Bernie Sanders: “everybody agrees that the government cannot do everything. But some of us believe that in a civilized society the…”

“everybody agrees that the government cannot do everything. But some of us believe that in a civilized society the government, which is all of us, has the responsibility to make certain that every American enjoys a minimal level of decency. Yes; the government should make certain that no child goes hungry. Yes; the government should make certain that all children have access to education. And yes; relevant to today's debate, the government should make certain that all people can live in adequate and decent housing. Yes; we should be doing that. Mr. Chairman, today throughout this country millions of working people are spending 40, 50, 60 percent of their limited incomes on housing. That means they have barely enough money to feed their families, put aside a few dollars for education or health care needs. This legislation would simply add to that problem. There are elderly people today living on fixed incomes from Social Security who should not be asked to pay 50 or 60 percent of their limited incomes on public housing. This legislation would allow that to happen.”