Political Quotes

“today I rise in support of 2009 Budget Conference Report. I know many Members here today shared with me the opinion that the President's proposed budget was ``dead on arrival.'' This conference agreement upholds that opinion and goes a step further by rejecting many of the proposed cuts the President suggested in February including his proposal to gut billions of dollars from Medicare and Medicaid. For the last two years the House has held true to its commitment to American families by increasing funding for domestic priorities such as energy assistance program, state and local law enforcement programs, education, among many others. And while it might be hard for this administration to grasp, this Congress has proposed increases in funding for domestic priorities without increasing our deficit. In fact, this conference agreement will balance the budget by 2012 and provide a surplus of $22 billion in 2012 and $10 billion in 2013. What I am most pleased about is the commitment this conference agreement makes to areas that are of the most importance to me-- Medicare, Medicaid, education, job-training and Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, among many others. Our veterans, many of whom have served multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, will benefit from this budget through a $3.7 billion increase in funding. This is a sharp contrast from what President Bush originally proposed--$18 billion in new fees over five years.”