Political Quotes

“I don't think that there is a Member here who doesn't believe that America is in poor fiscal health. But the question facing us is this: do we value fiscal responsibility enough to make hard choices, give up some of what we want, and come to the compromise that our form of government demands? Or do we see the possibility of a fiscal crisis as nothing more than a chance to advance our ideological ends? What matters more to us--restoring America's health, or gratifying our party's ideology? We cannot have both. It's clear that the first, responsible approach is typified by President Obama, who has offered a compromise plan to reduce our long- term deficit by $4 trillion, even as it gives up spending that Democrats value highly. It's also clear that the reckless, ideological approach is typified by the Republicans who have thus far rejected that compromise because it does not conform to 100 percent of their demands. It's also typified by this radical plan to cut, cap, and end Medicare. This bill, under the guise of responding to a fiscal emergency that they themselves helped create, would write Republicans' most extreme and unpopular priorities into law. It would impose cuts even more extreme than those in this spring's Republican budget, which would have ended Medicare. A vote for this bill would not only be another vote to end Medicare--it would be a vote to dramatically slash programs for the most vulnerable Americans, programs like Medicaid and Social Security.…”