Political Quotes

“I may have a bruised eye but it is nothing compared to the bruises the American people and our Federal workers are taking from this Republican Congress. I rise today on behalf of the employees and patients of the Bronx Veterans Affairs Medical Center and the hundreds of thousands of Federal employees who are stuck in the middle of this budget debate. Here is a copy of a check for $1.51, which is what one worker at the Bronx VA Hospital Center received when she opened her paycheck in my district last Friday, $1.51, Mr. Speaker. In New York City that can get you this: One transit token to get home from work, and one penny extra to spend in any way you see fit. And if you live in Co-op City as I do, it will not even get you home, because Co-op City is a two-fare zone. The staff of the Bronx VA Hospital has begun soliciting food donations to distribute to the staff because the workers cannot afford to buy food. It is an outrage that those who can care for our veterans have to go hat in hand to beg for food. I call upon you Republican colleagues to stop shutting the Government down. Think of people who live from paycheck to paycheck.”