Political Quotes

“Mr. President, while my colleague is here, just a brief reaction--and I think my colleague knows that you don't go out and negotiate from the seat of your pants on the floor. First, I want to be clear on this proposal. This is a proposal the Democratic leader and I, as the ranking Democrat on the Finance Committee, worked very closely together on. It is a proposal that many Senate Democrats think could be the basis of reform, and lots of people who look at the future of these kinds of economic challenges find this idea attractive. That is No. 1. No. 2, my friend from South Dakota thinks that somehow the benefits can just be turned on with a snap of the finger. The National Association of State Workforce Agencies have said that the proposal offered by the Senator from Arizona would not get benefits that make rent and pay groceries to people anytime soon. The question is, Are you going to solve a real economic challenge here? The economy has faced, last week, a staggering economic contraction. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the last numbers, there are four unemployed workers for every job. This idea that unemployed folks don't want to work is just insulting. What unemployed people tell me at home is that if somebody offers them a job on Monday night, they will be there first thing Tuesday morning. What is really needed are solutions to this question of unemployment insurance that ties the benefits to the real world conditions on the ground.…”