Political Quotes

“I am so proud to rise today in support of my legislation, H.R. 6945, the Supporting Pregnant and Parenting Women and Families Act. For too long, previous Democrat administrations have weaponized the Department of Health and Human Services against pregnancy resource centers by attempting to cut off their Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, or TANF, funding. This bill puts a definitive stop to that harassment. It clarifies that these centers fundamentally meet the statutory purposes of TANF by providing essential assistance to children and expectant mothers. The TANF block grant is built on four specific statutory goals, and States have broad authority to pursue them all. Let's look at the second goal: to 'end the dependence of needy parents on government benefits through work, job preparation, and marriage.' Cash assistance alone does not end dependence. It often merely just manages it. Pregnancy resource centers offer the best hope of achieving this goal by providing parenting classes and life skills training to help that mother move from a crisis to self-sufficiency. Pregnancy centers are the backbone of community-based support. The impact of their work is undeniable. In 2024 alone, over 2,700 centers aided nearly 3.8 million women, children, and families. These centers provided over $452 million in total medical care, education, and material goods.”