[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 20]
[House]
[Pages 27459-27460]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




SPENDING FOR CHILDREN'S HEALTH CARE VERSUS SPENDING IN IRAQ--A QUESTION 
                             OF PRIORITIES

  (Mr. COHEN asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Mr. COHEN. Mr. Speaker, President Bush and congressional Republicans 
have no problem writing blank checks for the war in Iraq, but ask them 
to prioritize the health care needs for 10 million low-income children, 
and they can't be bothered. Every month, every month we are spending $9 
billion in Iraq that is borrowed from our children, because the 
President has always demanded that funding for the Iraq war be 
classified as emergency spending and, therefore, not subject to the 
pay-as-you-go rules.
  Three-and-a-half months of Iraq war funding equals the funding needed 
to extend health care coverage to 10 million children over the next 5 
years. Unlike the war, our children's health is fully paid for with 
absolutely no deficit spending; yet President Bush vetoed this 
bipartisan compromise because he said it included excessive spending.
  Mr. Speaker, House Republicans need to show the President that there 
are

[[Page 27460]]

other priorities in our Nation besides the never-ending war in Iraq. 
They should send that message by joining us tomorrow in overriding the 
President's veto and caring about our Nation's children.

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