Marcy Kaptur: “Thank you so much, Congressman Garamendi and Congressman Tonko. I just wanted to say on Social Security and Medicare…”

“Thank you so much, Congressman Garamendi and Congressman Tonko. I just wanted to say on Social Security and Medicare, I'm proud to stand with my Democratic colleagues. Social Security is an earned benefit, and it's one that belongs to the American people. We all know its power, not just to allow seniors to live a decent life in their retirement years. But also it's power to lift the economy because seniors spend, mainly on their grandchildren. And they move those dollars into the economy. You watch with that cost-of-living increase, which I'm very happy about, next year, and the fact that the Medicare offset will not be so great that seniors will have extra buying power and they will watch every penny. I am just so proud to be a part of a tradition of the Democratic Party that has fought for Social Security and has fought for Medicare, not just for the few but for all. And we have made the country a better country as a result. So I think it's fair to say that, yes, it is true the Republican Party has fought Social Security. Can't they find something else? I don't know what the problem is when the vast majority of the American people, I think like 99.99 percent of the American people, agree with this. I don't know what their problem is. Maybe they're not living in reality most of the time. I am just very proud to be a part of this tradition along with my colleagues and to say to our senior citizens that next year will be a better year than this year.…”