Political Quotes

“the Department of Defense authorization bill that we will resume on Monday contains a ``buried gem.'' This is an amendment that several Senators from both sides of the aisle have been working on for some time. In addition, many members in the other body also have been very supportive of this effort in general. This ``buried gem'' is a provision that will allow military personnel and dependents stationed overseas to participate in a program very similar to the WIC--the Women, Infants and Children--nutrition program. The WIC program in this country has enjoyed full, bipartisan support for many years, and this new provision provides that our forces abroad will be entitled to benefit from a very similar program with eligibility calculated under very similar rules. The chairman of the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee, Senator Lugar, and the ranking member, Senator Harkin, along with the chairman of the nutrition subcommittee, Senator Fitzgerald, worked together with me and other members of the Committee on this WIC in the military issue.”