Political Quotes

“we have a number of us gathered here this evening because we are so, so appalled--and that is the word--by the process that is going on with healthcare. The idea that we could affect one-sixth of the Nation's economy--the life and death, literally, of millions of Americans; the whole structure of our healthcare system, affecting doctors, nurses, and rural hospital workers--and that we could do all of that in such darkness, behind such closed doors is the greatest miscarriage of legislative practice that I have seen since I have been here in the House and Senate. We heard our colleagues, when the ACA came up, talk about an open process: Read the bill. My good friend the leader will say: Well, we are going to have an amendment process. No, we are not. Unless we change reconciliation, we will have a mere 10 hours of debate on our side and then amendments seriatim for something as important as this? To say that we are having regular order, to say that we are having an amendment process, in all due respect, is a joke. Let me go over when we were in charge to show the complete contradiction. The Senate Finance Committee held more than 50 hearings--Democrats and Republicans. How many hearings has the Senate Finance Committee had on this bill, this unknown bill? None. On the House bill--they are using the House bill, as I understand it, as a model. None.…”