Political Quotes

“Madam President, in a few minutes we will be voting on the child care and development block grant reauthorization bill. I am here to urge my colleagues to vote for final passage. This bill is authored by myself, working shoulder to shoulder with Senator Richard Burr of North Carolina, under our chair and ranking member, Senators Harkin and Alexander. On this bill we showed that we can actually work together to get things done. We worked across the aisle and across the dome with our counterparts in the House. Today we have an opportunity to pass a bill that will actually help American families with one of the biggest challenges they face--affordable childcare. Everywhere I go in Maryland I hear young mothers and not-so-young mothers and grandmothers and actually dads saying that we need childcare that is affordable, accessible, reliable, and safe. This Child Care and Development Block Grant Act will meet those compelling human needs. It focuses on families of modest means--parents who want to work or get ready for work by going to school but can't afford childcare. I wish to take a second to talk about the process and where we stand. This is a bipartisan bill. It is the result of more than 2 years of work, three hearings on the HELP Committee, hundreds of meetings of stakeholders. The House unanimously passed the bill, and last week the Senate voted 96 to 1 on a cloture vote. It is time now to take the bill over the finish line and vote tonight.…”