[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 13]
[House]
[Pages 17834-17835]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         HEALTH CARE IN AMERICA

  (Mr. WEINER asked and was given permission to address the House for 1

[[Page 17835]]

minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. WEINER. You know, I would say to the American people who are 
watching the oncoming debate about health care that in many ways we 
already know what the two sides are--the Republic Party, the party that 
opposed the Medicare Act, opposed Social Security, opposed Medicaid. 
The Republic Party has made it very clear they're not only the Party of 
No; they're the party of ignoring the problems of the middle class and 
those struggling to make it.
  The Democratic Party, the party that is producing this legislation, 
is the party that has again and again said, We're going to step up to 
the challenges facing this country.
  Now, if you believe that we are spending just the right amount, that 
we're not spending too much money on health care, you're alone, because 
I think we're spending trillions upon trillions of dollars more than we 
need to. If you think that the hundreds of billions of dollars people 
are paying for out-of-pocket is just right, then you probably want the 
Republic Party's plan, which is to do nothing.
  But the Democratic Party under the leadership of Frank Pallone and 
Barack Obama and others are saying, We're going to try to solve this 
problem. You know why? Because that's what we do. That's what Democrats 
do.
  Now the Republic Party doesn't do that. They say, No, no, no. But we 
have a problem. If you want choice, if you want affordability, and if 
you want health care for your family, you're going to get it with the 
Democratic Party, not with the Republic Party.

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