Week for congress, especially the house, as they tackle these issues. Ryan mccrimmon, thank you for your time. The committee met this week to look at nominations. Mrs. Callista gingrich is the nominee to become the u. S. Ambassador. Is nominated for counterterrorism. Mr. George edward glasses the nominee to be the u. S. Ambassador to portugal. Is nominated to be the counselor for foreign affairs. I want to welcome the nominees, their families, and this committee congratulates them on their selections. We havee that congressman rooney here supporting mrs. Gingrich. He was the ambassador to the holy see during president bushs term. We are honored to welcome our distinguished colleagues who will introduce our witnesses. And sen. Ron wyden, portman ohio from ohio. Thank you for your courtesy. As senator portman knows, we are in the middle of debating tax reform. I know it is a topic of great interest to many senators, and i am trying to help out chairman hatch. I will make this a filibuster , mr. Chairman,y and it is a great privilege to be able to introduce a longtime friend, George Edward glass. Knowing mr. Glass as i do, i am confident that as all of you get to know him and better, you will report him favorably to the senate floor. As he is going to tell you, george glass is an oregonian through and through. Eugene, he in attended college there, graduating from the university of oregon. And he, he is a duck, has continued to be involved with the university, with the community, as he has been recognized as a pillar of portlands financial, real estate, and tech communities. He has been involved in a number of projects to help our community. I am particularly pleased that interest in the health and science university. They play a lifeline in reaching out to our community, and those who have found it hard to Access Health care. He has been a trustee for the Oregon Health and science university. He is the former president of the university of oregon. Lumnis is association i feel strongly that as you look to portugal and that part of the world, we are going to need track who demonstrated record of stepping up, being involved in their community, someone with expertise in a variety of areas, not just his chosen profession of finance, but health care with his background at the Oregon Health sciences center, and i believe as you get to know him and confirm him after you have had a chance to hear from him, you will come to the conclusion i have which is george glass has values shared by americans, by those in the country he seeks to serve, portugal, and i very much appreciate my colleagues going out of order to extend this courtesy to me a and my guess is chairman hatch is grateful to you all as we keep the matters proceeding in the finance committee. Thank you very much mr. Chairman. I look forward to the members of the committee getting to know george glass as i have area i think you will come to the same judgment i have. He will serve and reflect great credit on the United States in this position. Think you very much. Thank you senator. As long as we are taking a look at Corporate Tax reform, i encourage you to get out of here and get back to the task at hand. Senator portman. Thank you, chairman johnson. I will join my colleague in a minute, but i wanted to be here to welcome this distinguished group of nominees. Thank you for your willingness to serve. Your. Resch and mr. Glass, have just gotten a nice accolade from someone who will help you not just in this committee but in the vote on the floor. To callista gingrich, thank you for serving. You could have no better person behind you then francis rooney, and that means a lot to all of us. We look forward to supporting you. Finally, nathan sales is from ohio. You would not have guessed. Did i tell you that, he is from ohio . Nextpport him being the court for counterterrorism at the state department. A very vital position that needs to be filled as quickly as possible. In these National Security positions, we need honorable, capable individuals who understand the importance of that mission, protecting the homeland but working with our allies as well to combat global terrorism. Are pleased to have you here. Did i mention he is from ohio . Ok. Canton, ohio, to be specific. He also attended ohio university. He headed south and went to duke law school. Following law school, he clicked for the honorable sentelle for the d. C. Circuit. A prestigious position. He is no stranger to Public Service. He served in the department of and at the department of Homeland Security during the george w. Bush administration, where i also served. He focused on intelligence, he the current legislation to improve the security of our visa waiver program. In the past few years, he returned to the private sector and academia. Has been an associate professor of law at Syracuse College of law. He teaches National Security law and counter and countertop counterterrorism law. Forward to supporting nathan sales as our next coordinator for counterterrorism, not only because of his ties to the buckeye state, but more importantly because of his relevant experience, his strong record, and his lifelong commitment to our constitution and laws, and the security of our country. I hope my colleagues will join me in this effort to fill this critical National Security role. