, violence is violence. when it's here and it's political, of course it is particularly jarring. but tragically, we may be growing used to the idea of terror abroad. although its root causes are different than those domestic political attacks here on our own shores, the same thing is at stake. the very principles of civilization itself. madam speaker, let me digress for a moment because this is particularly notable. after 9/11, crime all but vanished from the streets of new york city. in other words, the shock and horror caused the community to rally together above any discord in a spirit of true unity. and we glimpse that solidarity when osama bin laden was finally confronted. and just recently, a day after the terror attacks that rocked patrona few weeks ago, a in a restaurant that had been invaded, he calmly returned to pay his bill. and explaining his generosity, he told a reporter, quote, these people shouldn't win. the night before, several bartenders had risked their lives to defend patriot rons in th

hirono: madam president, i note the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: quorum call: mr. schumer: madam president? the presiding officer: the democratic leader. mr. schumer: i ask unanimous consent that the quorum be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. schumer: madam president, i'd like to address the hearings that just concluded a few hours ago. now, after hearing mr. comey's testimony today, america is stunned. the cloud hanging over this administration has just gotten a whole lot darker. i want to commend both the chairman, senator burr, and the vice chairman, senator warner, for the way they ran this hearing. the senate and the american people are better informed as a result of their work. few committee hearings in the history of the senate have produced the kind of eye-opening testimony that we heard today. in its wake i'd like to make a few points. first, for weeks media reports indicated that the president had directly and indirectly pressured the f.b.i. dir

chairman and madam secretary. it's always good to see you and appreciate all you are doing here. i want to start before i ask a few specific questions and add my comments to what i think is incredibly important for my state and important for others. we have more essential air service airports in the country. and i know you've responded to several questions but it goes back to the privatization of air traffic control and your opening comments talk about the privatization that would actually help the airport if i get your testimony right thing will be able to preserve the contract covers and some of the airports and there won't be movement away from the airports or the larger regional airports. but it just seems inconsistent. we're moving to the privatized system and it's basically run by the airlines who are profit-making entities. the reason they don't serve is because they don't make money. the economics don't work although they are essential for the other public purpose reasons. how do you square that away if th

schumer: thank you, madam president. madam president, we're only a little more than a week away from having to vote on a secret republican health care bill. according to the timelines given by the majority leader to the press. just one week away from voting on legislation that will reorder one-sixth of our economy and impact every single american in this country, and not a soul in america has seen it. i have never seen a more radical or reckless legislative process

we will fight this bill will fall we have.ic leade i yield the floor. >> madam president every year so appalled and that is the word of the process going on with health care. into effect 1/6 of the nation's economy with millions of americans willaf whole structure of the health care system of doctors and nurses to go behind such closed doors m without legislative practice since i have been here in the house and the senate. our colleagues when aca came up talked-about field processing and read the bill. will so unless we change reconciliation then amendments with something as important as this and with all due respect is a joke. what happened when we were in charge from democrats and republicans, the hearings as the senate finance committee had on this bill? nine. of the house bill and the markup of eight days on the d republicans said -- and the public inside with their bill is ready? i doubt it. 130.ess. all of committee process thing goes to the health committee. with the round tables and walkers they consider 300 amendments during that 13 day marked up one of the longest in history

madam president, i yield. the presiding officer: under the previous order, the senate will proceed to executive session for consideration of the following nomination, which the clerk will report. the clerk: nomination, department of defense. kekenneth p. ran with a know of virginia to be an assistant secretary. the presiding officer: under the previous order, there will be 0 minutes of debate on the nomination equally divided in the usual form. mr. nelson: madam president? the presiding officer: the senator from florida. mr. nelson: madam president, i will not be addressing the matter before us because i have just come from orlando, where so many are feeling such deep, deep sorrow today, it being the one one-year anniversary since the trunnellic attack on -- since the tragic attack on the pulse nightclub in orlando. and the history of that early morning -- that still remains so fresh for so many, especially those hundreds and hundreds of people that gathered at the pulse nightclub this morning on the occasion

thank you, madam president. i yield the floor. i yield the floor. mr. leahy: madam president. the presiding officer: the senator from vermont. mr. leahy: madam president, i thank the distinguished democratic leader for his comments. and i ascribe to them. madam president, another issue, on june 16, in a campaign-style speech glorifying the failed bay of pigs invasion of cuba in 1961, president trump spoke of freedom and democracy for the cuban people. now, those are goals every one of us in this body share. not only for the people of cuba but for people everywhere. but the hypocrisy of the president's remarks in new hampshire where he announces his decision to roll back engagement between the united states of america and cuba is glaring. if not surprising. this is a president who has praised and offered aid and weapons to some of the world's most brutal investments, a president who when he was in saudi arabia never uttered the words freedom or democracy or women's rights. in fact, he say he did not believe in lecturing of the deposits about such things. freedom house ranks sau

