Political Quotes

“Hurricane Katrina put a human face on hardship. It reminded us that there are Americans who work hard and pay their taxes and play by the rules, yet are still hanging on by a thread. It reminded us how easily that thread can break. In the clearest terms possible, it communicated the value, both tangible and intangible, of government assistance. Many people who suffered from Katrina have relied on Medicaid, a government health care program for poor families, for families who are working but do not make enough or have health insurance. Yet as we return to Washington this week after surveying the damage from this terrible storm, Republican leaders are pursuing $10 billion, $10 billion, in cuts to that Medicaid program, in large part because they are insisting on more tax cuts for the wealthiest 1 percent of the people of our country. As we saw the poorest in New Orleans left behind while those who were more affluent were able to escape, this Congress, frankly, is mimicking that same process, that same scenario, where we are giving tax cuts to the wealthiest citizens, while the poorest and the middle class and those who are working hard and playing by the rules and paying their taxes but who cannot afford health care, we are leaving them behind. Our Nation's leaders must stop blaming the poor for having the same health care needs we all do. Helping the poor secure health care is not a frivolous extravagance; it is an expression of our values as a Nation.…”