Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I am not sure that my colleague and friend from Pennsylvania has read the same bill that I did that we are voting on tonight. This bill, the Protecting Older Workers Against Discrimination Act, has nothing to do with truck drivers, and it has nothing to do with independent contractors. This motion to recommit is nothing more than a distraction from the very important legislation that is embodied in this bill. This MTR has nothing to do with discrimination against older workers, which is what we are seeking to protect against. Why do my friends and colleagues across the aisle want to hurt older working Americans? This legislation, H.R. 1230, was drawn up to fix the damage that has been done by the Supreme Court decision in Gross v. FBL in 2009, which severely weakened age discrimination protections. Since that decision was made, both the Supreme Court and the lower courts have relied on it and applied the Gross reasoning to the other civil rights laws so that it doesn't just hurt older working Americans who are the focus of this legislation, but other people who suffer from employment discrimination. The bill we are considering today is the bare bones of what is needed to rectify the damage caused by that decision. This bill represents a bipartisan, bicameral effort that has been 10 years in the making. H.R.…”