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Floor Speech

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Mr. CRAPO. Mr. President, I rise today to urge my colleagues to vote in favor of the motion to invoke cloture on Mr. Gary Andres, who is nominated to serve as the Assistant Secretary for Legislation at the Department of Health and Human Services, HHS.

The Assistant Secretary for Legislation at HHS serves as principal adviser to the Secretary with respect to all aspects of the Department's legislative agenda and congressional liaison activities. The office of the Assistant Secretary for Legislation also informs Congress of the Department's views, priorities, actions, grants, and contracts.

As a veteran of Capitol Hill, Mr. Andres knows how to implement a successful legislative agenda and will be a valuable partner to Congress at HHS. In addition, Mr. Andres has experience in the Legislative Affairs offices of previous Republican administrations, which will serve him well in this position.

At his hearing, Mr. Andres also committed to prioritize timeliness in responding to questions from Members. I thank him for this commitment and look forward to working with him, if confirmed.

Qualified nominees for this position in prior administrations normally receive widespread bipartisan support. I strongly encourage my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to join me today in voting to advance Mr. Andres' nomination.

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