Political Quotes

“Less than 10 days ago, this body missed a perfect opportunity. You see, natural disasters are unpredictable, but you know what isn't? Congress failing to do their job and prepare for them. For too long Washington has governed by crisis and shifted its responsibility to adequately care for those in need, opting instead to saddle our children and grandchildren with an impossible debt. Then days ago, this body wanted to spend more than $19 billion with no consideration of how to pay for it. Was it for a worthy cause? Absolutely. Of course. I would hope that every dollar appropriated by Congress is for a worthy cause. But as then-Representative Mike Pence said in 2005, following the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, does Congress have a duty to ensure that a catastrophe of nature does not become a catastrophe of debt? Congress should pay for these emergency packages by either cutting spending in other areas that are less of a priority or responsibly budgeting for them ahead of time. Disaster aid shouldn't be added to the debt. That is akin to going to the emergency room after an injury, putting the charges on a credit card, and then pretending that credit card bill is never going to arrive. The bottom line is this, that even during an emergency, Washington needs to pay its bills. My amendment is relatively simple, Mr. Chair.…”