Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I rise to speak about the nomination of Pam Patenaude to be Deputy Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Ms. Patenaude comes to this nomination with valuable experience in the field of housing and community development and a history of affordable housing advocacy. In her previous work at HUD, she helped administer the Department's disaster relief efforts following Hurricane Katrina. While I don't agree with Ms. Patenaude on every element of housing policy, I respect her experience, and I respect her government service in her recent work to raise awareness about the affordable housing shortage facing so many families. I agreed with her in her testimony in front of the Banking Committee that ``as a nation we must recognize that housing is not just a commodity but a foundation for economic mobility and personal growth.'' That is why I was so troubled that during her nomination hearing, Ms. Patenaude defended the administration's terrible budget for the agency she has been nominated to help lead. The President would cut more than $7 billion, 15 percent, from HUD's budget, right in the midst of a shortage of affordable housing, about which she so articulately spoke. This budget cut would eliminate programs like community development block grants and the HOME Program.…”