Political Quotes

“I thank the gentleman from Texas. Mr. Chair, I rise in opposition to the Poe amendment. This amendment would expand the military's authority under the 1033 program to flood our streets with surplus battle-ready military equipment straight from the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan. Specifically, this amendment would allow the Defense Department to transfer equipment, such as the MQ-9 Reaper drone, to Federal and State law enforcement agencies. This is a cynical attack, cloaked in the name of border security on President Obama's executive order, that limits the proliferation of military equipment within the borders of America. Typically, the 1033 program feeds more than $4.3 billion in surplus military grade weaponry, including armored vehicles and tanks, into the United States annually. Now we have Republicans looking to expand the type of weaponry that is distributed to law enforcement under the 1033 program to include military drones. While border security should remain at the forefront of our political discourse, the use of Grim Reaper drones and other military equipment to track and hunt down human beings is not the answer. An increase in manpower, training and facilities, not MQ-9 Reapers, is the way that we should go about our efforts in protecting our borders without sacrificing our values of respect for basic human rights and dignity. Moreover, allowing military equipment, such as predator drones, into America's airspace puts Americans at risk.…”