Political Quotes

“I thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, we have a skills crisis in our country. We actually have more job openings than we have unemployed Americans. This is keeping our economy from reaching full potential. So how do we solve this problem? Well, a big way is through expanding career and technical education programs. As the demands of the workforce continue to change and become more complex, these programs are critical to building the workforce of the 21st century. I have seen these programs firsthand back in Alabama in our high schools, when I was the chancellor of post-secondary education, and I saw it at work in our 2-year colleges. They benefit the local economy by helping fill open jobs, but they make the lives of our students intrinsically better by connecting them with the skills they need to thrive. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill and show the strong bipartisan support that we showed when it passed the House the first time. Career and technical education is for everybody in America, and America's House needs to stand up and support it.”