Senator Kirsten Gillibrand of New York gave the weekly Democratic address.

Transcript

“HI, I AM NEW YORK SENATOR KIRSTEN GILLIBRAND. LIKE MILLIONS OF MOMS ACROSS AMERICA, I LOOK FORWARD TO CELEBRATING MOTHER’S DAY WITH MY FAMILY THIS WEEKEND. WITH THE DEBATE HAPPENING ON CAPITOL HILL RIGHT NOW OVER THE FUTURE OF HEALTH CARE, MOTHER’S DAY IS MAKING ME THINK A LOT ABOUT HOW FORTUNATE I AM. MY HUSBAND AND I ARE HEALTHY, AND WE HAVE TWO HEALTHY KIDS, AND THE HEALTH CARE PROBLEM — FAMILY PROGRAM. LET ME TELL YOU ONE OF THE REASONS WHY IT IS SO PERSONAL TO ME. I HAVE TWO GIRLFRIENDS, WITH MY AGE, WHO SURVIVED CANCER THIS YEAR. THEY ARE MOMS OF YOUNG GIRLS, AND BOTH HAD INSURANCE AND CARE THEY NEEDED. BOTH WOULD NOT BE WITH US TODAY IF THEY DID NOT HAVE ACCESS TO THE SURGERY AND CHEMOTHERAPY THAT SAVED THEIR LIVES. THOSE GIRLS NEED THEIR MOMS ON THIS MOTHER’S DAY, LIKE ALL KIDS. I UNDERSTAND THAT FOR TOO MANY, HEALTH CARE IS STILL TOO EXPENSIVE, AND WE SHOULD WORK TO MAKE OBAMACARE MORE AFFORDABLE, BECAUSE TODAY WHEN CAN SEE A TREATMENT IF, GOD FOR BID, THE EVER GET SICK. YOU PROBABLY KNOW PEOPLE WHO HAVE THE SAME YEARS OR EXPERIENCES OF BEING DIAGNOSED WITH LIFE-THREATENING DISEASES WITHOUT CARE, OR SIMILAR MAYBE TO YOUR OWN STORY. WHEN YOU SEE A CONGRESSMAN SAYING TO HIS CONSTITUENTS”