mr. duffy, is recognized for three minutes. duff duff thank you, mr. chairman. -- mr. duffy: thank you, mr. chairman. thank you for the work you've put in on this consumer protection bill. this bill is about accountability and transparency. as have been discussed today, the cfpb is collecting information on a -- almost a billion credit cards, a billion credit cards, which means if you're an american and you have a credit card, the cfpb is collecting and monitoring your transactions. so what we've done is said, listen, if you are here to protect the consumer, why don't you ask the consumer for permission and consent to take their information? if we care about the american citizenry, if we care about consumers and don't care about big government and the information they have on us, let's give them the power. let's ask them. that's all we do. empower the american citizenry. again, let's empower congress and the american people as well. when we don't fund agencies through this institution, we lose authority. we lose oversight. let's take that power and control back into con

mr. walz of minnesota. mr. been check of michigan, mr. gibbs of ohio, mr. hunter of california, mr. miller of florida and mr. young of alaska all deserve credit for leadership on these important issues. mr. chairman, the house -- the committee is not in order. the chair: the gentleman is correct. the house will come to order -- the committee will come to order. the gentleman is recognized. mr. hastings: mr. chairman, this legislation ensures that america america's ability to fish and hunt will not be limited by the whim of federal bureaucrats. title 1 of this bill directly responds to bureaucratic threats posed by the e.p.a. in 1976, congress barred the environmental protection agency or e.p.a., from regulating firearms and ammunition. however, this has not stopped attempts to circumvent the law by claiming that while e.p.a. may not be able to regulate ammunition, it can regulate components of ammunition and fishing tackle. this would be a massive power grab by the e.p.a. despite legal authority. banning lead bullets and tackle would hinder sportsmen and cause economic harm to outdoor sportsmen and the recreation industry. this legislation ensures that the e.p.a. does not, does not, mr. chairman,

mr. mcclintock, is recognized. mr. mcclintock: mr. chairman, i'm pleased to yield the balance of our time to the gentleman from california, mr. nunes. the chair: the gentleman from california is recognized for 3 1/2 minutes. mr. nunes: thank you, mr. chairman. i want to reiterate what mr. mcclintock said. this is designed to kill the bill. this is a sneaky little lawyer amendment designed for litigation. this bill, the valadao bill, stops all litigation and gives bang the people of california -- back the people of california their water and it quits wasting water, that's what this does. i can understand why my friends on the other side of the aisle don't like to talk about the three-inch fish. i guess it has a little brain now. it's a bait fish, of course it has a brain. the folks you have to ask yourself about are the ones who come down here and talk about state preemptions when they know the endangered species act is a state preemption. they know what passed in 1992 was a state preemption. they know what passed in 2009 was a state preemption

mr. chairman. >> mr. conaway. >> thank you, mr. chairman. gentlemen, thank you for being here. talk little bit about china's intentions, the growing tension in their efforts in the south china sea and towards japan, all those neighbors, vietnam, brunei, the philippines. why are they doing it? do we have the any idea as to what might come if with some sort of trigger event that occurred, ships running together, playing turning into china, some sort of interference that looks like an act of war. why is china precipitating these kinds of tensions in that area? and why don't you talk to us about -- >> china sees itself as a global player as well, and they feel they have historical, as unreasonable as it may seem to us, but in their mind, historical claims towards the nine dash line in the south china sea and over these islands. they have great concerns about our pivot which in their mind represents an attempt to contain, contain them. so they have been quite aggressive about asserting what they believe is their manifest destiny if you will, in that part of the world. and so it does

mr. chairman, i yield back. thank you. >> thank you, mr. yoho. we go now to mr. ollins of georgia. >> thank you, mr. chairman, i appreciate the opportunity. thanks for answering a multitude of questions today. i want to turn back a little bit about what was asked earlier about the elections. and really from serving in iraq back in '08 as my colleague has as well, the understanding the relationship between sunni and shia is something that, i think there's a huge mistrust that goes back generations. this is multiple issues there. and it looks like the current government has done little to relate with that or work on that relationship. talking about al-qaeda in iraq, increasingly building the alliances with sunni tribal leaders and has adjusted his message in 2013 to try and earn more sunni political support. how would that translate into the next round of iraq elections? can we really see a move from shia to sunni, and what does that mean for the region? answer that, and we'll talk about iran's possible influence there as well. just speak to the elections at this po