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Thank you, mr. Portman for your introduction. By all means, go back and work on that Corporate Tax reform. Again, thank you for that. As great as it is to have nominees from oregon and ohio, i certainly appreciate the fact that i have the privilege of introducing our nominee am wisconsin. Although i am chairing the hearing, i also have the honor of introducing my fellow callista gingrich, nominated to be the ambassador to the holy sea. She is from a beautiful area of the state, though you drop cell coverage frequently. It is hard to do interviews from that region. She graduated from Whitehall Memorial High School as valedictorian. Luther collegeed in iowa where she was a regent scholar and graduate. Almost a decade ago, she came to washington. She became a member of staff,sman gundersons and served as a chief clerk on the committee of agriculture. She left capitol hill, founded gingrich productions. Andhas been the president ceo of gingrich productions for a decade, producing documentary clients. D advising she works to support charitable causes as the president of the gingrich foundation. Callista is a lifelong catholic. She has been active in her Faith Community for years. She sung in the choir for 20 years. Of the National ShrineImmaculate Conception in washington. As part of her work, callista collaborated with Church Leaders to post nine days to change the pope, documentary about john pauls pilgrimage. A documentaryced about Pope John Paul iis canonization. President reagans friendship with Pope John Paul ii helped establish relations with the 1984, and they orchestrated the fall of the soviet union. They have collaborated on a wide range of issues, including promoting human rights, interreligious understanding, and economic progress in the developing world. Callistas understanding of the Catholic Church, her considerable experience, makes her an ideal choice to be the representative of the holy see. A. Thank you, mrs. Gingrich, for your willingness to serve. The president s nominee to be assistant secretary of state for Consular Affairs. He is a highly regarded attorney and chief of staff in the u. S. Immigration services. He was previously the Field Office Director for the Immigration Services at the American Embassy in seoul, south korea. He is a former consular former service operatives, he is an expert in the responsibilities of managing Consular Affairs worldwide. I would like to recognize the distinguishing member for his comments, senator murphy. Thank you, mr. Chairman. We have a good full house of members, so i will defer my opening remarks. Thank you all for your service. I had a chance to sit down and have a very productive conversation yesterday. I am very glad for your testimony and for us to engage in a dialogue. Thank you, senator murphy. Order will be mrs. Gingrich, mr. Sales. Mrs. Gingrich . Chairman johnson, Ranking Member murphy, and distinguished members of the committee for Foreign Relations, i am honored to appear before you today as President Trumps nominee to service the United States ambassador to the holy sea. I am thankful to President Trump for the confidence and trust he has placed in that need to be his representative at this important embassy. In addition, i want to secretary of state Rex Tillerson for supporting my nomination. Special honor to be introduced by chairman johnson, from my home state of wisconsin. Thank you. I am also grateful to appear before this committee today with the full support of my husband, newt. As veterans of capitol hill. L, we both have Great Respect for your assessment and confirmation of those representing the American People abroad. If confirms, i look forward to working closely with the members and staff of this committee. Like the United States, the holy globalactive on a scale. To fight terrorism and violence, to combat Human Trafficking, to prevent the spread of diseases like ebola and hivaids. And to seek Peaceful Solutions to crises around the world. Those who serve in the state department are known at the world over for their patriotism and dedication. The professional staff at the u. S. Embassy to the holy see exemplifies the streets. They worked tirelessly to leverage the vaticans global reach and advance our strong, bilateral relationship. Charge daffaires in the embassy timedid an extra ordinary posting the president on his visit to the vatican in may. During that visit, President Trump and pope francis dilated shared concerns, including the protection of Christian Communities in the middle east. Pope francis has powerfully leaders andligious people of all faiths to unequivocally reject terror in thesm and violence name of religion. The vatican and its organizations play an active role in troubled areas around the world, rum venezuela to south sudan to the democratic republic of the congo, countries where the holy sees support for Peaceful Solutions and Democratic Institutions directly benefit the interests of the United States. A uniquelic church is global network, overseeing the worlds secondlargest International Aid organization, operating 25 of the World Health Care facilities, and administrating and ministering to millions around the world. As global leaders, the United States and the vatican must continue to work closely to advance our shared values of Human Dignity and freedom. This can only