Political Quotes

“Close enough. Mr. President, we estimate the cost of Hurricane Katrina could reach $150 billion. Some Senators speculate even more. We are passing a second supplemental appropriations bill which I assume will pass unanimously: $51.8 billion on top of $10.5 billion last week and no end in sight. This is an enormous responsibility, a responsibility that challenges us in terms of our Nation's budget priorities. Hurricane Katrina has redrawn the map of the gulf coast. It has also redrawn the budget in Washington. When we reached an agreement earlier this year on a budget, it was a much different environment. We did not anticipate the staggering expenses of Hurricane Katrina. Some did not anticipate the continuing costs of the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, which should never be forgotten. We included in that budget resolution a proposal for $70 billion in tax cuts, the first time in the history of the United States of America we suggested we would make tax cuts in the midst of a war. Usually, a President calls on the Nation to sacrifice during a war, to understand that we each have to give a little to help our troops overseas. This administration suggested the opposite. For the most well off in America, we proposed cutting their taxes in the midst of a war and in the face of the largest deficits in the history of the United States of America. That was before hurricane Katrina. The world has changed. The deficit for this year has been estimated to be $331 billion.…”