mr. chairman. >> chair recognizes the gentleman from utah, mr. chaffetz. >> thank you, mr. chairman, and thank you and congratulations, mr. secretary. i look forward to working with you. >> thank you. >> i think you properly pointed out in your testimony that people are your greatests a set. -- greatest asset. one of the lawyers of concern that i have is how do we do background checks on the personnel. the overwhelming majority of people are good quality people. i do have questions and concerns, as i highlighted in a letter more than two weeks ago, about your current chief of staff, mr. christian marone. when and where did you first meet him? >> first of all, i have your letter. you asked that i respond by the 26th, which is today, and i will be responding today. >> thank you. >> in a timely fashion. i first met mr. marone in early 2009 at the department of defense -- >> dud, was there a -- did, was there a background check conducted on mr. marone before the appointment you made to his being chief of staff? >> you mean chief of staff for dhs. >> yes. >> yes, to the best of m

mr. chairman, mr. speaker, i continue to reserve. ir: the gentleman from maryland reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from oklahoma is recognized. mr. lankford: mr. chairman, i want to make a few brief comments. i yield myself such time as i may consume. i'd like to yield -- the chair: the gentleman from oklahoma is recognized. mr. lankford: i want to have the opportunity to be able to dialogue a little bit about some of the things we just heard about. things like judicial review. it is a belief of many people on this side of the aisle and the other side of the aisle that agencies are not infallible. he they do make mistakes at times. -- they do make mistakes at times. there are times an agency will make an estimate on a cost and it's let's say $90 million, just under the $100 million threshold. someone wants to challenge it and say how did do you the math on that? that you ended up just under the major rule threshold? there is a reason to be able to go back and evaluate some of these things and have the opportunity to go

mr. chairman, for calling this hearing. >> thank you, ms. ross slay ton. mr. deutsche of florida. >> thank mr. chairman and ranking member engle for holding this hearing. in the stability in the iraq government and the syria conflict, the number of al qaeda affiliated fighters in iraq has reached levels not seen since 2006. the off-shoot is now the primary perpetrator of violence. al qaeda disavowed the use of violence in syria for the use of tactics deemed to be too violent. al qaeda, one of the worst terrorist groups has disowned the group for being too extreme. an bar has turned the page from simply labeling this a spillover to a full-scale insurgence in iraq. particularly concerned for the 140,000 who fled their homes as rockets were indiscriminately fired and need for humanitarian aid. it's too great to ignore deputy assistant mcgurk. i hope you can shed the light on what level we'll provide to the iraqis and the comprehensive strategy for the threat. i yield back, mr. chairman. >> thank you mr. deutsche. now lastly we'll go to judge ted poe of texas chair

mr. chairman. >> through, mr. sec low. we appreciate that. recognize the choice chair of the committee. >> thank you, mr. chairman and thank you to the witnesses. this targeting issue is obviously very concerning. but understanding the government being what it is, understanding human nature, people are apartment to abuse their power. what's even more concerning for me is that once you have an admission of that, once you have somebody taking the fifth amendment, there's zero interest in rectifying any of this, in what the irs has done, what the fbi has done, the justice department, gri with the witnesses. this is a total sham and the american people aren't getting the answers. ms. engelbrecht, you mentioned in your statement but it bears repeating, you had 20 years in bids, zero issues with any agencies. you file for king street and true the vote for status and you're visited by how many different agencies? which ones? fbi. >> fbi, irs, bureau of alcohol tobacco and firearms. >> atf. >> osha. >> osha. >> and the texas branch of the epa. >> you

mr. lobiondo. mr. langevin. >> thank you, mr. chairman. hank you for keeping the american people safe and all the work you've done. director clapper, you've mentioned your opening statement and its referenced a couple times now, the important challenges of cybersecurity and the threat it poses to our national security. i will focus on not for a minute. here in the united states we have been working hard to create a cybersecurity framework that effectively defends the nation in particular, our critical infrastructure. is why we are arguably among the global leaders in this regard, clearly much more work needs to be done. director clapper, your statement references cybersecurity as an international problem and i completely agree. i certainly believe the united states has an opportunity to leverage its expertise into leading roles in efforts to come together to tackle this issue. director, can you describe for us the intelligence community's outreach to the international cyberspace community and what more can be done -- what more can we do to

mr. chairman, for calling this hearing. >> thank you, ms. ros-lehtinen. we'll go to mr. deutsche of florida. >> thank you, mr. chairman, and ranking member engel, for holding this extremely timely hearing. emboldened by the syrian conflict, the number of al-qaeda affiliated fighters in iraq has now reached levels not seen since 2006. al-qaeda in iraq's offshoot, the islamic state of iraq in syria, is now the primary perpetrator of the worst violence. as my colleagues have noted, al-qaeda has disavowed the islamic state of iraq in syria for its use of tactics deemed to be too violent. al-qaeda, one of the world's worst and most brutal terrorist groups, has disowned this group for being too extreme. i fear the siege of anbar and fallujah in january has definitively turned the page from labeling this spillover from the syrian conflict to a full scale resurgence of terror in iraq. the number killed in january were close to a thousand and particularly concerned for the 140,000 who fled their homes. the security risks posed are too great to know, and i hope today you'll be able

