The first order of business for a new CBP commissioner should be to listen to front-line employees about ways to make our nation's border safer.

Because DoD contracts out by far the most federal work to private companies, it is especially critical that these provisions be applied to DoD.

It has long been clear to NTEU and many others that most taxpayers want to comply with the tax code, but they need help to do that. Cutting off that help will not increase compliance.

In this technological age, and with security such a vital concern, it is critical that the federal government use all the tools at its disposal to attract and retain the high-quality employees the public wants and expects it to have. Fair and competitive pay clearly is a major component in that competition.

I'm certainly going to encourage people to keep going to meetings and calling their councilors with their concerns and questions to make sure we get the best project we can get.

I had the opportunity to meet with NTEU-represented CBP employees at Blaine the day before this dangerous incident. They expressed to me their frustration about the continuing denial of LEO status . . . I commend these brave officers for their role in apprehending dangerous murder suspects, and call on Congress to expeditiously approve H.R. 1002 and recognize that CBP officers are indeed federal law enforcement officers.

I'm pleased to see that DHS agrees that it is nowhere near ready to begin moving on this unwise proposal. As we said from the beginning, any personnel system, including a pay system, has to be fair, credible and transparent to have any chance to succeed. The system DHS is proposing is none of that.

I hope that the administration and DHS management take a good hard look at the results of today's ranking and make the connection that an engaged workforce is necessary to an effective department,

American taxpayers can no longer have the confidence that federal tax collections are not based on personal gain. Americans believe certain governmental functions should not be farmed out to for-profit companies and this is clearly one.

A larger increase for military families clearly is in order. So too, however, is a larger increase for the men and women of the government's civilian workforce.