Harold Volkmer: “the Republicans say ``Listen to me, listen to my words, but don't watch what I do.'' What I am alluding to is a budget…”

“the Republicans say ``Listen to me, listen to my words, but don't watch what I do.'' What I am alluding to is a budget, a Republican budget that passed the House and also the one that passed the Senate, with massive cuts in Medicare and Medicaid in order to give tax relief to the wealthy. What do these massive cuts for Medicare and Medicaid mean to rural Missouri, where I am from? It means loss, a huge loss in revenues for my hospitals. It means many of my senior citizens who are on a low income and Social Security will have to pay money they do not have in order to give tax cuts of $20,000 for those who earn over $250,000 a year. That is not right. That is not fair. That is mean-spirited. We need rural hospitals in rural Missouri. We do not need them to be shut down because they want to give tax cuts to the wealthy. Mr. Speaker, think twice before you act.”