Political Quotes

“Thank you. Mr. Speaker, it's my pleasure to be here this evening to join my colleagues to talk about Medicare. As you may know, before coming to Congress, I served as a general surgeon in my district for the last 30 years, and many of my patients were on Medicare. And as a practicing physician, I often expressed to my patients--and my understanding wife--about our broken health care system here in America. In fact, that's one of the reasons I decided to get more involved in the political process and actually run for Congress. Most Americans don't understand that Medicare will be bankrupt within the decade if we don't do something to fix it. I didn't make this up. The actuary for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services actually provided this number. You know, I think if you ask most 65-year-olds just beginning to use Medicare, most would be very worried to learn that their primary health care provider was projected to be bankrupt within the decade. In fact, according to a recent Social Security Trustees report, Medicare seniors should expect to see a 22 percent benefit cut or workers should expect to see a 22 percent hike in their payroll taxes unless some action is taken. The bottom line is, if action isn't taken today, seniors in the program today, not to mention those looking to retire in the near future, begin to lose their benefits.…”