Political Quotes

“I thank the gentleman for yielding. The notion that the only danger to the American people is a Soviet Union which collapsed 20 years ago or whatever it is we are protecting people from in Germany and other bases such as that ignores the need for better public safety here, better public health here, research on disease, protection against disaster. It's one thing to go to the aid of people after a disaster, but let's do a better job of building those structures that can help diminish it. This is a central question: Are the Members of the House going to say, ``No, we didn't really mean it? No, the Pentagon is not subject to fiscal discipline''? My friend from Oklahoma said, oh, no, there were cuts; there's $78 billion in cuts coming over the next 5 years. This is a $17 billion increase. How can that be a cut? It may be a cut from a $30 billion increase, and that $30 billion increase is a cut from a $200 billion increase, but it ain't a cut. It's a $17 billion increase, and we say let it only be an $8.5 billion increase. So the question is not are we going to treat the Pentagon more generously with less discipline than any other entity. We've conceded that.…”