[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 18]
[House]
[Pages 24398-24399]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      AMERICA WANTS HEALTH REFORM

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Florida (Mr. Grayson) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. GRAYSON. Madam Speaker, I have words for both Democrats and 
Republicans tonight. Let's start with the Democrats. We, as a party, 
have spent the last 6 months, the greatest minds of our party, dwelling 
on the question, the unbelievably consuming question, of how to get 
Olympia Snowe to vote for health care reform.
  I want to remind us all, Olympia Snowe was not elected President last 
year. Olympia Snowe has no veto power in the Senate. Olympia Snowe 
represents a State with one-half of 1 percent of America's population.
  What America wants is health care reform. America doesn't care if it 
gets 51 votes in the Senate or 60 votes in the Senate or 83 votes in 
the Senate. In fact, America doesn't even care about that. It doesn't 
care about that at all.
  What America cares about is this: There are over 1 million Americans 
who go broke every single year trying to pay their health care bills. 
America cares a lot about that.
  America cares about the fact that there are 44,780 Americans who die 
every single year on account of not having health care. That's 11 every 
day. America sure cares a lot about that.
  America cares about the fact that if you have a preexisting 
condition, even if you have health insurance, it's not covered. America 
cares about that a lot.
  America cares about the fact that you can get all the health care you 
need as long as you don't need any. America cares about that a lot.
  But America does not care about procedures, processes, personalities. 
America doesn't care about that at all. So we have to remember that as 
Democrats. We have to remember what's at stake here is life and death, 
enormous amounts of money, and people are counting upon us to move 
ahead.
  America understands what's good for America. America cares about 
health care. America cares about jobs. America cares about education 
and energy independence. America does not care about process or 
politicians, or personalities, or anything like that.
  And I have a few words for my Republican friends tonight as well. I

[[Page 24399]]

guess I do have some Republican friends.
  Let me say this. Last week, I held up this report here and I pointed 
out that in America there's 44,789 Americans who die every year, 
according to this Harvard report published in a peer review journal, 
because they have no health insurance. That's an extra 44,789 Americans 
who die, whose lives could be saved, and their response was to ask me 
for an apology. To ask me for an apology. That's right, to ask me for 
an apology.
  Well, I'm telling you this. I will not apologize. I will not 
apologize. I will not apologize for a simple reason. America doesn't 
care about your feelings. I violated no rules by bringing this report 
to America's attention. I think a lot of people didn't know about it 
beforehand.
  But America does care about health care in America. And if you're 
against it, then get out of the way, just get out of the way. You can 
lead, you can follow, or you can get out of the way. And I'm telling 
you now to get out of the way.
  America understands that there's one party in this country that's in 
favor of health care reform and one party that's against it, and they 
know why. They understand that if Barack Obama were somehow able to 
cure hunger in the world, the Republicans would blame him for 
overpopulation. They understand that if Barack Obama could somehow 
bring about world peace, they'd blame him for destroying the defense 
industry. In fact, they understand that if Barack Obama has a BLT 
sandwich tomorrow for lunch, they will try to ban bacon.
  But that's not what America wants. America wants solutions to its 
problems, and that begins with health care, and that's what I'm 
speaking for tonight.

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