Political Quotes

“I rise in opposition to the underlying bill. Madam Chair, Republicans have returned to the Hill after a hard week at work in our districts really trying to explain away the plan to dismantle Medicare to their constituents. But I want to tell it to you really straight, Madam Chair, and that is that the reason that it's hard to explain is because there really is no explanation. The plan that Republicans have under consideration would indeed end Medicare as we know it. It would end Medicare, and it's just that simple. The plan would turn Medicare into a voucher system that would leave seniors paying more and more out of their pockets for health care. I was out at a town hall meeting at a senior center in my congressional district. It's one where people have gone--they come from every level of the private sector and business--to enjoy their retirement. And they receive Medicare benefits. And I asked them, who in this room, a room of about 100 or so seniors, how many of you would like to go into negotiations with an insurance company about how much you're going to pay for your health care? And no surprise, not a single one of those seniors stood up. But that's exactly what the Ryan plan, the Medicare dismantling plan, would do for seniors. It would say to seniors, we want you to go on your own and negotiate with the big insurance companies. {time} 1640 Well, we know that that can happen for those of us who are younger, but it certainly cannot happen for our seniors.…”