Prepared Open Remarks Following A Democratic Women's Working Group Roundtable on the Impact of the Stimulus Bill on Women and Children

PREPARED OPENING REMARKS OF HOUSE SPEAKER NANCY PELOSI (D-CA) AT A PRESS CONFERENCE FOLLOWING A DEMOCRATIC WOMEN'S WORKING GROUP ROUNDTABLE ON THE IMPACT OF THE STIMULUS BILL ON WOMEN AND CHILDREN

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SPEAKER PELOSI: Good afternoon. We're in the midst of a very productive and energizing women's roundtable on the economic recovery package. It is exciting to hear the enthusiasm that is springing from across the country for the initiatives in here that stimulate the economy, create good-paying jobs, and are good for women and children.

It is under the leadership of Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky, who is the Democratic Chair of the Congressional Caucus on Women's Issues. Right now, as we are out here, the meeting is being presided over by Gwen Moore, who is the Vice Chair. If you look at our recovery package - I want you to look at the report that we put out there, for how the recovery package affects women and children. There is health, education, economic security through jobs, higher education for women to be able to get Pell Grants. See this report: 'Investing in Women and Children: Key Provisions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.'

At the table, we had representatives for women in fields from construction to academics who teach nursing and who are grateful for what is in the legislation to promote the education of more nurses in our country. It's about job training, it's about helping small businesses - including millions of women-owned businesses - it's about unemployment assistance, education, nutrition assistance and health care.

A very important architect of this component was the Democratic Congressional Caucus of Women's Issues, led by Jan Schakowsky and by a Member of our Democratic Leadership, Rosa DeLauro. Some people have said, 'Well a recovery package usually looks like infrastructure, food stamps, unemployment insurance and an element we have discussed lately - energy.' And that is the proposal we kept putting forth last year without success. President Bush would just not sign such a bill. When we had the opportunity to do more, I think that we have demonstrated very clearly that initiatives for women and children, again as I said at the start, are job creating, stimulate the economy, and take our country in a new direction.

Congresswomen Rosa DeLauro has been a relentless advocate for women and children and many provisions that she has fought for for a long time are contained in this legislative.

I am first going to yield to Congresswoman Schakowsky. I want to thank her for her leadership. It is very exciting - maybe because I just had another granddaughter on Sunday night; she's not even two days old - and she is already benefiting from the work of these women in that room from the outside and as well as the leadership of women in the Congress of the United States.

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