mr. chairman, i yield back. >> of libya in october of 2012. i just checked with my staff. >> thank you. thank you, a director. >> mr. hines. >> thanks you, mr. chairman. a vigil in for being with us today. i hope he will convey my thanks to the dedicated people you leading organization. another is people have suffered a blow to their morale as a result of the disclosures we have been talking about. and while the route by which we got to this discussion was awful involving a clear violation of u.s. law and almost certainly putting americans a risk, i do believe it is an important cover station for our democracy to have, as painful as it may be given the circumstances. i also rejected it is simply a p.r. exercise in convincing americans that all is well. this is complicated stuff. forget what we say and do, two federal judges have ruled in opposite directions on the legality of the 215 minute beta program. privacies civil liberties oversight board spoke three to two. this is a good debate which i want to set aside for the moment in favor of a question of utility of the 215 omitted data program. also an area in which there's been a great deal of

chairman from oklahoma, mr. lucas, chair of the agriculture committee. >> thank you, mr. chair. chairman yellen, it is a pleasure to be with you today. sitting on the ag committee and working on the 2012, 2013 and '14 farm bill now signed into law, there are several things we look at in the committee. some are directly or indirectly related to the activities of the fed. for instance, and not so much an ag-related issue, but the observation from some of my constituents that after the financial problems in 2008, the dramatic downturn in the stock market, going from losing half its value basically back to where it was, a little bit on the positive side, not just that, but, for instance, in farm land prices we watched over the course of the last five years a rather dramatic appreciation in the value of farm land. now some might say that part of the rebound in the stock market reflected the simple fact that the equities should not have collapsed that far in value five years ago, but -- and some would also say that a big part of the takeoff in farm land values reflected the renewable f

mr. hensarling, and the gentlewoman from california, ms. waters, will each control 30 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from texas. mr. hensarling: mr. chairman, i recognize myself for as much time as i may consume. the chair: without objection. mr. hensarling: mr. chairman, we are now into the sixth year of the obama administration and probably the two most common comments i hear from my constituents, i just can't make ends meet in this economy. and washington has become arrogant, unaccountable, and out of touch. and at the apex of these sentiments lies the newly minted dodd-frank government agency known as the cfpb. although many have yet to hear of it, the cfpb is perhaps the single most powerful and least accountable federal agency in all of washington. first, let's speak of its power. mr. chairman, when it comes to our credit cards, auto loans, mortgages, the cfpb has unbridled correctionary -- discretionary power, not only to make them less available and more expensive, but to absolutely take them away. what does an agency with this kind of power do? it imposes rules like the qualified mortgage rule, or q.m. for short. mr. chairman, wha

mr. chairman. >> thank you very much. mr. win strom. [ applause ] >> thank you, mr. chairman. believe me, i'm so grateful to be here with you today. i know we have the opportunity to see so many delegates from ohio and i'm proud to be from ohio to see so many of you here today. and if anyone out there is somebody i had the opportunity to lay my hands on in iraq, i want to tell you it was my honor to take care of you. we have a wall that exists unfortunately and see is more and more now on this side of things. between the department of defense and the va and i know we're in the process of tearing that down. we're one family. when you take that oath and say i'm going to serve this country, it should go right on through. there shouldn't be this wall and this divide between the opportunities that exist to take care of our troops. electronic medical records that he spoke about, to me that is a shame and delays care, makes it more difficult to have a smooth flow of care. i do see positive things. i was at base luis mccord last year and seen start upprograms where they are focusing on

mr. mr. chairman. >> thank you. can we talk about china's intentions and their eight representing the south china sea and to japan and all those numbers a and the philippines? why are they doing it and if we had a trigger with ships running together, planes running into each other or interference that looks like an act of war? why precipitating these kinds of the tensions in this area? >> its tightness sees itself is a global player as well. they feel they have historical presence in their mind historical claims to the south china sea the have grave concerns about our kevin it in their mind is it is an attempt to contain them so they have been quite aggressive asserting what they believe is there manifest destiny, if you will, in that part of the world. it does have a flash point with the disputes over the islands and energy and access to drilling in the south china sea. and having traveled in that region recently i can tell you it is a great concern privately more so than publicly with those countries that you ment

