Thomas Daschle: “I find it all the more ironic, I guess, that at the very time they oppose $7.5 billion, they would be contemplating a…”

“I find it all the more ironic, I guess, that at the very time they oppose $7.5 billion, they would be contemplating a supplemental of the magnitude the Senator has just announced--a $20 billion supplemental. If $20 billion is good for February, why isn't $7.5 billion good for December? Where is the difference? Why is it that we must wait? And what happens between December and February if something, God forbid, would happen? So it seems to me that it makes the case all the more that this isn't necessarily about money, it isn't about the need. It cannot be about the administration's intentions. I do not understand the basis for their opposition, if, in just 60 days, as the Senator from North Dakota reports, they could be preparing a supplemental of the magnitude he has just discussed. So I hope our colleagues can clarify that because I think the $20 billion is a clear indication they, too, understand the importance of homeland defense. What we are arguing over is whether we ought to do it now or we ought to do it later.”