thank you, madam secretary. if a private school or charter school gets federal aid, they have to follow all the laws regarding discrimination. is that correct betsy devos:? that's correct. senator merkley: i want to be absolutely clear about what you are saying. are you saying if you have a private school because private schools generally set their own admission policies, that they will not be allowed under your program to discriminate against lgbtq students? betsy devos: senator, i said it before and i will say it again. schools that receive federal funds must follow federal law. sen. merkley: and i just said federal law is foggy. so with your understanding of federal law, will this be allowed? betsy devos: on areas where the law is unsettled, this department is not going to be issuing decrees. sen. merkley: will you please just answer the question. is discrimination going to be allowed or not allowed? under your understanding? betsy devos: on areas of unsettled law -- sen. merkley: i say this is such an area?

thank you madam secretary. with the rounds alternating sides. i want to thank the subcommittee. we are pretty strict here to keep the timeline and i get a lot of help from the subcommittee chairman in doing so. with that, madam secretary, as i mentioned in my opening remarks, i have drawn a very bright line to my opposition to the air-traffic control system to what is in essence a corporate monopoly. it is same in a play that will remain a monopoly come the question is, who will run it. i am open to other ways of investmentsions and and i welcome your suggestions on how i could do my job or our job better. we are always subject to doing a better job the problem though is that i am concerned that the proposal would reduce or eliminate, frankly, the public's voice and something as critical as our national air traffic control. while i am open and i have for decades been open to privatization in competition, this is not privatization. it is a monopoly that will remain a monopoly except that all of the assets that h

in part because i think of madam president ellen johnson sirleaf. she had some huge missteps at the beginning. in the beginning of the ebola epidemic. she and the rest of the country were in denial. she did not want her foreign investors and people who were looking to develop liberia to think. >> finishing of the airlines coming? >> yes and she was, she did not do well the first few months but then eventually she got sense knocked into her and she spun into high gear. at that point she got the whole country. the country in many ways pushed her. in large part, i think it is because she had a letter free speech and a lot of criticism of her on the airways. >> what was a community that she quarantined? >> that was a figure. there's a right after that. it was just one thing after the other. but eventually liberia and madam president that their act together and at that point the country did extraordinarily well getting itself out of it. >> i remember when she approached in your both and i remember when she approached president obama. it was one of his in

thank you, madam secretary. following along a similar line of questioning that senator murphy engaged in, is it the proposal that these for-profit elementary schools either -- or non-for-profit, must take all children that apply? is that a requirement? sec. devos: the -- i'm sorry, sir, the for-profit elementary schools? sen. reid: you have a parent that wants to go to a particular school, a for-profit school, not-for-profit school, public school, would that school be required to take the student? sec. devos: are these schools receiving federal funds? sen. reid: you're proposing a voucher system. sec. devos: i'm just trying to understand the hypothetical question. if there are schools that are receiving federal funds, they need to follow federal law. sen. reid: so a private for-profit school would have to take a disabled student. they couldn't reject anyone who showed up with a voucher. sec. devos: any school that is receiving federal funds has to follow federal law, period. sen. reid: but what does that mean? s

madam president, i yield back the balance of my time. a senator: madam president? the presiding officer: the senator from maryland. mr. cardin: madam president, first i want to thank senator markey for his comments. i share his concerns. i agree with what he has said, the risk factors of the bill that was announced this morning by the republican leader, what it could do to millions of people around this country, what it will do for coverage for hundreds of thousands of people in my state of maryland who will lose coverage, and just about every marylander whose health care will be impacted if this bill were to become law. but i want to start, madam president, by saying i think this is a shameful moment for the united states senate. the senate which traditions have made it be known as the most deliberative body in the world, the senate which has been known as a body that allows for robust debate and benefits from the views of all 100 members, that each of us have opportunities to get our voices heard, that tradition has been badly damaged by what the majority leader

