mr. chairman , i yield myself such time as i may consume . 
this amendment does not require much explanation . 
the bush administration created a medicaid commission and invited members of congress to participate . 
then they informed us that members of congress would not get a vote . 
it is not the bush administration 's responsibility to reform medicaid . 
that is our job . 
yet , the bush administration did not give members of congress a vote . 
what does this administration have to do before we draw the line , take over the appropriations process , sign bills before we pass them ? 
it is our job , mr. chairman , to refine government programs under our jurisdiction . 
it is the administration 's job to provide input . 
theirs is a nonvoting position . 
the onus of responsibility is on us . 
we should not shirk it . 
vote for this amendment because you are not paid as members of congress to blame medicaid for health care costs it does not generate . 
medicaid is the insurer , not the patient . 
vote for this amendment because you are not paid to blame impoverished children , the disabled , and the elderly for needing care or your constituents for feeling compassion towards them . 
vote for this amendment because you know you can not bring health care costs down by making it more difficult for poor people to receive it through normal channels . 
if a poor mother 's child has an alarmingly high fever and she has no access to a primary care doc , she will take her to the emergency room . 
who can blame her for that ? 
if you want to do something about the increase in medicaid spending , do something about rising health care costs , do something about inflated prescription drug costs , do something about health care infomercials and glossy drug advertising , do something about medical errors , come up with a responsible medical malpractice reform plan . 
do something that responds to the actual issue , not a symptom of it . 
if a commission would be useful , let us make it a health care commission , and let us ask its members to recommend measures to stabilize health care spending , and let us give the bush administration a vote on that commission . 
but do not allow the bush white house to put medicaid on trial as if it is some two-bit criminal when medicaid is actually a lower-cost health insurer than any private insurer out there . 
medicaid is a lower-cost health insurer than any private insurer out there . 
do not let the bush administration take health care away from the poor so it can give tax cuts to the rich . 
our government has three branches . 
let us make sure the executive branch does not do our jobs for us . 
it may be more difficult to confront health care costs directly than to make a scapegoat of the medicaid program , but we are not in office to take the easy path . 
we are in office to take the right path . 
mr. chairman , i reserve the balance of my time . 
