Political Quotes

“I thank my good friend from Texas (Mr. Castro) and my other good friend from Texas (Mr. McCaul) for their leadership and generosity in allowing us to bring this bipartisan bill before the floor. Madam Speaker, I rise, of course, in support of H.R. 2166, the Global Health Security Act, which reaffirms the United States' commitment in promoting global health security. I first introduced this bill in partnership with my colleague, Steve Chabot of Ohio, 2 years ago, before the pandemic, when we identified a dearth of leadership and strategy around U.S. planning for a global health security emergency. Tragically, the global COVID-19 pandemic has underscored not only the need for a robust Federal response to such a crisis, but also the importance of investing in global health security around the world because viruses and diseases do not respect national borders. We are truly in this together. Amid concerns about the response to COVID-19, I welcome the fact that the House Foreign Affairs Committee coalesced around a bipartisan solution that addresses deficiencies in the current response as well as to demonstrate a commitment to a comprehensive and sustainable approach to global health security. One of the critical lessons learned during the U.S. response to the 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa was the need for a permanent designated official responsible for coordinating the interagency response to a global health security emergency in the event of a pandemic.…”