“Any real change requires the inclusion of a strong public option to promote competition and bring down costs. If a vigorous public option is not included, it would be a major victory for the health insurance industry…”

“Our nation is closer than ever to achieving health insurance reform that will lower costs, retain choice, improve quality and expand coverage. We are committed to reaching this goal.”

“Our concerns and condolences today rest with all of the families affected by the fires raging throughout California. Some have lost their homes. Many have been displaced and remain unsure of when they will be able to return or whether their house is still standing. Our hearts go out to every resident impacted by the flames.”

“Congress tightened the Bush Administration’s TARP financial rescue plan last year by insisting that taxpayers be protected and that financial institutions reimburse the American people first. Today, these requirements are paying dividends…”

“The response to Hurricane Katrina remains a work in progress, but progress is being made…”

“Women’s Equality Day offers us the opportunity to honor the brave American suffragettes who reached for the ballot, demanded their civil rights, and altered the course of history. These pioneers challenged the status quo so women today can pull the lever for progress, and they forced open the doors of equality and justice so all could walk through them…”

Washington, D.C. — Speaker Nancy Pelosi issued the following statement today on the passing of Senator Edward M. Kennedy: ‘Today, with the passing of Senator Edward M. Kennedy, the American people have lost a great patriot, and the Kennedy family has lost… Continue

“Today’s deficit projections are a legacy of Bush Administration fiscal policies that turned our surpluses into deficits and led the way toward an economic and financial crisis that has required historic short-term intervention. If pay-as-you-go principles had been in place for the last 8 years, this deficit would be $5 trillion smaller over the next decade…”

“The holy month of Ramadan is a time of reflection, spirituality, discipline and devotion for Muslims across the country, and around the world. Yet, it is also a time for all Americans to reaffirm our commitment to religious diversity and pluralism…”

“Today the world remembers the victims of the bombing of Pan Am flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland in December 1988, and expresses our deep alarm that the convicted perpetrator of this unspeakable crime has been allowed to go free…”