Frank Lautenberg: “I rise with pity and anger that this administration can be so insulated from reality that millions of American children…”

“I rise with pity and anger that this administration can be so insulated from reality that millions of American children will be denied health insurance because of the President of the United States and a small minority in the House of Representatives. There was a critical vote in the House today: whether to override the President's veto of the children's health insurance bill. Two hundred and eighty six votes were needed to override this veto, but we fell 13 votes short: 273 to 156. One hundred and fifty six Members of the House of Representatives cowered to the President and turned their back on our children. They turned their back on almost 4 million kids nationwide who would have gotten health care, including 100,000 in my home State of New Jersey. And they cast these harmful votes against the will of the American people. Eighty-one percent of the public supports this bill. Yet the President's puppets in the House said no. They chose ideology over children. They choose tax breaks for millionaires over a doctor's visit for a sick child. They are more than willing to spend $12 billion a month on Iraq, but not $7 billion a year for children's health. You have to question the moral priorities of those who oppose funding children's health care in America. Civilized societies take care of their children. I believe we are a civilized society. I just think we have the wrong person in the White House.”