Political Quotes

“Let me thank our ranking member for yielding but also for his very steady and competent leadership of this subcommittee on our behalf. Also, I want to thank the chairman for his consistent work at bipartisanship, even though this is still yet another funding bill brought to the floor that woefully underfunds our critical Federal programs. The fiscal year 2016 Commerce, Justice, Science Appropriations bill really should reflect our Nation's commitment to growing our economy, keeping our communities safe, and driving innovation. Instead, it makes critical cuts to programs at a time when they are needed most. In the Justice title, this bill includes no funding for the Community Oriented Policing Services Hiring Program and a $68 million cut to juvenile justice programs from fiscal year 2015. It also includes a $75 million cut to the Legal Services Corporation, which provides critical legal services to low-income Americans. Given what is happening in communities around the country, especially in terms of communities of color and law enforcement, these are truly unwise and misguided cuts. Under the Science title, the National Science Foundation, which funds critical research at the University of California at Berkeley in my congressional district, is funded at $50 million below the fiscal year 2015 enacted level. These cuts are a huge blow to investments we should be making in scientific research to keep our Nation competitive.…”