Political Quotes

“I want to be very clear again about what we are discussing. The gentleman from Washington was very honest. He said he does not think this budget is enough. I will be honest and say that, even if this amendment passes, I think it will be too much. I asked for a realistic threat assessment. I asked the same intellectual and mathematical standards be applied to the Pentagon as elsewhere. We do not do enough with the FBI. We do not do enough to reduce serious hazardous weight. We do not do enough to improve air traffic safety. We do not do enough to provide health care for older people. We are about to tell older people they will have to take some reduction in the kind of health care that is available to them. You cannot exempt one area from that. If you reject this amendment, that is what you do. This amendment does not cut the Pentagon. It cuts it from the inflation adjusted figure which I thought we were not using anymore. This amendment says the Pentagon and the intelligence entities. Let us be clear, not just the Pentagon, It is all the intelligence agencies as well. They will get the same amount of money this year as they had last year. Unlike almost any other agency of government, they will be held harmless against the reductions. Now look at the threats in the world. Yes, we have Iran and we have Iraq. We had them when we had the Soviet Union as well.”