Political Quotes

“I thank the gentleman from Virginia for yielding, and I also thank him for his tremendous leadership in continuing to craft the Congressional Black Caucus' budget and also for his work as ranking member on the Education and the Workforce Committee. Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong support of this amendment and of the Congressional Black Caucus' alternative budget. I want to, once again, commend Congressman Bobby Scott for leading us to this point and for putting together a budget which really is a budget that reflects our values as a Nation. As a member of the Budget and Appropriations Committees and as chair of our Task Force on Poverty, Income Inequality, and Opportunity, I know that our national budget is a moral document and a statement of our national priorities. The budget that my Republican colleagues have put forward does nothing for families struggling to find a job or those living in poverty. Instead, it includes draconian cuts to programs which, over the last 50 years, cut poverty by one-third, thanks to the War on Poverty. The Republican plan cuts the safety net while 45 million people still are living in poverty. Mr. Chairman, poverty in the African American community is 27.2 percent. In the Latino community, it is 23.5 percent. Our budget addresses this problem with the Half in Ten plan. By coordinating Federal programs and agencies under a national strategy, we will cut poverty by 50 percent in one decade.…”