Political Quotes

“First of all, I want to start by congratulating Chairwoman Lowey and Ranking Member Granger on working together. I want to congratulate the members of the Appropriations Committee. I know there wasn't always agreement. I am hopeful, as we go forward, we can reach agreement on the individual bills or the minibuses or omnibus that we will ultimately pass to fund government in a timely fashion. Mr. Speaker, I know that Mrs. Lowey and Ms. Granger worked together towards that objective. I want to congratulate all the members. Mr. Speaker, I am also proud of the fact that we funded 96 percent of the government through this House prior to June 30 of this year. That has not been done in over a decade, and it was the hard work of the chair and the ranking member and the members of the committee. Even though there was not agreement on the substance at the end, without that cooperation, that could not have happened, so I thank the committee and its leadership. As majority leader and as a member of the Appropriations Committee, albeit on leave, I am focused, and we are focused as a majority, on doing our job and providing certainty for the military, for Federal agencies, for workers, for businesses, and for the American people that the Congress can, in fact, do its work in a responsible way. I regret that the Senate has not done its work. They have not passed a single appropriations bill, not one.…”