Political Quotes

“I want to speak in support of the Blunt- Murray-Graham-Leahy amendment, which provides $1.1 billion in emergency funding to combat the Zika virus. The map of the United States beside me beside me shows the Centers for Disease Control's estimate of the range of the two types of mosquito that may spread Zika. As you can see, this public health emergency is not in some far-off land. It could easily end up in the backyards of tens of millions of Americans. Before I discuss the pending bill I want to mention that earlier this afternoon I voted for the Nelson-Rubio Zika supplemental, which would have provided the full $1.9 billion requested by the President months ago. It is mystifying to me that Republicans voted to defeat that amendment, considering that Zika is spreading faster and in more ways than predicted when the President first requested those funds. The excuse we have heard for months, particularly from House Republican leaders, is that they don't have enough information about the proposed uses of the funds. Have they bothered to attend any of the briefings, or if briefings weren't enough, to pick up the phone and call the head of the CDC, or the Director of the National Institute of Health, or any of the other experts who have been sounding alarm bells since last year? In a little over a year the Zika virus has spread from Brazil to almost every country and territory in this hemisphere.…”