Political Quotes

“Mr. President, we have got an issue in this country related to the pandemic but, more specifically, related to children not going back to school. And one thing that is of incredible concern is it appears that the Biden administration, which campaigned saying that they were going to follow science--alleging that the previous administration was not--seems not to be following science but to prejudice their recommendations to fit a political agenda. With that, let me develop my case. The harms of prolonged closure to school children are remarkable. They are well known. It has been up to a year since the schools have been closed, and in the Presiding Officer's home State of California, there are some school systems that are still not reopened. Now, think about this: Places where children go, not just to learn but to have social workers make sure they aren't being abused at home, a dietary staff to make sure they have adequate nutrition--but also to learn--have been closed for a year. Now, we can say: Wait a second, don't worry about that because the children have been given remote learning. There is ample data which shows that particularly the children from lower income families are not logging on even when they are given a broadband computer--given an internet-equipped computer to take home or given WiFi access to use at home. We can imagine it. Mom has to work. There is no one to supervise the child, so the 7-year-old is home by herself while mom is working.…”