Political Quotes

“Mr. President, on the morning of Tuesday, August 10, in Alaska, in Washington, and around the world, time seemed to stand still. It was then we received word that a floatplane carrying our beloved Senator Ted Stevens had gone down in the remote Bristol Bay region of western Alaska. Senator Stevens traveled to that area, as he did practically each summer for decades, to pursue one of his dearest passions--fishing. Along with Senator Stevens on that flight were several of his closest friends. Sean O'Keefe, the former Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration; Jim Morhard, who came to the Senate in 1983 as an aide to Senator Pete Wilson of California and retired in 2005 as chief of staff of the Senate Appropriations Committee; Bill Phillips, a distinguished Washington lawyer and former chief of staff to Senator Stevens was on the flight; as was Dana Tindall, one of Alaska's best and brightest who made a career of bringing 21st century telecommunications technology to our vast territory. Three of their children were on the trip as well: Sean's son Kevin, Bill's son Willy, and Dana's daughter Corey. The pilot was Theron ``Terry'' Smith, an accomplished aviator who retired as chief pilot after 25 years with Alaska Airlines in Anchorage. When it became apparent that the floatplane was overdue en route to a remote fishing camp, a massive search was quickly mobilized. The wreckage was located and, thankfully, there were survivors.…”