Kendrick Meek: “Mr. Chairman, I stand to oppose the supplemental for two reasons: Number one, we have the kind of sacrifice that we have…”

“Mr. Chairman, I stand to oppose the supplemental for two reasons: Number one, we have the kind of sacrifice that we have to make here in the Congress, which says that we know that we need a strong military, we need to strengthen our military, but we also need to take care of the poor. We also need to take care of the housing needs of this country. I do think that the two of them are compatible, that we can do both, and we should not use this particular bill to try to even things out between the military and the poor people who need housing and who need care in this country. Mr. Chairman, this bill cuts education, it cuts the National Volunteer Service, it cuts any number of things which mean a lot to us here in the Congress representing all the people. I say to the Congress we can do both. We need to vote no on this supplemental and go back and do the right thing, separating those two, doing what we should do by the military, and certainly immediately sending emergency assistance to our needy counties and cities.”