mr. harris. mr. chairman and members i'm with the capital programs and construction deprivation i'm going to introduce you to one of our outstanding employees at capital programs and construction. let me just say she begin her career as an assistant engineer in 999 and was assigned as a project manager in 2004 she's a dedicated professional also has a great peanut and attitude. as a project manager she begins is construction of the project to the end. she helps to plan, organ and deliver those projects to our clients exceptions and sometimes that's not the easiest thing to do. it's impressive the way she reacts to communities concerns she's sensitive to neighborhoods and has received a number of compliments regarding her patience and a understanding and follow through with critical issues. she's delivered many projects like the carolyn rail replacement and the oc s replacement and the relocation project. all those projects i'm happy to report were completed on time workplace they're dedicated budget. i just love the way it had a is enthusiastic about her work and the leadership she provides to her team. and delivered with a positive, diligent and a ethyl point of view. members and chairman i give you had a (clapping) on behalf of the board of directors and the entire agency thank you for your entire work >> thank you, mr. chairman and board members pr i didn't do this alone i had a lot of support with edward reiskin and my supervisor here. mr. inconvenience harris and also the staff that's in the office and my family. thank you to them all for their support >> thank you (clapping.) okay. i think we'll just take it (laughter). >> director reiskin i know there's been a lot of decision about pedestrian safety in the chamber hall and it's fitting that a lot of the great work we're thought of fully able to address the pedestrian safety this is a walk through program i'm going to ask the director of the safety streets. >> mr. reiskin i'm here to present the block first team composed of luke's and others. that demonstrated the commitment to the strategic goal number one to create a safe transportation. f that was to create pedestrian projects that will guide implementation and decisions for improved pedestrian safeties it required partnerships with other city agencies and a solid outreach component it's the

mr. hastings: thank you, mr. chairman. mr. an, i'm pleased to yield four minutes to the gentleman from idaho, mr. labrador, who is the author from one of the titles in the bill. the chair: the gentleman from idaho is recognized for four minutes. mr. labrador: i rise in support of this bill which i introduced h.r. 657, the grazing improvement act. i thank chairman hastings for recognizing the importance of this issue, and including it in h.r. 2954 for consideration today. livestock grazing is an important part of the rich ranching tradition in idaho and the united states. my home state of idaho produces some of the world's finest lamb and beef. food production is a major part of idaho's history and is an integral part of our cultural fabric and our economic security. these traditions are under attack and we must preserve them for future generations. the financial security of ranchers depends upon the responsible stewardship of the land. unfortunately, the federal process to review the permits which allow them to produce food has

mr. chairman. i yield. >> the turnout recognizes mr. cecily for five minutes. >> thank you, mr. chairman. thank you, mr. mcgurk, for being here and insightful testimony this morning. you can imagine imagine in iraq it is particularly difficult to hear about sacrifices of the billions and billions of dollars of taxpayer money expended in this region in the world you acknowledge in your written testimony in a thank you for that. at to first speak to the different events in vermont in falluja. they turned quick and fairly effective. that is not the case not the case of falluja. which you speak to buy the coordination between the tribal fighters in the iraqi government and resource allocation between these two cities and many other fact yours, which are contributing to different outcomes are different strategies? >> falluja has always just been the most hardened part of the insurgency when we are fighting and it's a different environment if you look at the protest movement over 2013, the protest remained generally of a moderate tone, focus on legitimate grievances of the community. the protest

mr. chairman, i should say you should be hon the panel given your views. >> mr. chairman, will you yield your time for parliament yes? >> yielded. gentleman is recognized. >> can someone answer for me n the report referred to by mr. connelly and the osha report, the witness reached a negotiated agreement with osha and paid fines. >> this is a parliamentary inquiry. >> it is. it's already in the record. my question is, is it true that the witness paid fines substantiating the serious allegations found in the report. >> i think that has been answered. >> no, i did not hear. will the witness answer the question? >> when you get recognized, which will be shortly, you can ask the question. i think the witness has answered it. if you want to ask again, i'm sure she'll do that. i want to recognize the gentleman from north carolina. mr. madison. >> thank you, mr. chairman. you started to respond to the gentleman from virginia by saying the cover letter. didn't mean to cut you off. go ahead. you can finish what you wanted to say in that cover letter. >> thank you. just is

mr. chairman. >> thank you, i recognize the gentleman from kentucky, mr. guthrie, for five minutes. >> thank you, mr. chairman. i have a business background and i know that any time you have an issue with your customers, it takes a long time to build trust back up again and incentive for businesses to protect their data, but at the same time, i worked in a retail store when i was in high school. my grandfather had a grocery store. everybody has to deal with data. right incentives and right things in place to make sure that is protected. want to talk to agent noonan, criminals' unauthorized access, are they not paying attention? >> no, sir, for law enforcement and for the secret service, result of a proactive approach to our law enforcement and we are gathering information and working with our private sector partners especially in the financial services sector when we are receiving data. what can occur, we can see a point of compromise where the retailer might not necessarily see compromised data out in the world. by looking at that data, we can go to that c

