Tom Coburn Quotes (42 Quotes)


    You have to be courageous to not spend money, ... and we don't have many people who have that courage.

    The vast amount of waste and sheer stupidity in government - from the Pentagon to the Food and Drug Administration - could fill committee agendas for years.

    A clear lesson in this tragedy is that one point person tends to be more effective than many point persons, ... We need to conduct oversight before the fact, not after the fact when it is too late to undo mistakes.

    I'm disappointed . . . that the president has not done more to demand that Congress and other federal agencies make the same sacrifices millions of Americans are already making. There is no charity without sacrifice.

    We need real leadership, Democrat, Republican and independent to stand up and say, we have to live within our means.


    The new guidance for condom labels issued today by the FDA recognizes that current condom claims do not meet this medical standard.

    That record doesn't hold up to the smell test that has been presented here today and it's a little bit disturbing to me because it's this subtle way of trying to say you are not who you really are,

    Is relying on foreign precedent and selecting and choosing a foreign precedent to create a bias outside of the laws of this country, is that good behavior.

    We want judges who are well qualified. Ginsburg was confirmed with 96 votes. . . . I would hate to see a double standard,

    Lesbianism is so rampant in some of the schools in southeast Oklahoma that they'll only let one girl go to the bathroom. Now think about it. Think about that issue. How is it that that's happened to us?

    They Congress didn't fix the right problem. It was done for political purposes. It is a dreadful bill Medicare prescription-drug bill. It made problems worse, not better.

    Everybody in America is going to have to sacrifice to help us rebuild the Gulf Coast. Every government program, every individual, we are all going to have to sacrifice.

    Republicans should simply focus on first principles and give the American people what they want - an honest party dedicated to common sense, fiscal responsibility and limited government. If we govern to save the country, we'll do well as a party.

    Sadly, we don't have that leadership.

    Charity requires sacrifice, and members of Congress could set a good example of charity by giving up their pay increase,

    A super-legislator body is not what the court was intended to be, ... When I ponder our country and its greatness, its weakness, its potential, my heart aches for less divisiveness, less polarization, less finger-pointing, less bitterness, less mindless partisanship.

    He didn't give any answers, ... What else can you want out of a judge He's not going to answer where he is. It's wrong to make him answer where he is.

    It doesn't have much to do with Alaska, ... It has to do with priorities for our country.

    So many decisions of the Supreme Court have been made in the vacuum as to when life begins ... and it belies the scientific facts, the medical facts, that are out there today,

    My heart aches for less divisiveness, less polarization Less mindless partisanship, which at times sounds almost hateful to the ear of Americans. How we conduct ourselves and how we treat you, Judge Roberts, can be a great start toward reconciliation in our country.

    The Pentagon can't even audit its own books. It doesn't even know where its money is going. And we refuse to have the tough forces go on the Pentagon so that at least they are efficient with the money they're spending.

    The danger of what's happening right now in terms of using reconciliation is, the purpose of the Senate is going to be defeated. And that is to bring consensus to big issues in this country so that we have a reasoned and thoughtful approach and that the American public buys into it.

    I believe all life has value, from conception to natural death. And I believe the intentional taking of human life, except to save lives, should be a capital offense, as it is in most states in America today.

    I believe this is the wrong way we should be doing things, ... We need to stop. Our future depends on the integrity of a budgeting and appropriations process that is not based on politics but is based on having the future best will for our country.

    And I thought I would just share with you what science says today about silicone breast implants. If you have them, you're healthier than if you don't. In fact, there's no science that shows that silicone breast implants are detrimental and, in fact, they make you healthier.

    The earmark favor factory needs to be boarded up and demolished, not turned over to new management that may or may not have a better eye for earmarks with 'merit.'

    Welfare reform happened with reconciliation; half the Democrats voted for it. The Bush tax cuts happened with reconciliation; twelve Democratic Senators voted for it. You didn't have a real partisan issue on those times that it was used.

    the first legislation to pass in this country that will rescue babies.

    America expects DHS to take every reasonable measure to protect us from terrorism, ... I am not convinced that threshold has been met.

    Social Security and Medicare represent promises made and we must keep these commitments.

    I know the tribal issues. I was a congressman where most of the Indians are in this state. The problem is that most of them aren't Indians. The average Cherokee quantum is 1512.

    It is inexcusable for the White House and Congress to not even make the effort to find at least some offsets to this new spending, ... No one in America believes the federal government is operating at peak efficiency and can't tighten its belt.

    The problem that faces our country today, the last 30 years we have lived off the future, and the bill is coming due. So there cannot be anything that is not put on the table. There will not be one American that will not be called to sacrifice. Those that are more well-to-do will be called to sacrifice to a greater extent.

    I am looking for somebody who is not going to make that mistake again in any other area of life,

    Today's misleading recommendations by the F.D.A. are the latest example where the agency has put the public at risk by providing inaccurate information about condoms,

    I won't press you on this issue, I know you can't answer,

    one of those once-in-a-decade moments where we can forge a left-right alliance on a policy issue.

    We find ourselves in significant difficulties as a nation,

    The process is broken. It's more about how you feed your re-election cycle than doing what is in the best interest of the country.

    An easily accessible and transparent database of contract information will bring sunshine into the confusing and sometimes shadowy practice of government contracting.

    I believe keeping our promises should be our highest priority and that means saving Social Security and Medicare while preserving the American dream for our children and grandchildren.

    We're fighting a war, we have the largest natural disaster ever in our country and we have a structural deficit. We're in a time when we need everybody's help.


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