William M. Thomas: “that ringing you hear in your ears is the Democratic spin doctors; we just heard another one trying to tell you that…”

“that ringing you hear in your ears is the Democratic spin doctors; we just heard another one trying to tell you that, when the President's plan was offered in the Subcommittee on Health yesterday, it was done just to embarrass the Democrats. Mr. Speaker, I thought our job around here was to vote. I guess Democrats are embarrassed by voting for the President's plan. But not one single Democrat voted for the President's plan. Now we are told that the measure voted out of the subcommittee contains the goals of the President's plan. They rejected the structure, but they have retained the goals of the Clinton health plan. Let me tell my colleagues that without refutation, the measure that was voted out of the subcommittee yesterday would put a majority of Americans under a Government-owned Government-run, taxpayer-insured health program. Is that the President's goal? I thought in the State of the Union the President said he wanted private insurance for all Americans. Maybe I am confused on the goals. The Democrats voted for a majority of Americans to be under a Government program. The President said he wanted private insurance. Who's embarrassing whom around here. Mr. Speaker, the majority leader just said 'a single vote is worth 1,000 sound bites.' If that is true, yesterday in committee the Democrats swallowed 7,000 sound bites.…”