Political Quotes

“Mr. Chairman, I am not really in opposition to what the gentleman is certainly attempting to do. Let me just say that the gentleman has very eloquently laid out the case I think for microlending programs. I have had an opportunity, as I know the gentleman has, to see a number of these programs very recently, and before that found some very heartwarming stories in Uganda when I was there a few years ago of some of our micro-credit programs we have in that country. I think one of the arguments that is frequently lost in our debate about health issues, is how important economic growth is to addressing some of the health issues that we have been talking about here at great length today. A country cannot have a health system, infrastructure, hospitals, nurses, midwives, or clean water if it does not have economic growth. Micro-credit is a jump-start. It is what we can use to get economic growth going. I think it is a very, very important part of our assistance program; and I am very, very much in support of that program.”