Political Quotes

“Madam Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to this latest attack on Federal workers. H.R. 3835 is not a balanced proposal. Federal employees have already been asked to make significant sacrifices to help reduce our debt. So far, they have contributed $60 billion through a two-year pay freeze and they face the prospect of furloughs and layoffs in the coming years as the Budget Control Act's automatic cuts reduce agency budgets. Despite this, House Republicans continue to push for expanded concessions in compensation and benefits. H.R. 3835 would require Federal workers to forego an additional $26 billion in pay over the next decade even though Federal employees actually earn less than their private sector counterparts when factors such as skill and education level are taken into account. H.R. 3835 is not a serious attempt to address the budget deficit. The $26 billion it would raise over 10 years would cover only 2 percent of the projected budget deficit for FY 2012 alone. True deficit reduction will need to be balanced and sacrifice will need to be shared. H.R. 3835 is also misguided policy. The Federal government should not be an employer of last resort. Our citizens depend on our ability to recruit the most qualified individuals to treat our wounded veterans, inspect our food, oversee nuclear power plants, protect us from terrorism, and provide a broad range of other critical services. While H.R.…”