mr. rose, can we go to your report, please. >> yes, mr. chairman, regarding on the committee regarding item 6 under the proposed 2nd amendment between the puc and hrd which is the contractor. hdr, the contract amount is increased by $1.5 million as the department has testimony and that would be from a $26 million to $27.5 million the contract between the puc and hdr for the peninsula region projects. on the bottom of page 31 shown in table one on that page the proposed budget for construction management services for the crystal springs san andreas transmission project increase of about 5 million from previously proofed budget of $11.3 million. this is offset by savings in other projects and that is shown again in table 1. on page 32 of our report we note that the proposed resolution contains a reference to a contract option to extend the term

mr. chairman. >> thank you. >> mr. diaz ba heart. >> thank you very much, mr. airman, glad to have you here. threat me throw out two issues if i may. is one i've been dealing with your predecessors for a long time and unfortunately the urs has not always acted in good faith. actually at one time admitting to me in front of a number of people that they had been instructed to not tell me the truth. in other words to ms. lead members of congress. the issue -- >> i'm aware of that situation. pleased that they at least admitted to me, that the person said i was not authorized truth, which i thought was a sad day, but you better believe that's something never happen again. it pertains to an i.r.s. ruling, a technical advice memorandum, or tam, that all of the outside experts say calls into question 70 years oftled law on the definition political subdivisions, there's many of them around the country florida. this tam effectively makes theges, makes a change to law and it's retroactive, so this is not something the i.r.s. an audit.doing in if it wants to change a law it

mr. chairman, i should say you should be hon the panel given your views. >> mr. chairman, will you yield your time for parliament yes? >> yielded. gentleman is recognized. >> can someone answer for me n the report referred to by mr. connelly and the osha report, the witness reached a negotiated agreement with osha and paid fines. >> this is a parliamentary inquiry. >> it is. it's already in the record. my question is, is it true that the witness paid fines substantiating the serious allegations found in the report. >> i think that has been answered. >> no, i did not hear. will the witness answer the question? >> when you get recognized, which will be shortly, you can ask the question. i think the witness has answered it. if you want to ask again, i'm sure she'll do that. i want to recognize the gentleman from north carolina. mr. madison. >> thank you, mr. chairman. you started to respond to the gentleman from virginia by saying the cover letter. didn't mean to cut you off. go ahead. you can finish what you wanted to say in that cover letter. >> thank you. just is

mr. chairman, thank you. >>. >> thank you, mr. connolly. >> thank you, mr. chairman. would yield to the distinguished ranking member if he wishes to -- >> thank you very much. >> thank you, gentleman for yielding. i want to discuss what a conviction for marijuana, possession, no matter how small means for most individuals across the country with a conviction a person loses a right to vote, financial, federal financial aid and public housing assistance and conviction in employment opportunities and future earning potential. i can tell you i live in a neighborhood where the wire was filmed. and so i see a lot of young men who have basically been sentenced to a life term of not being able to move as a normal citizen would in this society. deputy director, let me ask you, isn't it true that convictions for even minor nonviolence drug position have a significant negative effect on an individual that families and -- in the nation, would you agree with that? >> i would, sir. by way of context, when director ku la could you xi took this position, he clearly articulated that we

mr. chairman, thank you. >>. >> thank you, mr. connolly. >> thank you, mr. chairman. i would yield to the distinguished ranking member if he wishes to -- >> thank you very much. >> thank you, gentleman for yielding. i want to discuss what a conviction for marijuana, possession, no matter how small means for most individuals across the country with a conviction a person loses a right to vote, financial, federal financial aid and public housing assistance and conviction in employment opportunities and future earning potential. i can tell you i live in a neighborhood where the wire was filmed. and so i see a lot of young men who have basically been sentenced to a life term of not being able to move as a normal citizen would in this society. deputy director, let me ask you, isn't it true that convictions for even minor nonviolence drug position have a significant negative effect on an individual that families and -- in the nation, would you agree with that? >> i would, sir. by way of context, when director ku la could you xi took this position, he clearly articulated that

