Political Quotes

“this amendment is modeled on principles that the majority has articulated in this chamber since January, and it is my hope that we will have strong bipartisan support for its adoption. Members on both sides of the aisle--whether they support consolidation within the State Department or not--should find this amendment very attractive. We should know what our actions will cost or save before we engage in a massive reorganization. The amendment is designed to ensure that this body does not unknowingly write a blank check in the course of passing this bill, something that concerns all of us who are trying to save taxpayer dollars from frivolous Government spending. For those who are not on the International Relations Committee, let it be known that there is presently no way of knowing if the bill, as reported, will save one penny as a result of reorganization. Under this bill, we abolish three agencies and direct the former heads to report to work and assume new roles within the State Department. Yet there is no specific plan on how this will be accomplished. There is no plan in place to reduce any staff. There is no plan in place to eliminate the cost of maintaining buildings, if indeed any are found not to be needed, and there is no plan in place to determine the costs and savings in buying out leases and service contracts. In fact, as the legislation is written, a consolidation plan is not required until March 1996. How do we do this in the blind?”