Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I agree with the Senator from Rhode Island, Mr. Reed, the ranking member. There is a lot of good stuff in here, but there is budgetary fakery in here. I want to, in my words, describe this budgetary fakery. But before I do, I want to commend the chairman, Senator McCain, and Senator Reed for how they have conducted the committee. I thank them for their professionalism. They show how two leaders of opposite parties can get along, and Lord knows we need a lot more of that around here. But for this budgetary issue, Senator Reed and I would be voting for this on the final passage coming out of the committee. I, too, will be supporting Senator Reed's amendment to try to straighten out some of this budgetary trickery. Let me say that in front of our committee, we have had general after general and admiral after admiral and the top enlisted folks come in and say that sequestration is harming the national security of this country. When we do that, it puts us at a risk that the American people would find intolerable if they knew what was going on. Now, let me see if, in my words, I can describe what this is. After Senator Murray and Congressman Ryan put together a bipartisan budget--and for 2 years this artificial ceiling, like a meat-ax approach, sequestration, across the board was enacted to be implemented over the next several years, not a budgetary strategy of program by program but a meat-ax approach across the board, regardless of the importance of the program.…”