Political Quotes

“I want to thank my colleague for yielding and say to my colleagues that the President, on February 1, sent up a supplemental spending request to fund our activities for our troops and the State Department in Afghanistan. For 5 months, this Chamber has wallowed around trying to find a way to bring this bill to the floor. And look how we've done it. We have a rule that provides for the consideration of the supplemental that self-executes a lot of wasteful spending here in Washington right into the rule itself. But if that isn't bad enough, there are four amendments made in order. If any of those amendments were to fail, it's as if the House has not even considered the bill. It's as though this debate that we're having right now had never even happened. How could such a rule providing for the consideration of an important supplemental spending bill have in there this escape clause that if we don't get our way on all of these amendments, then this really didn't happen? This is supposed to be the greatest legislative body in the history of the world and we're treating it like a bunch of kids in a sandbox. I, frankly, think it's disgraceful. Beyond what the rule does in terms of the consideration of the bill, it also deems the appropriation process to begin. And it outlines a number. We've tried for several months to pass a budget here in the House. But the budget resolution never reached the floor.”