Political Quotes

“I thank the gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Cole) for yielding me the customary 30 minutes for debate. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to debate the rule for H.R. 4974, the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, and H.R. 5243, the Zika Response Appropriations Act. There are many things to praise in the military construction and VA appropriations bill. This is the first of the FY17 appropriations bills to reach the floor, and I hope that we soon have the opportunity to vote on other important appropriations packages. The legislation, as pointed out by my good friend, provides $81.6 billion in total discretionary funding for fiscal year 2017 to fund military construction projects and programs within the Department of Veterans Affairs. It provides funding to hire 242 new VA staff to help reduce the VA's backlog in processing claims, as well as important funding for mental health programs and suicide prevention outreach. Certain VA medical services, including long-term care for veterans and support services for caregivers, are also included in this bill, which increase health program funding by approximately 5 percent as compared to the last fiscal year. As co-chair of the Congressional Homelessness Caucus, I also welcome the inclusion of the President's full fiscal year '17 request for veterans homelessness outreach programs in this legislation.…”