Tom Harkin: “I respond in kind by thanking the Senator from California for pointing out again what is at stake because we are not…”

“I respond in kind by thanking the Senator from California for pointing out again what is at stake because we are not allowed to offer our amendments. The Senator from California has done a great service not only to the Senate, but to the country, in pointing out why so many people are disenfranchised in this country because they do not have a voice with which to speak here if we are blocked from offering our amendments. I want to talk about another issue we are, again, blocked from addressing in the Senate, and that is the issue of prescription drugs for the elderly. Of all the issues out there that cry out for solutions and intervention, this has to be No. 1 on our plate. Anyone who has gone to their State and talked with the elderly who are on Social Security, who are on Medicare, has heard heartrending story after heartrending story about how much our seniors are paying out of pocket for prescription drugs.”