Goods or Something Like that. It is effective but just a different level of intensity. All right well, we have a lot of green cards here to which we were not able to get for which i apologize. But i think that also reflects the level of engagement of our consumers of Health Policy information here. Thank you for spending your beautiful friday afternoon inside a very cool hearing room helping us grapple with one of the most multifacetted set of problems in Health Policy these days. Thanks to anthem and the National Consumer league for helping us think through this topic and assemble a great panel. Speaking of said panel help me thank this panel for some wonderful discussion. [ applause ] well come back to this topic in september. Thanks very much. Tonight ot the communicators, Michael Oreilly on key issues before the fcc like Net Neutrality and regulating the internet and influence on policy making making. When an item is made before an open Commission Meeting and presented to the commissioner level, that document should be made available publicly and that would provide an opportunity for everyone to comment exactly what were thinking and allow people to hone in on issues they may see as problem attic. Right now we have people who raise concerns regarding our items but they often dont know whats being put forward. They are kind of doing rifle shots in many different scattered structures. And thats problematic from my point of view. I would rather people target exactly where they like to see fixes and not spend time needlessly on things that dont need attention. Tonight on the communicators on cspan2. Massachusetts senator Elizabeth Warren and maryland congressman Elijah Cummings are hosting a forum on Economic Growth and job creation. Speakers include former speaker of the house Newt Gingrich and experts in business and academia live today at 3 00 p. M. Eastern. Cabinet officials return to capitol hill this week to testify on the iran nuclear agreement. Tomorrow the House Foreign AffairsCommittee Hears from secretary of state john kerry Energy Secretary moniz and jack lew. That is chaired by ed royce of california is live tomorrow at 10 00 eastern on cspan3. President obama selected Lieutenant GeneralRobert Neller to be the next commandant of the marine car. The Senate Armed ServicesCommittee Held a confirmation hearing last week for the nominee, asking him about the military budget and administrations policies in iraq and syria. This is a little over two hours. Meets this morning to consider the nomination of Lieutenant GeneralRobert Neller to be the 37th commandant of the marine corps. We thank you for joining us this morning, were grateful for your many years of distinguished service to our nation and for your continued willingness to serve. We also welcome members of your family joining us this morning and thank them for supporting you and our nation as our tradition at the beginning of your testimony, we invite you to introduce any family members that are joining us. As our nation confronts of the most diverse and complex array of global crises since the end of world war ii, the next commandant will be responsible for ensuring the marine corps remains the expedition air force in readiness. After more than a decade of war, our marines remain in high demand. With instability spreading across the middle east and north africa and tension gripping the asia pacific, more than ever our nation is counting on the agility power projection and Rapid Response that are the marine corps hall marks. As we confront the realities of a more dangerous world drastic reductions in defense spending are forces marines to take on a growing set of missions with futer and fewer resources. Over the last few years the marine corps is cut from 202,000 active marines to 184,000 today. Over the next two years the marine corps will fall to 182,000. If sequestration returns again we will be left with 174,000 marines, a force ill prepared and ill equipped to respond to a crisis or major contingency. The combination of budget cuts forced reductions and rising demands on our marines has reduced readiness and lengthened deployments and cut training and time at home with families and put the marine corps under considerable strain. This madness must stop. As i said earlier this week, this is not just about reversing the effects of squestation. We must replace the spending caps on defense that were imposed under the budget control act of 2011. Thats the only way that well get back to a truly strategic strategy driven defense budget. As general dunford emphasized in his most recent planning guidance, the marine corps is a Naval Expeditionary force. As the United States was focused on the wars in afghanistan and iraq americas potential adversaries were investing billions in socalled antiaccess area denial capabilities that threaten the marine corps ability to fight from the sea. At the same time, Budget Constraints lext the marine corps short. On the current path, the marine corps will not have the correct mix until 2024. This is particularly concerning in the asia pacific where the marine corps plays an essential role in our rebalance policy. Despite growing tensions in the region, our marines still lack sufficient sea lift and air lift capabilities to respond to a major contingency in the asia pacific. We must do better if the United States is to accomplish a rebalance that successfully reassures our allies and deters adversaries. General neller, another significant challenge youll face is shortfuls in readiness. Over a decade of sustained combat has degraded readiness in Marine Aviation. Today nondeployed Marine Aviation squad rons are 20 short of the number of aircraft needed to train or respond in a crisis. As you will surely agree, the marine corps aviation bench is six my too shallow to be ready for future challenges. Well