Political Quotes

“in June, I voted against the Republican budget reconciliation bill in the House because I had several concerns about how the legislation would negatively impact many American citizens. I was especially concerned about the impact on children, seniors, the poor and hard-working Americans who have difficulty making ends meet each month or who worry about health care for their families. The House-passed bill proposed to cut Medicare by $115 billion and Medicaid by nearly $14 billion over 5 years. I could not in good conscience support such cuts knowing that the burden would fall disproportionately on those least able to afford it. However, I voted for the budget reconciliation conference report because I believe it represents a far more fair and rational plan to balance our Federal budget by the year 2002. While I am not pleased with the level of cuts retained in the agreement for Medicare and Medicaid, I consider this bill a significant improvement. This agreement restructures and preserves the Medicare program. It improves the original plan for Medicare and extends the life of the part A trust fund for at least 10 years. The agreement provides $1.5 billion to ease the impact of increased Medicare premiums on low-income seniors.”