mr. chairman. >> thank you. turn to mr. diaz-balart. >> thank you very much, mr. chairman. glad to have you here, sir. let me throw out two issues if i may. one is one i have been dealing with your predecessors for quite a long time. unfortunately the i.r.s. has not always acted in good faith. actually one time admitting to me in front of a number of people that they had been instructed to not tell me the truth. i was pleased they admitted to me the person said i was not authorized to tell you the truth, which i thought was a sad day, but you better believe that's something that i hope will never happen again. it pertains to an i.r.s. specific trueling, it's a technical advice memorandum or t.a.m., that all of the outside experts say -- calls into question 70 years of settled law on the definition of political subdivisions, there are many around the country, including in florida. this town effectively makes changes, makes a change to the law and it's retroactive. this is not something the i.r.s. should be doing in an audit f it wants to change the law, they should come to co

mr. chairman. >> thank you, i recognize the gentleman from kentucky, mr. guthrie, for five minutes. >> thank you, mr. chairman. i have a business background and i know that any time you have an issue with your customers, it takes a long time to build trust back up again and incentive for businesses to protect their data, but at the same time, i worked in a retail store when i was in high school. my grandfather had a grocery store. everybody has to deal with data. right incentives and right things in place to make sure that is protected. i want to talk to agent noonan, criminals' unauthorized access, are they not paying attention? >> no, sir, for law enforcement and for the secret service, result of a proactive approach to our law enforcement and we are gathering information and working with our private sector partners especially in the financial services sector when we are receiving data. what can occur, we can see a point of compromise where the retailer might not necessarily see compromised data out in the world. by looking at that data, we can go to that

mr. chairman. >> thank you. mr. lewis? >> thank you very much, mr. chairman. mr. commissioner, it's my understanding that the union that represent the rank and file irs employees was started many, many years ago, maybe during the '30s? >> that's my understanding, and, in fact, i dealt with all of the government unions 20 years ago, when i was the deputy director for management, and the nteu then was a very active representative of irs employees. >> is it your feeling or your knowledge that the union had played a major role in assisting the irs in carrying out its mandate? >> it is my understanding. i've had a long career of dealing with organizations in the private sector, as well as the public sector, that have unionized employees. the city of washington, when i was responsible for the day-to-day operations, was represented by a range of unions. and much as the chairman said, you can have relationships that are productive in those situations, or you can have contentious relationships. and just as i look forward to an effective working relationship with this commi

mr. chairman. >> thank you, mr. deutch. now, lastly, we'll go to judge ted poe of texas, chairman of the terrorism subcommittee, followed by brad sherman for a minute of california who's the ranking member of that subcommittee. >> al-qaeda in iraq is back, certainly not on its last legs. the united states has paid a high price to help liberate iraq from the menace of al-qaeda. it is frustrating that al-qaeda is gaining that ground back in iraq. al-qaeda's resurgence is directly related to prime minister maliki's mishandling of his government, incompetence and corruption seem to be the norm. he centralized power, alienated the sunnis and brought back shia hit squads. he has allowed iranian-supported operate i haves to kill -- operatives to kill dissidents on seven occasions without consequences. the last time you were here, mr. mcgurk, you testified before my subcommittee and ileana ros-lehtinen's subcommittee. i predicted that there would be another attack. seven days after you testified in december, camp liberty was attacke

mr. chairman. i yield back. >> thank you, mr. chairman. i want to welcome our witnesses, i thank you-all for being here. i thank the chairman and vice chairman of the committee for their attention to this issue. as you-all know, 2011, 2012 we held hearings, we have worked to -- through this process and what the factors are that are causing the drug shortages, and we know that they have increased in recent years, and i'm one of those, i believe, let's get to the root cause. and to the root problems so that we are solving this. i continue to talk with those health professionals in the community and tennessee and get their input on this. we did take a bipartisan action, as the chairman and ranking member have mentioned, and that was to address through fdasia the shortages and fdasia did provide f.d.a. with authority they needed. it put new requirements on the manufacturers to help prevent and mitigate the shortages shall or supposedly on paper that's what they are to do. this is a wonderful opportunity for us to look at the g.a.o. report, to q