be interested to hear your views on putting the marine corps on track to restore aviation readiness. Finally general neller if confirmed, youll be responsible for recapalizing and modern challenges in the air approaching a significant milestone with the ioc of the f35 B Joint Strike fighter. Concerns remain about the war fighting capability of these aircraft reaching ioc. We will be looking to you, general neller to ensure aviators have safe and reliable aircraft that will allow them to carry out their missions. On the ground, the amphibious combat vehicle remains a marine corps top acquisition priority. Given the importance of replacing our aging fleet of amphibious vehicles the marine corps must learn the lessons of past failures such as the expedition nar fighting vehicle and deliver this needed capability on time at cost and up to expectations. We will be relying on you, general neller, to make sure the job gets done. Thank you and we look forward to your testimony. Senator reed. I want to join the chairman in welcoming Lieutenant General neller to the conversation regarding the nomination to the 37th commandant of the United States marine corps. Welcome to the service committee. Thank you for your many years of extraordinary service. And also thank your family for their service right alongside you, every step of the way. General neller you have an exem particularry record of service and highly qualified for the position which youre nominated. Commanded marines from platoon to Division Level and commander marine force europe. Before this current assignment you also commanded u. S. Marine corps forces for central command. General neller as kmondant youll be tasked with recruiting and retraining a quality force and ensuring that force contains the necessary structure taen readiness levels to meet the current challenges and posture to respond to tomorrows crises. These responsibilities are demanding enough on their own however youll also be asked to assume control at a time of immense financial and fiscal challenge. Particularly because of sequestration. I know we will discuss a number of these challenges this morning. Thank you for your service and the service of your family and thank you for your great marines who make us all proud every day. Thank you. Thank you, general. In order to exercise its legislative and oversight responsibilities its important that this committee and other appropriate committees of the congress be able to receive testimony briefings and other communications of information. So would you answer the following questions, if you adhere to applicable laws and regulations governing conflicts of interest. I have. When you agree when asked to personal views if even if they differ from the administration in power . Chairman i do. Have you assumed any duties or undertaken any actions which would appear to presume the outcome of the confirmation process . Chairman, i have not. Will you ensure your staff complies with deadlines established for requested communications, including questions for the record and hearings . Chairman, i will. Will you cooperate and providing witnesses and briefers in response to congressional request . Chairman, i will. Will those witnesses be protected for their testimony or briefings . Chairman, they will. Do you agree if confirmed to testify upon request before this committee . Chairman, i do. Do you agree to provide documents, including copies of electronic forms of communications in a timely manner when requested by a duly constituted committee or consult with a Committee Regarding the basis for any good faith delay or denial in providing such documents . Chairman, i do. Thank you. Welcome, general please proceed and perhaps youd like to introduce your family. Thank you chairman Ranking Member reed. My wife darcy is here, our 40th wedding anniversary is next month. I already have the present so im in good shape. Our three children are not here. Curt, brett and clair. They are off, curt lives in Traverse City and brett in houston and clair and her husband jim and most important, grandson conner, are in austin, texas, ill talk about all of them in my statement. Thank you. Our parents, our mothers both live in east lansing and both fathers are deceased and both veterans. My brother is retired navy captain. My dad served in the army. Darcys dad and his three brothers are all world war ii vets served in the war and so we have a history of service in our family. So with that, i would like to present my opening statement. Chairman mccain and Ranking Member reed and distinguished members of the committee thank you for the opportunity to appear here today. Before i offer my brief remarks, i want to express my condolences to the families of the marines and sailor lost in the tragic shootings in chattanooga. Our thoughts are with the families as they cope with incomprehensive loss. You will not be forgotten. Ill begin by thanking the president and secretaries carter and mavis for nominating me and the committee and congress for men and women in uniform under your lead scherr p. The marine corps is a better and Different Force than the one i joined 40 years ago. I also want to recognize my partner friend and strongest supporter who sitsz with me today, darcy. We started our marine corps journey at the same time although she didnt sign up, she just went with it. She has an unconditional love for marines and families and understands difficulties and stresses of military families and serves as a strong advocate for their support. While i was off doing what was required, she ran the house, worked outside the home, volunteered, raised three kids, who all have their own lives and careers and doing very well thankfully. Moved 26 times, to include three times overseas and allowed me to think i was contributing to the effort. Now that we have our first