Political Quotes

“Madam President, our Nation has been at war for nearly a decade now in Afghanistan and nearly as long in Iraq and we owe a huge debt of gratitude to the men and women who have fought on the front lines as well as to their families who have sacrificed so much. The Senate is considering S. 1963, the Caregivers and Veterans Omnibus Health Services Act of 2009. While I will support its passage, I believe this legislation represents a significant failure of Congress to uphold the responsibility entrusted to us by the citizens of this Nation and our obligation to military families and taxpayers. While there will be self-congratulating press releases from Members of Congress and some Veteran Service Organization lauding the bill's passage, I believe the shortcomings of this legislation--discriminating against most veterans and adding billions of dollars to our national debt--represent a failure of leadership and lack of responsibility. I had hoped that the House of Representatives would make some significant improvements to the legislation over the Senate. Sadly, they did not. The legislation that the Senate will consider still unfairly discriminates against severely disabled veterans from wars and combat prior to September 11, 2001. Many of these brave men and women have needed the assistance of caregivers for decades and have done so without help from the Department of Veterans Affairs.…”