Jackie Speier: “I am astonished by the last hour. It is like they are living in a different universe. If you look at the economic growth…”

“I am astonished by the last hour. It is like they are living in a different universe. If you look at the economic growth in the United States under this administration, it is actually growing at such a rate that by the end of the year it will have reached 6 percent in growth. So all of that blather that went on on the other side of the aisle should be registered as what it is: False. But we are here to talk about something much more important than a bunch of lies. We are here to talk about what 90 Members of the Democratic Women's Caucus are concerned about, and that is the care economy. The question that we want to ask is: Why does America not value our families or our children? Why is it that France has provided 8 weeks of maternity leave to working women since 1913--yes, since 1913--yet we struggle to provide paid family leave? Why is it that Germany 30 years ago was able to decide children have the right to quality childcare, yet some of my colleagues call universal childcare and pre-K a handout? Surely if our European counterparts can understand that childcare and pre-K is not babysitting, it is education that fuels the brain and emotional development in the most formative years of a child's life so that children can grow and thrive, we certainly can grasp that. Surely my colleagues who stand here and preach about the sanctity of life can understand the hypocrisy of advocacy for birth but not advocacy for life.…”