Political Quotes

“I wish to congratulate the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Combest), the chairman of the committee, and the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Stenholm), the ranking member, for the job that they have done. Specifically, I want to congratulate the gentleman from Virginia (Chairman Goodlatte) and commend him on his efforts here today regarding the EBT bill. This common sense piece of legislation will achieve portability for the delivery of food stamp benefits in every State across the Nation. The legislation that my colleague has introduced is very important as the States make the transition from paper coupons or food stamps to a more efficient electronic system. As my colleagues know, the State of Ohio has been an innovator in this area, having developed an extremely successful Smart Card program for the delivery of food stamp benefits to more than 300,000 recipients in my home State. In this regard, I wish to engage my colleague from Virginia in a colloquy to receive assurances that his bill will in no way harm the innovative technology that Ohio has adopted for delivering benefits.”