if you just want to worry about the deficit and how we spend money in this country, it is smart economics to invest in our children.

We want to make sure, and I don't think there is any disagreement, regardless of ones political philosophy, that we want all of our kids to grow up strong and healthy and smart.

let me begin by saying that I get a little bit tired of being lectured to about deficit reduction and how significant a problem our deficit is by many folks who voted for legislation time after time over the last 10 years that, in fact…

I ask unanimous consent for an additional 2 minutes, and I thank my friend from Alabama. The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Conrad). Is there objection? Without objection, it is so ordered.

I mean, that seems clear. We are all Senators, and we have large staffs. It is hard for us to get through the bureaucracy.

I would hope, Madam Chair, as somebody who really has a strong detestation of bureaucracy in general, that we can work toward a system where these guys will have somebody who they trust that they can call up 24 hours a day who will help…

We have too much bureaucracy, so let us fix it.

I would hope that we make sure that for the rest of the lives of all of those people who have served that this Congress accepts the moral responsibility to make sure that they have all the care that they need.

everybody knows this country faces a major deficit crisis and we have a national debt of over $14 trillion. What has not been widely discussed, however, is how we got into this situation in the first place. A huge deficit and huge national…

Please stop printing money.

I said that, really, the only solution to this, the negative equity states, will be massive principal reductions.

this is going to be such a--you know, there are so many competing problems in this industry.

I frankly don't know what they are talking about.

The Hyde amendment simply prohibits abortions being performed by facilities that receive Federal funding.

In general, if one walks into an emergency room, one gets the care for the problem that one has.

The issue is, it seems to me, is there a need for more primary health care access in the United States of America?

Is it fair to say that honest people can have differences of opinion ascertaining what is, in fact, utilization of emergency rooms, whether it is for a true emergency or not?

In my view Planned Parenthood does an excellent job and I strongly support it.

I believe that health care is a right, R-I-G-H-T, regardless of income.

Thank you all very much for being with us today to discuss this very important issue.

I thank Chairman Sanders, Senator Paul, and members of the subcommittee for inviting me to come and give testimony about how we in my community have begun to lower ER visits, decrease healthcare costs, and improve the health of our…

Would you agree that it makes a lot more sense to try to find a medical home for people?

I think most of us would agree that our health care system today has many very, very serious problems.

So the point here is that in a rural area, in a low-income area we have gone a long way through the establishment of six satellite programs to provide quality, cost-effective health care to the people of that area.

The United States today is the only Nation in the industrialized world that does not guarantee health care to all of its people as a right.