Political Quotes

“despite the Republicans' promise to veterans during the budget process, we find ourselves with a VA-HUD appropriations bill that is shamefully inadequate. We have cut the $3.4 billion increase that we promised veterans in half. Even though the Committee on Appropriations took out the President's recommendations to impose new enrollment fees and copayments on veterans, they did this by simply shifting funds and adding no new money. Therefore, we have a new $264 million hole in the VA budget. Chairman Smith and Ranking Member Evans had an amendment to restore $1.8 billion. But it was denied a waiver by the Committee on Rules. Mr. Edwards had an amendment that would have added $2.2 billion to VA health care for all veterans including priority 8 veterans, they were recently shut out of VA health care altogether, but it was also denied. A few weeks ago some of my Republican colleagues held a press conference in order to calm the fears of the veterans across America who were concerned that their health care system would not be adequately funded. They assured the veterans that funding veterans service was a priority of the Republican Party. A priority of the Republican Party. We now know that their words were empty. Their promises were nothing, nothing but empty rhetoric. We can find money for a massive tax cut. We can find money for Pakistan. We can find money for Turkey. We are spending $4 billion a month in Iraq.”