Press Releases: 2013

“Tomorrow marks three years since the passage of the Affordable Care Act, which is already making significant progress slowing the growth of health care costs, expanding access to insurance coverage, and improving the quality and delivery of health care services.

“Once again, Republicans have passed a budget that places the burden of deficit reduction most heavily on the backs of the middle class and those most in need.

“I’m glad to be here with Alycia and with the other guests as well – thank you very much for being here.

“I was pleased to learn that the Obama Administration opened the application process for its Make It In America Challenge grant program today.  This competitive grant program, which is a collaboration between the Departments of Commerce and Labor, will help bring manufacturing jobs and innovation back to the U.S. and enable more people to train for new jobs as our businesses expand. This is the kind of investment House Democrats have called for as part of our Make It In America plan.

“Well obviously [reaching a budget agreement] will take compromise. We’ve had a very difficult time getting to that. The Ryan budget frankly is a rehash of last year's budget and the budget before that.

“The Republican budget proposal for Fiscal Year 2014, which Chairman Ryan introduced this morning, once again heaps the burden of deficit reduction onto the backs of those who can least afford it while asking nothing of those at the top.  Yielding to the extreme wing of his party, which has demanded that he balance the budget in only ten years but refuses to consider any new revenues necessary to do so, Chairman Ryan flouts mathematics and fiscal common sense by imposing severe cuts to programs vital to seniors, women, veterans, federal employees, low-income families, and America’s middle class. 

“[The sequester] is not shutting down government so obviously it's going to be a slow erosion, not an immediate tidal wave.

“I think the senators that went obviously wanted to talk to the President about whether or not they could reach common ground on a lot of very important issues including most importantly a compromise that we could get this country on a fiscally sustainable path and have what we call a big deal

Democrats continue to call for a big and balanced solution to stop the irrational and irresponsible across-the-board spending cuts known as the sequester. While House Democrats have proposed a solution to stop these reckless cuts, Republicans have refused on four separate occasions to bring this legislation to the House Floor for a vote. 

Today, House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer (D-MD) and Rep. Peter King (R-NY) will reintroduce the Eunice Kennedy Shriver Act. The legislation, which passed the House in 2010 with broad bipartisan support and will be reintroduced later today, honors the legacy of Eunice Kennedy Shriver and supports people with intellectual disabilities and their families. The Eunice Kennedy Shriver Act would reauthorize the Special Olympics Sport and Empowerment Act and authorize the Department of Education to make grants to the Best Buddies organization to support the expansion and development of mentoring programs for people with intellectual disabilities.

“Today’s report by the Institute for Supply Management, which shows stronger-than-expected gains for our manufacturing sector, is a further sign that we have made progress.  But we have a responsibility to build on this progress and do more to help businesses in that sector compete, succeed, and create jobs.  Congress must make job creation a priority, and in particular focus on promoting the advanced manufacturing sector and the innovation and jobs that go with it.