mr. rose? >> mr. chairman, members of the committee, we agree with that if the committee grease. -- agrees. that is consistent. to my knowledge there is not a difference in numbers as the sheriff pointed out. our footnote clearly states what the sheriff stated in reference to our footnote. so certainly it's up to the committee. but we would agree with the 60 days. what we don't agree with is to the 365 days at this point. >>supervisor mark farrell: okay. sheriff? >> so i was conferencing with chief steel. i agree leave it as is with the exception of 365. we'll be back with the board of supervisors anyway. pred indications with what occur at the state level should affect some of the elements discussed here today. i think we are move forward with it because we have been working for one 1 year to get this going. side line, with respect to the budget analyst. this does not affect the jail replacement whatsoever. the pod up to 56 is a much different facility than on jail replacement and this never allows us to go over the pod of no. of 56. that is an identity and has no impact on the discussion to rebuild or not build what size the jail once that comes out. >>supervisor mark farrell: okay. colleagues, i'm comfortable with the budget analyst report. can i have a motion to accept the public analyst? supervisor mar? >>supervisor eric mar: i will move to take the budget analyst recommendation. >>supervisor mark farrell: we can take that without objection as well. >> mr. chairman, i would like to have the report amended items no later than tomorrow 9:00 a.m.. >> i don't think there is any amendment as proposed by budget analyst. >> the clerk is asking to you get the amended legislation into clerk's office. >> okay. >> thank you. >>supervisor mark farrell: i trust we'll coordinate well. all right. madam clerk please call item no. 5. city clerk: sfitem 5 :[apply for grant - biodiversity action plan - $250,000] sponsor: yee resolution authorizing the department of the environment to apply for a $250,000 grant from the california strategic growth council to create the biodiversity action plan , for the period of july 1, 2014, through june 30, 2015.city clerk: sf 51234 >>supervisor mark farrell: okay, thanks. we have guillermo rod riguez from the department of environment. >> this is to apply for the $250,000 grant for the california strategic growth to create bio diversity action plan. if awarded the department of planning will present bio diversity and

mr. chairman, i yield back. >> mr. chairman and i would ask unanimous consent that we enter into the record the "washington post" article from february that says no cbo did not say obamacare will kill 2 million jobs. >> without objection. >> i enter that in the record because as i sit here and listen to this for two hours, i have to think of that the figures never lie. but sometimes people with an agenda misinterpreted facts. >> i spent all of yesterday sitting on the ways and means committee going through this name thing. obamacare is causing a deep and jobs i heard over and over again and we are saying the same thing over again. we are blaming private companies are cutting hours on their own volition at the feet of the aca because somehow it is unreasonable to expect a million or billion dollar corporation to provide health insurance for their people to who work slightly less than 40 hours a week. has anybody bothered to read mr. ellmendorf's report all the way to the end coming and you heard mr. jeffries and others t

mr. chairman -- >> mr. chairman? have with youri second-degree amendment is you are giving the post office authority that congress ought to have when you tell them to begin implementing immediately whatever they find out in their study. we have no assurance anybody in congress will have capability on that committee and have no idea where that study might go. it might be considerably more difficult than the present language. caveat, i have that difficulty and i appreciate that you put your guns in the trunk of the car when you went to the post office, but i come from a part of the country where most people do not have the drug. they call it a pickup. [laughter] senator? >> mr. chairman, i appreciate this modification. i appreciate senator paul's amendment, what he is trying to do here. i would just say this. of the strong support second amendment. i have more guns than any of you and i want some more, ok? at the bottom line, some places with guns are not appropriate. this building would not be appropriate to have a gun

the chairman nizes the gentleman from virginia, mr. hurt, for five minutes. >> thank you, mr. chairman. chair yellen, thank you very much for appearing before our committee. welcome, and i look forward to your tenure. obviously we recognize gnat virginia fifth district how important your task is, and we appreciate your commitment to that task. tell you a little bit about our district. it's a very rural district in central south side virginia. it is a district that historically was dependent upon textiles, furniture, tobacco. still is a very large agricultural producer in our state and in our nation, but we've seen hard times with the changes in -- especially in manufacturing. i know as an economist you're aware -- well aware of the terrible effects that has had in many parts of our country and south side virginia is no exception. we've had over the years, in the last ten years, unemployment in parts of our district as hide as 25% so you can imagine what we really want are jobs and what we want is a booming economy. and so i guess one thing that strikes me, we hear it on the oth

mr. sensenbrenner, such time as he may consume. mr. sensenbrenner: thank you, mr. chairman. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. sensenbrenner: mr. speaker, i'm pleased that the house of representatives today is considering h.r. 1944, the private property rights protection act, as part of stop government abuse week. my bill aims to restore the property rights of all americans the supreme court took away nine years ago. the founders of our country recognized the importance of an individual's right to personal property when they drafted the constitution. the fifth amendment states, quote, nor shall private property be taken for public use without just compensation, unquote. in key low vs. the city of new london, in a 5-4 decision, they said that economic development can be a public use under the fifth amendment's taking clause. the court held that the government could take private property from an owner to help a corporation or private developer. the now infamous kilo decision was met with swift opposition. as justice o'connor stated, quote, the government

