Political Quotes

“I rise today to oppose the motion to proceed to the Labor, Health and Human Services appropriations bill until the striker replacement provision is struck from the bill. If included, this provision will block the implementation of the President's Executive Order on striker replacements. This is a matter of fundamental fairness for working people in this country. During the course of this century, all Americans--regardless of income level--benefited from our country's economic growth. We grew together, and an expanding economy meant better jobs for everyone. A typical family could work hard and experience an increased living standard, whether that meant buying a home or putting a child through college or taking a simple family vacation. But in the past two decades, while our Nation's economy has continued to grow, fewer and fewer Americans are sharing in these gains. The vast majority of this growth--97 percent of our real income growth since 1979--has gone to the top fifth of households. In contrast, the fifth of Americans at the lowest income levels--Americans who previously had been the principal beneficiaries of economic growth--saw there incomes decline by a staggering 17 percent between 1979 and 1993. In short, Mr. President, the rich have gotten richer and poor have gotten poorer.”