"I'll stand in the way of anything that doesn't make sense and doesn't spend our money wisely, so you know, it doesn't matter what the issue is, we're in such a hole, Jon, that we don't have the luxury of not getting things right," Coburn told ABC News' Jonathan Karl. "And so we've come to an agreement that costs less, doesn't allow double-dipping, doesn't allow exorbitant lawyer fees, and we've worked it out and so we're going to take care of the folks, but we're going to do it in a way that doesn't punish the people that are going to pay the bill."
"But the way you've been hammered on this, standing against the heroes of 9/11…," replied Karl.
"I'm used to being hammered," Coburn said. "I'm not standing against them at all. I'm standing for us as America, the realization that we have to do things efficiently and economically. We've worked out a deal now that spends a whole lot less money, accomplishes exactly the same thing, and does it in a way that protects our future. Every bill should have to go through that – and the fact that they don't is a problem. That's why we're $14 trillion in debt."
"So I don't mind taking the heat," he continued. "You know, as a physician I care about those people. As a citizen, I care about the firefighters of my own city and every other city. The fact is you can still do it right. So you take all the heat, but you still it get done. So what we need is more people taking more heat so we get the right things done."
"Everybody's come to an agreement. We've got a handshake. We're waiting for the paperwork. And it'll be a done deal by the end of the day. But had we not done that, we wouldn't have had it and they wouldn't have had it until next year. So the fact is we accomplished their goals and we accomplished protecting the future of the country."
