Carolyn Maloney: “It is true that women disproportionately rely on government programs and, regrettably, women are the largest segment…”

“It is true that women disproportionately rely on government programs and, regrettably, women are the largest segment, older women are the largest segment of people living in poverty. So the discrimination that has existed in pay, there is still, for over 30 years, an unexplained gap between men and women, the pay gap, well over 20 percent; and this then translates into your Social Security--less Social Security, less pension--and the need for Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare to help women. And also, a lot of women that are around the age of 55, when their spouses die and they've been stay-at-home-mothers and wives, they lose the coverage that their husbands have, and there is a gap that's not there until they reach Medicare age of 65. So they rely disproportionately on these safety net programs. So any cuts--and I hear from my constituents, I know that you do, too, that say: I can't absorb another cut to my Medicare; I can't absorb a cut to my Social Security. And I believe that's one reason why Democrats have fought so hard to keep that safety net in place for working men and women in our country.”