grandson conner, ive moved down in the pecking order in the neller household. Beneath him and children and dogs and next month well celebrate our 40th anniversary and im thankful shes here with me today. I accept that a reserve commission on the june of 1975 out of the university of virginia because i wanted to get married and needed a job. When i joined we just come out of vietnam. Discipline was not good and equipment was in Poor Condition and training was poorly resourced and rudd. Tri. Though we were well led and trained hard we were not ready. So in those early years i learned to expect little and get less. More importantly i soon realized being a marine an officer marine was much more than just that job that i was looking for. Its a profession. Its a mindset and life. I came to realize that the marines and sailors we serve and their families are special people. And if they are well led by those willing to share the hardship and risk led by those who firmly but fairly coach teach and mentor them and by those willing to ensure they have what they need for the mission and for their families, that they can accomplish incredible things. I had many teachers in those early days but the vietnam era who took the time to mold me and advise me when those times were tough. I also learned the hard grind of life on the infantry how to operate move and survive in every climate and place and lead those not always willing and how to build a team. I learned why the Marine Air Ground task force, a team of teams, is the way we fight and why we win. I learned that we are most effective as a mari time force using the sea as a maneuver space and we hold an advantage over our adversaries, both on the surface and air. The support and well being of our families is just as important as the ammo and food we need to keep us successful in the fight. Over the past years through great those that followed including our current commandant, who have set the conditions for our future success, with the support of the congress and nation, we have kept at it. We have gotten better, better people, better equipment, better facilities, better training, better education, better leadership, and we are put on path to where we are today. A high quality corp of men and women who are smart, fit, disciplined, experienced, and to provide what america expects of her marine corp. Although challenges exist and which must be addressed, im immensely proud of the corp today. All that said, we cannot rest on our laurels and become complacent. I cant tell the complexity of the Global Environment has its challenges. From violent extremism across the globe and cold war like aggression in eastern europe, cyber threats. Contested threats in the pacific. Because of the security environment we face, the president and our National Leadership expects its military to provide the capabilities to meet these challenges. Among these military options they expect to have is a marine corp that can respond. They expect the marine corp to be the force and readiness. They demand when the nation is least ready and need us the most, that well answer the call and win. In order to be that marine corp, we must be willing not to just be good but to get better. Be able and willing to look at different ways to perfect our craft. Every marine we recruit and reenlist, every decision we make, all of the equipment we procure, all the training we do must make us operationally better. Flexibility, innovation dealing with change, uncertainty, thinking out of the box have to be common place and something that is expected for the marines. It has been in the past and it must be so in the future. Finally, if confirmed, i promise to dedicate myself to sustaining and providing the nation with that kind of marine corp, a marine corp with the highest quality men and women our nation has to offer, and the best to the best of my ability ensure the health, well being, and opportunities for success are the men and women who expect the challenge to be a u. S. Marine. Thank you once again for the opportunity to appear before you again this morning. Im ready for your questions. Thank you, general. Recently, general dunford stated to this committee, quote, we cannot execute the 2014 defense review with the budget cuts as a result of the budget control act. He continued stating that ongoing cuts will threaten our ability to execute the current defense strategy. Do you agree with that statement of general dunfords . Chairman, i do believe if we are held to sequestration level, this year and the following year we will not be able to execute the strategy. With this continued sequestration and its effects put the lives of the men and women serving in the marine corps at greater risk . Senator, if our readiness is degraded because we cant resource the training, we cant modernize the force. If we had to commit that force, there would be increased risk. You know, in the 1970s, you referred to general wilson and general barrow. You referred to the really terrible situation that existed. Do you see a parallel to that today with continued sequestration . Chairman, anytime we come out of conflict, theres always risk to this effect. But theyre all different. Weve been able after 12 years of war to keep a very qualified and capable course. Because weve been resourced and supported by the congress i dont believe were near that place that you and i remember from the 70s. Theres always risk that things could happen that could take us there, and i believe thats what many of us are concerned about. But right now, were not there and if confirmed, i give you my personal pledge that well do everything in our power to never go back to that place again. Weve spent a lot of billion dollars on acquisition, as you know, at least in my view the ongoing scandal is the cost overruns, the f35b, the heavy lift helicopter