Political Quotes

“Madam President, too many Americans are out of work. We know that. Without a steady income, it is hard for families to stay current on their monthly expenses. We have all talked about the consequences of losing a job. When I meet with the unemployed in Illinois, one of the first things we talk about is health insurance because that is one of the first casualties. It is very difficult if not impossible for someone unemployed to maintain COBRA payments once they are out of work. They deplete their savings and find themselves in a very vulnerable position. Some fall behind on mortgage payments. More than 4 million families have lost their homes since the housing crisis began in 2008. Another 10.7 million Americans own mortgages that are underwater--the homeowner owes more than the home is worth. One of the major mortgage banking associations in Washington, DC, recently had a short sale of their headquarters building in Washington. They went underwater. They could not pay their mortgage, and they ended up selling. It is happening not just to businesses, obviously, but to a lot of homeowners. It is hard to keep up with these basic expenses. A lot of people who used to donate to food banks are now in line at food banks. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, one out of six Americans really has a food issue. They are hungry at the highest level since the government started taking these numbers in 1995.…”