national interest requires us to reject any notion of the shrinkage of -- i would like to address mr. hagen specifically and have him explain. >> this is directly involved with the foreign office. that means that we have to maintain or extend their influence in multi-lateral bodies, with deliberations and the g-20 or the security council of the un or whatever it may be. and bilateral relationships as well. indeed, one of the reasons for the objectives is for bilateral relations. the importance of those are elevated by the development of new measures of alliances and friendships in the world. take for example, turkey. there was a diplomatic attention in the first 10 months of government. it opened dozens of new embassies and consulates a strong bilateral engagement with turkey is necessary. and also a multilateral table. to do that effectively, you need that global diplomatic presence. it needs to be beefed up in some places. with the right combination of hard power and sought power in the world to be able to influence events around the world, that is the objective that i am sure it is right

hagen, boxer, franken, feinstein, and bingaman. >> i ask that be waived. >> without objection. >> i now withdrawal my motion to proceed. >> the senator has that right. >> mran american family sits in the kitchen at their table and sorts through their finances as they often do, partisan politics doesn't figure into that equation, and the families we represent calculate their own budgets. when they add up the cost of gas and groceries, tuition in some instances, and other necessities, they ware more about the bottom line than news headlines. when i family desperately counts the number of weeks before the unemployment insurance runs out, that family doesn't have time to keep track of the political points during the given week. that's because when you have to make the tough decisions on any budget, the decisions are practice call, not political. they are realist realistic, not ideological. we have to be as responsible as the american people. as their representatives, we absolutely must be sympathetic to the challenges outside this chamber, and we need to come quickly to a resolution that benefits them. we must be just as mindful not to waste their time. regre