Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to enter a letter from my next- door neighbor born with spina bifida. His parents were told to leave him in the hospital because he would be mentally retarded and he would never be able to get out of institutional care. His parents loved him and got him into school. He went through public high school, went to the University of California, graduated and got into Special Olympics. He tried to get a job. His coaches told him you will never be able to afford a job, you have a preexisting condition, you can't afford the insurance. You will have to stay on Medicaid the rest of your life. He writes in his letter to me, Dear Congressman, and goes on to say in closing, I ask that you please pass this comprehensive health care package so that today's kids aren't told the same thing I was told. Never again should boys and girls with disabilities hear from their mentors, You cannot afford to work. Emancipate people into the workforce; allow them to have insurance without preexisting conditions. I am proud that Ben Spangenberg is here today sitting in that corner. I am proud that he is a constituent of this great country.”