Greg Ganske: “I had not planned on talking that much about taxes today, but we will have a tax bill come up on the floor tomorrow, so…”

“I had not planned on talking that much about taxes today, but we will have a tax bill come up on the floor tomorrow, so in light of the last hour's discussion on taxes, I might as well give my opinion on this issue. Mr. Speaker, prior to coming to Congress, I was elected in 1994, I was a reconstructive surgeon in Des Moines, Iowa. I had been in solo practice for 10 years. I took care of women who had had cancer operations, farmers who had put their hands into machines, babies who were born with birth defects. I enjoyed it very much and I still do. I still go overseas and do surgical missions. I expect that some day I will probably return to that. So people would ask me, why are you thinking about running for Congress? Are you tired of medicine? I said, no, I am not tired of medicine at all. I love it. It is a way to solve problems. But I will say, Mr. Speaker, there are a couple of problems that I was really concerned about. I was concerned about a welfare system that I thought was not working. I took care of 14- and 15-year-old young mothers who would bring a baby with a cleft lip or palate into my office. They would be on welfare. There would almost never be a dad there with them, because the system was set up so that they only get benefits if a dad is not there. I did not think that was right. One of the things I am proudest of since coming to Congress is the fact that this Republican Congress reformed welfare. It is working well.”