Political Quotes

“I am here to speak on behalf of my good friend Gina McCarthy and her nomination to head the Environmental Protection Agency. But before I do so, I would like to raise an issue I raised during a hearing of the Armed Services Committee. I have come directly from that hearing. I am here to express my deep dissatisfaction, in fact my outrage, at a form of military assistance that will literally waste a total of more than $1 billion in taxpayer money. In fact, we have just contracted and announced that contract in June for about 30 Russian Mi-17 helicopters that will cost American taxpayers $550 million to buy from Rosoboronexport, the Russian export agency, controlled by the Russian Government, those helicopters for the Afghan national forces that lack pilots and maintenance personnel to fly and repair and operate these helicopters. They will be sitting on the runways of Afghan airfields without any use, rusting, literally wasting American taxpayer funds. Don't believe me when I make these statements. Those facts come from the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan who completed a report recently, stating succinctly, clearly, irrefutably, that we are wasting $1 billion in taxpayer money buying Russian helicopters for Afghan national forces that, very simply, cannot use them.…”