Charles Rangel: “we have gotten off the subject now of substantive legislation, and we are now dealing with Presidential politics. Well…”

“we have gotten off the subject now of substantive legislation, and we are now dealing with Presidential politics. Well, let us do it. The welfare bill now has become like a tennis ball in a political volley, and the question is, Does it make more sense to force the President to keep his commitment to change welfare as we know it, or really do we want to get the President in the position that he has to veto the bill? Well, we have tried so many times on the Republican side to find out just what is it that the President hates. Obviously, it was the tremendous cuts that were recommended by the other side as relates to Medicaid. So what was the solution? Continue to make certain it was one package, until it becomes politically expedient to change that and to put another poison pill, and several other poison pills, so you can go home and say the President has vetoed the welfare bill once again. Who really suffers? It is really the voters, or it is our children? This obsession in saying that the Federal Government cannot take care of them has no responsibility to our children, but that the Governors should be trusted. And then to have the Christian coalition to come up and embrace this in a Christian way. Well, thank God we have the National Council of Catholic Bishops that say the program stinks. Thank God we have the Jewish Council Against Poverty that says it is no good. Thank God we have the Protestant Council that says it is no good.”