Tom Coburn: “This is a straightforward amendment that says if you pay into the Patent Trademark Office to have a patent evaluated…”

“This is a straightforward amendment that says if you pay into the Patent Trademark Office to have a patent evaluated, that money ought to be spent on the process. We have now stolen almost $900 million from the Patent Office. We have almost a million patents in arrears. We have fantastic leadership in the Patent Office, and we will not send them the money to do their job. It is unconscionable that we will not do this. I understand the arguments against it, and I reserve the remainder of our time.”