mr. hunter: yes. mr. berman: while the gentleman has broken the podium, his amendment does not break the task force. it improves it. the secretary of defense should be a member of that task force. this amendment essentially establishes that rather than leave it to the secretary of state's discretion. that's fine with me. i support the amendment and urge its adoption and yield -- i thank the gentleman for yielding and yield back. mr. hunter: thank you, mr. chairman. i yield back the balance of my time. the chair: the gentleman yields back. the question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman from california. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. the amendment is fwred to. -- agreed to. it is now in order to consider amendment number 5 printed in part c of house report 111-143. for what purpose does the gentleman from new york rise? mr. nadler: mr. speaker, i have an amendment at the desk made in order by the rule. the chair: the clerk will designate

mr. hunter. the chair: the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. hunter: i thank the ranking member and i'd like to associate i myself with the chairman's remarks on this issue. i think i'm the only one on the floor here who's actually served in afghanistan. i served twice in iraq as a united states marine and i would have to respectfully oppose this amendment. and the reason is this. the best exit strategy is to actually win. that's the best exit strategy. to go in there, win the fight, kill out al qaeda, kill taliban, have the state department work with the local afghan people, then we can leave after we have success over there. that's how we won in iraq. we won in iraq once we stopped worrying about losing. we had the surge, and now we're successful in iraq. that's what we need in afghanistan. the way that we're going to lose afghanistan is if we start focusing on how we're going to pull out successfully. well, we need to do is win, win hard and win strong and then we can all come home. i'd have to -- mr. mckeon: i yield the gentleman 30 seconds.

mr. hunter. mr. hunter: if you release the names of these foreign special operators at whisc, you are literally encouraging their murder. the men and women fighting for justice in central and south america, if you rye lease those names, they -- release those names, they will have their attempted murder. mr. mcgov: -- mr. mcgovern: would the gentleman yield? that's not true. the chair: the gentleman's time has expired. all time has expired. the question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman from massachusetts, mr. mcgovern. so many as are in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. the amendment -- mr. mckeon: i ask for the yeas and nays. recorded vote. the chair: the gentleman asks for a recorded vote. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20 , further proceedings on the amendment offered by the gentleman from massachusetts will be postponed. for what purpose does the gentleman from missouri rise? mr. skelton: mursuent -- pursuant to h.res. 572, i offer amendments

mr. hunter of california for three minutes. if he would need it, two minutes if not. mr. hunter: two minutes will be great. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. hunter: first, let me say this. i've served in iraq two times as a united states marine and i've served in afghanistan once. i was over there in 2007. i was fighting and word came across from here in the states in october of 2007 that said several hundred state department employees express thared resentment over a policy that could force them to serve in iraq where they might lose -- or they might lose their jobs. they actually called going over to iraq and afghanistan a potential death sentence. so these are state department employees, diplomats, the same ones we're asking to go to pakistan and afghanistan, which is arguably the most dangerous area right now in the entire world, we're asking them to go over the exact same people called going over to iraq a potential death sentence. i would equate this to sending diplomats to katrina-destroyed new orleans in 2005 instead of the

mr. hunter from california. as a proud father of a united states sold year for -- sold year and make sure we don't compromise our troops' needs. health care has been my life working in rehabilitation and got involved in public service after being frustrated by the federal regulations and the health care system that was increasing costs and making the health care system more challenging. and that's the federal system. we are blessed in this class, this republican freshmen class in terms of tremendous health care experience that we have. and i think we have a lot to offer to this debate, hopefully we will have opportunity to engage in that debate a little more than what we have in past as issues have come before this body. you know, health care is a three-legged stool. it is about access and that's what we hear about today, talking about the uninsured, but access, affordability and quality. and i believe we have the best health care system in the world. i'm not saying it's not perfect and there aren't opportunitie

mr. hunter. mrs. romer is going to be allowed to leave the committee under our arrangement of getting here here today. then we will hear from our second panel. mr. scott? >> i wanted to follow-up on the

mr. hunter and his, and his maple sugaring family, and how he speaks of the land and the importance of the land and the generations of his family, right on, right on. thank you. thank you very much. >> could this soundman pick that up because i won't be able to repeat that. the essence was that you will be a native of new hampshire, fine the stories i told to be accurate. >> yes. >> i will tell you one additional story in addition to his story in new hampshire, those of you who read "blue highways" and i will make this quick. there's a woman whom i met in 1978 on the "blue highways" trip and she was a delightful historian and she appears in the book with a photograph. she introduced me to more people in the village. when the book came out, "blue highways," four years later people started coming up to her door and knocking on her porch. i didn't mean to do that to her. it never crossed my mind that more than three or 400 people might read this book so that was a surprise, but the upshot was that she recently had an operation for cancer of some sort and she was in recovery doing well, but he

mr. hunter and his maple sugaring family and how he speaks of of the land and and the importance of the land in. the family and the highway -- ride on. thank you very much. >> i hope the sound pick that up because i won't be able to hear it. the essence was then you being a native of new hampshire find in new hampshire stories i told it to be accurate. there will tell you one additional story, in addition is new hampshire those two red and blue highways so i'll make this quick -- there is a woman called maryann whom i met in 1970 on the blue highways to the issue is a delightful historian. she appears in the book in a photograph and much of her story is there, she introduced me to more people in a village in new hampshire on a lake. when the book about four years later people started coming up to her door and knocking on her porch. and did not mean to do that to her and it never crossed my mind that more than three or 400 people might read this book. so that was a surprise, but the upshot was she recently had an operation for cancer of some sort and she was in recovery doing well, but her me