Political Quotes

“I join Senator Levin in submitting a resolution that will designate the week of August 25, 2002, as National Fraud Against Senior Citizens Awareness Week. This designation of this week will increase public awareness of mail, Internet and telemarketing schemes that target elderly Americans. It is through increased awareness on the part of seniors, their families, and their caregivers that such schemes, which rob seniors not only of their hard-earned savings but of their dignity and self respect, can best be prevented. This kind of fraud, unfortunately, is pervasive. Last year alone, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service responded to 66,000 mail fraud complaints, arrested nearly 1,700 mail fraud offenders, and secured nearly 1,500 convictions. The elderly are often especially vulnerable, and they are frequently among the least able to afford being defrauded. The AARP, the National Association of Attorneys General, and the Federal Trade Commission have estimated that 85 percent of the victims of telemarketing fraud are age 65 or older.”