Political Quotes

“Mr. President, this is at least the third time the Senate is debating Senator Marshall's proposal to terminate the national emergency declaration related to COVID-19. I am going to have just a few brief remarks on why the Senate ought to vote this down and move on to the crucial year-end priorities that actually have a chance of becoming law. First, the Marshall resolution has been referred to the Senate Finance Committee. As the chairman of the committee, we have long focused on healthcare and, particularly, Medicare. And my view is that the Marshall resolution is part of a larger effort to create more redtape and less flexibility in American healthcare. Now, I have been talking to a lot of Oregonians about many issues over the last few months. And I can just say, nobody has come up to me in one of our iconic Fred Meyer stores or to a townhall meeting and said, ``Hey, Ron, we need more healthcare redtape.'' I want to be specific about what this means. The Marshall resolution will make it harder to keep waivers on the books that have helped resolve critical shortages of healthcare providers in hospitals overwhelmed with sick patients. The policies allowed under the national emergency have also helped address shortages of medical supplies needed to treat patients and protect medical workers.…”