thank you, madam secretary. thank you, mr. chairman. >> thank you, senator alexander. i think we will have after we are done with this first round, a chance for a second round of questions, if anybody has more questions and want to be sure and stay for that. we are going by order of attendance. so senator schatz is next. >> thank you, mr. chairman. madam secretary, thank you for being here. as you know, the budget calls for $9 billion in cuts to the department of education. a point of clarification. is this your budget, an omb or a usdoe budget? this is your budget? >> this is our budget working in concert with omb. >> in the budget in several places it states that the programs that are cut to the tune of $9 billion could be supported by, quote, other federal, state, local, and private sources. this is contrary to the evidence. as you likely know, state funding for education has been declining at all levels. state, county and city. i know you know that there is not private foundation money to the tune of $9 bill

schumer: thank you, madam president. madam president, we're only a little more than a week away from having to vote on a secret republican health care bill. according to the timelines given by the majority leader to the press. just one week away from voting on legislation that will reorder one-sixth of our economy and impact every single american in this country, and not a soul in america has seen it. i have never seen a more radical or reckless legislative process in my time in politics. write the bill in secret, discuss it in secret, send it to c.b.o. in secret, and then rush it to the floor with no committee hearings, no amendments and just ten hours of debate for the minority. that's not how america ever got big things done. that's not how we do big things like health care here in the senate. that's hardly how we do small things. and my republican friends, they know it. republican bill cassidy, louisiana, said i have always said i would have preferred a more open process. republican senator murkowski from alaska said

thank you madam chair. >> thank you. well we've finished the first round of questions and i have just two quick questions. so we'll begin a second round, shun take all that long. but secretary clayton -- i keep calling your circumstansecretarn clayton. i'm sorry. i was on the conference committee for the dodd frank bill. much of the discussion during that time was around the dark spaces or the lack of transparentsy in terms of trading, in terms of the platforms and where the plat forms are and whose controlling those. that's about aztec call as i can get on that. can you tell me where you see nine years later the transpatternsy factor has been improved and how it differs from where it was during those times? >> that's a broad question. >> yes, it is. >> i do believe that the reforms and bringing certain trading within clearinghouses has significantly increased transparency, as i've discussed with you and with others, and as chairman gene carlo noted our markets are consistently evolving. some of the transparency issues w

chairman, and madam secretary. i want to say at the outset, to thank you for the year-round pell initiatives. i think that, in a state like west virginia, will have great meaning and certainly around the country. i do have to express some frustration. i'm trying to touch in a very specific situation at west virginia state university regarding the upward bound program. upward bound has functioned on the campus of west virginia state university, which is the institute of west virginia for , 50 years. sen. capito: unbeknownst to them, they got knocked out of the program. they had an error on their worksheet, not even on their actual application. $104 over the maximum. so $104 on a worksheet has ruined a 50-year relationship. i have co-signed to letters with -- letters with my colleagues two here in the senate because other upward bound programs are experiencing this great frustration. last week, you testified in the house that you would have a willingness to review these rejected applications. and i am asking you for

thank you, madam chairman. >> thank you. senator franken. >> thank you, madam chair. welcome back to the committee. secretary perry, i don't envy your position. you seem to be a defense counsel for someone charged with murder and you seem to be saying i know he's guilty, but i'm going to give him a robust defense. so you're doing a great job. >> [ inaudible ]. >> two days ago, the american innovation counsel, a group of ten current and retired corporate leaders, including norman augustine, former ceo of lockheed martin and bill gates released a report about the importance of federal investment in energy search and development. the group recommends vastly increased funding for arpa-e, from 300 million to a billion dollars a year and increasing federal investment for advanced energy innovation to two and a half times the total amount for the energy research proposed in your budget. secretary perry, the paparaz -- president's budget is anti-innovation and does the exact opposite of what the innovation council recommends and it absolutely guts private investment and resea

thank you, madam chair. >> senator lankford. >> thank you. chairman pai, appreciate all of you being here as well it today. tell me a little bit about the lifeline and process you going to right now. i know there's review on lifeline. we have -- the spin expansion of that over the past several years. still a concern about fraud. and want to be able to make sure that taxpayer dollars are used correctly and wisely. where are you on that right now? >> thanks for the question i've been consistent in saying our top priority at the fcc is closing the digital divide and i think the lifeline program is an important part of the equation in terms of closing that divide. one of the things we've looked at is the way to make sure that every single dollar which is after all i taxpayer dollars are spent in the lifeline program goes to somebody that needs the help. we want to make sure the lifeline program is directed towards needy consumers to make sure that any of the fraud in the system is investigating and rooted out. we are in the process of determining

