Louise Slaughter: “Madam Speaker, let me just say that the chairman of the subcommittee, the gentleman from New York, who is a friend but…”

“Madam Speaker, let me just say that the chairman of the subcommittee, the gentleman from New York, who is a friend but who yesterday missed an opportunity to vote to increase funding for veterans health care by allowing the Department of Justice to proceed with their suit against the tobacco companies which, in fact, would recover billions of dollars because the tobacco industry lied to the American people about the addictive quality of its product. We would have been able to return that money to the Veterans' Administration in order to provide for health care for veterans in this country who are suffering. Yet, the chairman missed an opportunity to vote to increase funding for veterans health care, and those on the other side of the aisle voted against us being able to provide these needed funds. So it is disingenuous to talk this morning about how they want to try to preserve resources for veterans health care. Let the record show that the opportunity was there and he said no, as did others. This bill, including the issue on veterans, includes the issue of housing. Unfortunately, this legislation takes us in an opposite direction from our promise for affordable and accessible housing in this Nation.”