Political Quotes

“Mr. President, the chairman of the Appropriations Committee has described in detail the severe consequences for domestic programs and personnel of the amendment offered by Senator Thune. I want to mention three examples of what the Thune amendment would do to critical international programs that mean the difference between life and death for the world's poorest people. It would cut $388 million for global health programs to combat HIV/ AIDS, malaria, Swine Flu, and many other deadly diseases that claim millions of lives annually. It would cut $87 million for aid for refugees, the world's most vulnerable people. Funding for refugees will already be well below the amount provided in fiscal year 2010 because an additional $165 million was included in the fiscal year 2010 Supplemental that is not counted in the CR, so the actual cut for refugee aid including this amendment would be $252 million below the fiscal year 2010 total level. This translates into millions of lives lost. It would cut $42 million for international disaster relief. Funding for this account will already be reduced by $460 million that was included in the fiscal year 2010 supplemental that is not counted in the CR. The total amount under this amendment for disaster relief would therefore be $502 million below the fiscal year 2010 total level. This would severely limit our ability to aid victims of earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, tsunamis, and other natural disasters. These are not theoretical examples.…”