Defense budget and addressed sequestration and budget challenges posed by syria, r ussia, and iran. This runs about one hour and 50 minutes. If the committee will please come to order. Today, our subcommittee on defense appropriations reviews the budget request of the department of defense. We are very pleased to welcome secretary of defense Ashton Carter and chairman of the joint chief of staff general Martin Dempsey of the United States army. This is our final schedule hearing of the year on the 2016 Defense Budget request. The subcommittee recognizes the uncertainty of the current fiscal environment and the impact it has only department of defense in its planning. We also appreciate the complexity of building the first year 2016 budget request and we look forward to comments from secretary carter and general dempsey on how we can support our men and women in uniform and our National Security interests. We are pleased to recognize dr. Carter on his first appearance before the subcomm
There is an affidavit from donald f terry. He was employed with the committee on small business. It was charged in 1976 new rules of official conduct of the house. He refers to book royalties. I should come to that next. In these matters, these three people who had a great deal to do with writing the rules say that is not what they intended. Where else might you turn . Might you not possibly go to the committee itself and see what opinions it has given . Here is the publication that the Committee Sends to tell us what is legal. Each year we received this, as instructions to fill out the statement. Appendix e is advisory number 10, which defines who has a direct interest in legislation under the law. It says if the member does not believe that the donor of the gift has a special interest in the congressional legislative process which sets him apart from the general public, then the member should feel free to accept such gifts. Then he defines who has an interest in legislation four clas