Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I particularly appreciate the comments of my colleague from Maryland about the Affordable Care Act. The fact is, they are taking insurance from 200,000 Ohioans right now who are getting opioid treatment because of the Affordable Care Act, and the vote in the House of Representatives would turn those 200,000 families upside down. They should be ashamed of themselves. Then to go to the White House and celebrate--that is just the ultimate despicable, political act. I just can't imagine that in the 21st century people would actually do that. The FDA has incredible influence over Americans' lives, and the Commissioner of the Federal Food and Drug Administration will lead the agency dedicated to ensuring that our medicine and food supplies are safe. It is the job of the FDA Commissioner, and has been for decades, to be an independent check on big pharmaceutical companies, to crack down on Big Tobacco, and to oversee the safety and efficacy of new prescription drugs, including, most essentially in the last few years, opioid painkillers. Unfortunately, Dr. Scott Gottlieb's record gives me serious concern, as Senator Markey has pointed out so well, that this Commissioner will fall short on all of these measures. We know the havoc that opioid painkillers have wreaked on communities across the country.…”