Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I am here to express my opposition to the base bill and to speak on behalf of inclusion, to speak on behalf of child care, to speak on behalf of true compassion, to speak on behalf of the Democratic substitute to H.R. 4737. There is no compassion in requiring States and Territories to increase workforce requirements when 39 States and all of the Territories are struggling currently to meet work requirements. In an atmosphere of recession, unprecedented unemployment rates and lack of available jobs, the base bill would create the scenario where precious resources are spent on fines and the safety net becomes full of holes. There is no compassion in continuing to restrict access to programs that are supposed to help all American families get help for work. The base bill denies the insular areas of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and my home of Guam, which have been required to meet all federally imposed TANF obligations, from accessing all the same TANF program resources available to State. The insular areas are not eligible for TANF supplemental grants for population increases, for many other programs, and the Democratic substitute does so. I urge my colleagues to support the Democratic substitute.”