mr. chairman. >> mr. chairman, i have a unanimous consent request. i would request, mr. chairman, that after your remarks and the remarks of the ranking member that we insert in the record of the hearing at this point the names of those individuals, servicemen who lost their life in the chinook helicopter disaster, and i would ask that that be printed immediately after your remarks. >> without objection, so ordered. >> all right. >> i would like to thank again the members of our subcommittee for attending and like to recognize mr. fortenberry who has been involved and engaged in this issue and appreciate his presence here today. i would also remind members that they may have seven days to submit opening statements for the record. that would be all members, even those that do not serve here on our committee. it's now -- at this point i would like to recognize our panel, and we have members representing the pentagon and we have mr. gary p. reed who is the principal deputy secretary of defense for special operations and low intensity conflict at the united states department

mr. chairman. >> thank you. mr. miller. >> thank you, mr. chairman. if we can move to another region of the world for discussion. i'm interested in, as we draw down in afghanistan, pakistan's influence. do you see them as a stabilizing or a destabilizing force in the region? >> i will ask mr. brennan to help me here, but one imperative for the pakistanis always is their primary concern, which is india. pakistan has the potential to be a stabilizing force, particularly with the new administration there. i think that is their instinct. they would like to be. let me ask john if he would add more to that. >> more individuals have been killed at the hands of terrorists in pakistan than any other country worldwide. we work with them, sometimes there are different points of view in how to deal with extremism, particularly in northern parts of pakistan, but it is a partnership in counterterrorism that must improve and get better. >> can you talk about our continued relationship with afghanistan regardless of the rate of troop withdrawal? >> we hope what ever t

mr. chairman. the chair: mr. speaker, the wholewhole -- the committee of the whole house on the state of the union, having had under consideration h.r. 3192, reports the bill back. the speaker pro tempore: the chairman of the committee of the whole house on the state of the union reports the committee has had under consideration h.r. 99 and reports the bill back to the house. under the rule the previous question is ordered. question is on engrossment and third reading of the bill. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. the ayes have it. the third reading. the clerk: a bill to provide for additional safeguards with respect to imposing federal mandates and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: the house will be in order. the house will be in order. would members please take their conversations from the floor, clear the aisles, take your seats. let the house be in order. for what purpose does the gentleman from florida seek recognition? >> i have a motion to recommit at the desk. the speaker pro tempore: i

mr. chairman, our lawyers has they've done multiple times over multiple issues will talk. you know as well as i do a lawyer is not going to testify at a hearing. >> he can tell us -- >> mr. chairman, just stop. >> mr. chairman, just stop. come on, mr. chairman, that's cute. he's not going -- no. the data that the legislature is asking for there was never handed over. and the lawyer who bill baroni just, like this, my lawyer, my counsel is here, the counsel, the lawyer who was supposedly this legal gatekeeper advising as to whether or not this data can be handed over to the legislature, this data that does not exist, that counsel, that lawyer is phil kwon. longtime chris christie ally. governor christie's nominee for the new jersey supreme court. governor christie's appointee to the port authority after a more than decade working together not just in the governor's administration but in the prosecutor's office before that, too. "the wall street journal" reporting this week at phil kwon spent parts of four to five days prepping bill baroni to give that false testimony about a traffic study and that is not why those bridge lanes were shut down. that testimony from that heari

mr. chairman. >> ted poe from texas. >> thank you, mr. chairman. i want to talk about what you probably thought i would talk about today is the mek. the last time you were here and you testified before my subcommittee and the char irwoman's subcommittee, i made the statement that there would probably be more attacks on camp liberty. and unfortunately, i was correct. camp liberty was attacked again. four people killed, seven injured, one young man lost both legs. since 2009, there have been seven attacks on camp liberty or camp ashroth. during that time, 19 times members of the state department have testified. many of those were about camp liberty. all those attacks, to my knowledge as of today, not one person has been captured or charged with any of those killings. not one. still on the loose. as i alluded to in my testimony, i personally believe that the malaki government is in cahoots with the iranian government who liberty every, -- be subject to attacks. these last attacks to my understanding were where rockets came in that were three minutes lo

mr. chairman. >> thank you, senator franken. >> thank you, mr. chairman. thank you for your service and all that you're doing to address what is really a troubling situation. we do have someone on the second panel who will testify or talk about women being con finded in solitary for reporting abuse including sexual abuse by their bureau of prisons staff. i have a series of questions regarding this situation. are you aware of this happening in the system? rare as it may be, we hope? >> yes. >> same question. then what do you have in place to prevent this kind of abuse from happening? >> well, what we have in place is our staff being active in ensuring rounds are made. we have also addressed concerns with ensuring the inmates are able to reach out and let us know and being comfortable with that. we have zero tolerance. >> so you have zero tolerance, so does that mean that that inmates that this is happening to feel free to come forward and report? who would they report this too? certainly, it shouldn't be the person that, you know, has power over them and who