Nydia M. Velazquez: “the work we do here in Congress is all about priorities, and the decisions we make are a measure of what we value as a…”

“the work we do here in Congress is all about priorities, and the decisions we make are a measure of what we value as a Nation. What this bill shows us very clearly is that low-income children are again not a priority for our President and the Republican leadership. We have spent $350 billion in another tax cut for our wealthiest families, yet we cannot afford to provide Head Start services to two out of every five eligible preschool children. Mr. Chairman, instead of expanding the libraries in Head Start classrooms, this bill will take books out of the hands of our most at-risk children. Rather than providing teachers additional resources, we are jamming even more students into the crowded classrooms. This legislation jeopardizes funding, slashes critical health services, weakens educational standards, and repeals civil rights protections. I am outraged by the Republican bill, but I am not surprised. The Republican leadership constantly extols family values, yet its legislative agenda so clearly fails to value American families.”