David Obey: “Mr. Speaker, this bill is a victory for American values. It is a triumph of American's priorities in areas like…”

“Mr. Speaker, this bill is a victory for American values. It is a triumph of American's priorities in areas like education, the environment and Medicare, over the politics and the policies of government gridlock and shutdown. It shows the power of mainstream values in this Nation and the utter bankruptcy of the policy of extremism. It proves and demonstrates that in fact we can cut spending in these difficult economic times with a lack of resources and at the same time hold on to and preserve those values of education and the environment that this Nation holds dear. Mr. Speaker, we can remember the commentary in the past several months about a willingness to shut the Government down, not once but twice. We can remember the commentary about making the biggest cuts in education in this Nation's history. That failed. The proposal of disastrous environmental policies, they failed. Mr. Speaker, because of the steadfastness, today we vote on appropriation bills that protect America's priorities.”