Political Quotes

“I rise, and unfortunately I have to speak against this amendment from my good friend Jerry Moran. But here is the deal. If you talk to the veterans, they like VA care, but there are some cases where community care is very, very important for them to have, either for personal reasons or maybe it is because it is closer to where they live. So community care is also very, very important. Here is the problem I have with Ranking Member Moran's amendment. This bill sets it at a cap of $4 billion. OK. They go over that, they have to come to us and ask for permission to go over that. Under this amendment, they can spend any amount on care, up to $5 billion and even more if they so choose, without our permission. I want Jerry Moran and myself and others to be able to say: Hey, what are you spending that money on? Is it really being spent to the best advantage? By the way, that is not only for community care; that is for VA care too. So I would like to leave that as a cap instead of a floor. That is why I oppose this amendment.”