Political Quotes

“I see that I have other colleagues on the floor. I will only be a couple of minutes. Today I rise to oppose an amendment offered by Senator Moran, amendment No. 815. I really do appreciate the intent of Senator Moran's amendment. I actually support the intent of what he is trying to do because he is trying to support the Watershed Rehabilitation Program. While I am not opposed to that program, and I recognize that difficult decisions had to be made in order to meet our statutory spending caps outlined in the Budget Control Act, I regret to say I cannot support the Senator's amendment as it is written because its offset comes from departmental administration which provides numerous essential services to the USDA. These cuts would force USDA to reduce their number of employees, which would have a detrimental effect on the Department and its operation. In fact, Secretary Vilsack reached out to the Agriculture Appropriations subcommittee staff to relay his serious concerns. These USDA employees provide essential services to some of the most rural areas in the country, so I cannot support the amendment that would, in effect, reduce services to rural America. On top of that, it is important for my colleagues to understand that the level for departmental administration is already over $13 million below the fiscal year 2010 level and $7 million below the President's request.…”