Political Quotes

“I appreciate the time yielded by the gentlelady from New York. Madam Speaker, I rise today to express my strong opposition to H.R. 83, the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act of 2015. Just over a year ago I stood here urging the Republican majority to allow us to vote on the legislation to reopen the government during a 16-day shutdown. At that time the majority's gimmick was called a minibus, essentially cherry-picked programs within Federal agencies to be funded one by one. Today I am troubled to have to rise yet again to oppose another gimmicky bill that provides piecemeal funding and undermines national security. Once again, the Republican House leadership has laid before us a package that, by design, seems to promote partisan division and appeal to a faction of its party that is blindly determined to punish the Department of Homeland Security for its grievances against the President. When we returned from Thanksgiving last week, House appropriators were hopeful that we could consider and pass a full omnibus bill. Unfortunately, today we are forced to vote on legislation that provides full-year funding for all Federal agencies except the Department of Homeland Security. In previous Congresses, such an approach would be considered absurd. It is important that we appreciate the consequences of a short-term continuing resolution for DHS. Contracting for the final national security cutter will be delayed, potentially driving up the cost.…”