happen if we maintain and build upon a Strong Foundation of trust and mutual communication. Confirmed, i will continue this vital United States and the world. I understand how the United States and the holy sea can act as a worm wide forceld wide force for good when we Work Together. Several years ago i had the honor of producing a documentary film entitled nine days that changed the world. It chronicled the historic visit to poland in 1979. Producing this film required ubstantial work with key Church Leaders and other understand how the United States and the holy sea can act experts in the United States, poland and the vatican. This film has been well received by the Catholic Church and is usedreligious programs throughout the United States. This is an example of the powerful role the vatican plays in international affairs. Recently i produced another documentary film entitled divine mercy. These projects along with my decades long membership, have given me the opportunities to build relationships with many church members, clergy and religious scholars. These have instilled n my the highest respect for the holy sea, a deep the holy sea, a deep appreciation for the responsibility of this post and confidence that the United States vatican bilateral relationship is a force for good and one that cannot be ignored. As a lifelong catholic, business owner, documentary film maker, author and former public servant, i am profoundly humbled at the prospect of serving my country as the United States ambassador to the holy sea. If confirmed i will work diligently to develop Even Stronger ties between the United States and the holy c. Mr. Chairman, mr. Ranking member and members of the committee, i appreciate the opportunity to be before you today and would be pleased to answer my questions you may have. Thank you. Thank you. Our next nominee will be mr. Sales. Thank you, chairman johnson, thank you Ranking Member murphy and members of the committee. Its an honor to be here with you this morning. Let me start by introducing my family. My wife margaret along with our daughters ana and kate. My arents alex and marsha are here. They came out from ohio. Id also like to acknowledge my fatherinlaw and motherinlaw home in boston today. Special word of thanks to senator portman, my fellow buckeye for his kind words of introduction. You can take the boy out of ohio but you cant take the ohio out of the boy. I also want to express my gratitude to President Trump and secretary tillerson. If confirmed, ill do everything in my power to earn and pay back the trust and confidence that they have shown in me. I came to the field of Counter Terrorism almost by happenstance. In 2001 i was a young lawyer at the Justice Department. Id been hired to work on Administrative Law issues. It was the middle of august 2001. Three weeks later was 9 11. I still recall the chilling rumors that flew that morning as we evacuated main justice. A car bomb at the state department, fires on the national mall, another hijacked plane heading for the capital. Some of those rumors turned out to be false alarms, but that was little consolation. The reality was bad enough. My job and everybody at the administration, everybody in congress now shifted to one fundamental and over riding priority, preventing another assault on our homeland. 9 11 wasnt just an attack on our citizens and landmarks. It was an attack on our very way of life, our democracy, our commitment to the rule of law. Our top priority at the Justice Department was to equip our nations cops and spies and soldiers with the tools they needed to confront this new menace and just as importantly to do so in a way that maintained faith with our fundamental values as americans, our basic national values. We couldnt allow our fundamental values to become a casually of war. I took that commitment with me to Homeland Security a few years later. At dhs i learned the experience of working with our allies around he world. I saw firsthand that our alliances are strong, not security a few years later. At just because of our shared economic and military might, but because of our sharded values. Let me also say a few words about the dedicated career professionals at the state department. Ive eveloped a deep appreciation for their extensive knowledge, their commitment and sacrifices. It will be a privilege to serve alongside them if im confirmed. I started with my family and id like to end there too. I come from a long line of patriots. My father alex was a navy officer in the vietnam era. My grandfather clarence served in the army corps of engineers in world war ii. He was stationed in england, which is where he met my grandma. My other grandfather was an infantry captain. He saw action at normandy, helped liberate france and earn add ed a bronze star for valor. It will be a great honor if im confirmed to continue their legacy at state. Randfather was an infantry thank you again, mr. Chairman, mr. Ranking member, members of the committee. I look forward to your questions. I appreciate you introducing your family. I was remiss in not encouraging everybody to do so. Mr. Glass. Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member and distinguished members of the committee, it is with great humility and honor i sit before you today. Im deeply grateful for the trust and support in me. If confirmed, im committed