Political Quotes

“Madam Speaker, I rise to object to the administration's threat to issue a national emergency declaration and reprogram money that has been allocated for Hurricane Harvey. I join a bipartisan group of Texas legislators in opposition to this diversion, including my former colleagues from the Texas Senate. This administration is seeking any funds or any means to go around Congress to build his wall. Congress is a coequal branch of government, Madam Speaker, with a duty to appropriate funds for Hurricane Harvey. Any action to delay or divert those funds puts lives at risk and potentially displaces people from their homes, many in my own district in Houston. We must do more to mitigate the damages caused by flooding. Diverting disaster funds to pay for a wall will not accomplish that goal. I am proud of the bipartisan opposition to this effort, and I hope that we can work together in that same spirit to end this Trump shutdown. ____________________”