. >> thank you madam chair. this morning we are reviewing the president's proposed budge for theent did of the interior. overall, the bumming is proposing to cut underiffing by $1.8 billion, a 1% decrease from current fiscal year funding. this budget would be devastating to national parks, wildlife refuse ooej ujs and other lands and betrays the responsibility to native tribes. the budget gives us a clear indication of president trump and secretary zinke's priorities. these interests put priorities on on shore and off shore development and cut canning fund for other priorities. just one year after our national park centennial, this budget would cut 400 million from the the park service budget with. it would result in cutting more than a thousand full time employees. according to the department the's own math, quote nearly 90% of the parks would reduce their current staffing levels, leading to reduction of the public services to the public, end quote. secretary stink's proposal also object secures the fact it is

thank you madam chair. >> thank you, senator king. we'll have an opportunity for another round of questions. i wanted to ask you secretary perry about the office of indian energy this provides assistance with energy development, capacity building cost reductions for tribes and alaska natives. this is a tough area to cut in my view. we have a situation in alaska, we have half the tribes in the country and a lot of opportunities in the energy space when it comes to our native people. we have doubled the staffing in the office of indian energy in alaska. we now have two doe folks, two permanent folks in the states. he promised that we might be able to see as many as three. we are up to two. but the reality is that we have had lack of attitude and consistent d.o.e. staffing within our state. and i am no the going to suggest to you you need to be on a hiring spree here, but i do want to make sure, again, that our needs are met. so office of indian energy in my view is one of those areas where you have high need and important priority. we n

thank you, madam chair. >> mr. scott. >> thank you, madam chair. admiral, it is a long way from auburn university. >> we are eagles, sir. >> i hope you never lose a war or win a ball game. i am a university of georgia graduate. >> oh. i have a brother who went to the university of georgia and sister-in-law. >> good man. >> misguided individuals. i love them. >> was he the one that bit the auburn player? all kidding aside, thank you for your service. and we talk a lot about how fast technology changes. in the acquisition process being a problem throughout the department. i would like to hear your comments on the personnel. again, you speak to this in you comments. you know, when you get the young man, the young woman out there that's the best and the brightest, their opportunities in the private sector versus their opportunities in the public sector under your command, the challenges there, and the issue of, you know, what percentage of your personnel are civilian versus uniform? >> roughly we are about 80% military. about 20% civilian. that's kind

king: thank you, madam chairman. mr. secretary, i don't envy you today because you've been sent up here to defend the indefensible. this budget is perhaps the worst budget for any agency that i've in 12 years in public life. in terms of corresponding to national priorities. it's amazing. you made a statement in your opening statement, when you first appeared before this committee in your confirmation hearing, you said it when -- when it comes to climate change, i'm committed to making decisions based on sound science that also take into account the economic impact. this is not a sound science budget, mr. secretary. thanks nonscience budget. you're cutting the very areas where the science, which we need to make good policy decisions, is going to be examined. earlier today you said the u.s., this was a direct quote, the u.s. is the leader in clean energy technology and we are committed to this mission. the budget doesn't say that. arpa-e, 93% essentially eliminated. you're even cutting the energy information agency 3.5%. w

madam secretary, i'm glad you're here, i look forward to hearing your testimony. ms. devos: thank you. chairman cochran, ranking member leahy, chairman blunt, ranking member murray and members of the subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity to testify on the administration's fiscal year 2018 budget proposal. i look forward to talk about how we can work together to improve educational opportunities and outcomes for all students while also refocusing the federal role in education. today's hearing is meant to focus on the numbers and mechanics of the budget but i hope we'll all remember our goal and shared purpose -- how to best serb america's students. during my house appropriations subcommittee hearing, i relayed the story of one of those students a young man named michael who grew up in east hartford, connecticut. michael in his own words described to me what life was like for him in high school. i quoted him last month and i will quote him again because his words are worth repeating he said his assigned high school was, and i quote, nothing more than adult day car

madam chairman. >> senator danes? >> chairman caputo, ranking member coons, thank you very much and congratulations, senator caputo, it's an honor to call you chairwoman caputo. >> thank you. >> i want to thank the chairman and commissioners for coming out today to testify. as the commission is well aware, montana is a rural state. there's a rural tone to today's hearing. and when you're from an urban area, you can take connectivity for granted. we do not take connectivity for granted in a rural state like montana. i look at some maps that the commission has put out, you see gaping holes across the west. this is not only a barrier for businesses, for individuals, it's been talked about as a public safety issue. and as commissioner clyburn stated, the maps don't even reflect the actual coverage in many areas. i spent a lot of time, i pick up tens of thousands of miles driving around montana in montana we don't measure times in terms of oil changes, it's tire changes, around the state. we see areas where it's, there's n