Political Quotes

“Deja vu all over again. Senator Mikulski and I rise one more time to fight to fulfill our commitment and the commitment of the Senate to fund fully the section 202 Elderly Housing Program at no less than $645 million for each of the next 5 fiscal years. I want to emphasize our commitment to this program and the elderly housing as the chairman and ranking member of the VA/HUD Appropriations Subcommittee, the Appropriations subcommittee with the responsibility for funding the section 202 Elderly Housing Program, as well as all other programs under the Department of Housing and Urban Development. The purpose of this amendment is to set a floor of $645 million for the section 202 Elderly Housing Program, the amount that Congress appropriated for this program for fiscal year 1998, as opposed to the President's budget request of $109 million for fiscal year 1999--a cut of over $500 million from this $645 million program. The President's budget request is plainly wrong. I cannot state this in strong enough terms. We have an investment in the elderly and our Nation here just as we must invest in the youth of this Nation through good education and good, available health care. I want to be clear that we are not going to shortchange the elderly. The section 202 Elderly Housing Program is the most important housing program for elderly low-income Americans, providing both affordable low-income housing and supportive services designed to meet the special needs of the elderly.”