Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, I am going to speak in opposition to H.R. 1868, but I also feel obligated to point out that you may say that the inflation rate is zero, but if you bought a gallon of gas, purchased a two-by- four at Home Depot, or bought a sack of Quikrete at Lowe's, you would know that inflation is a real phenomenon. But I do rise in opposition to H.R. 1868. There was no effort made on the part of the majority party to work with Republicans on what should be a bipartisan priority, and that is provider relief. I have heard from physicians and I have heard from hospitals in Texas that struggled financially throughout the pandemic. But the bill we have before us today is simply an excuse to wipe out the scorecard of the fiscal impact of this $1.9 trillion partisan package passed last week. Last week, Republicans warned that this would threaten cuts to Medicare, but those warnings were repeatedly ignored. If the House majority really cared, if the House Democrats really cared about meaningful healthcare provider relief, they would have worked to gain Republican support, worked with us to build a bill from the ground up. Instead, this bill is coming toward us as a Hail Mary pass right before the Medicare sequester cuts go into effect in April. As a physician, I have deep empathy for those whose medical practices have been impacted and are now struggling to stay open.…”