Nancy Pelosi: “But in the course of the debate it was interesting to hear people refer to various symbols of patriotism in our country…”

“But in the course of the debate it was interesting to hear people refer to various symbols of patriotism in our country: the American flag, the eagle, Uncle Sam. Uncle Sam, he is a symbol of the Federal Government, but he has now become our deadbeat uncle, because across the country as we all sat down to our Christmas dinners and the start of a new year, many Federal workers were deprived of their pay, even those who were working. Even further than that, many people who depend on the Federal Government to function not only now experience a tightening of the belt, but a closing down of their businesses, whether it is a sandwich shop near a Federal building or a tourist bed-and-breakfast near Yosemite National Park or some other national park throughout the country. Mr. Speaker, as we convene this second session of this Congress, we should all be ashamed of the disrespect with which Congress is treating hundreds of thousands of our valued Federal employees, public servants who want to work, many who are working now, and who perform important services for the people of our Nation. Federal workers have been caught in the middle, against their will, held hostage to the machinations of the 104th Congress.”