Political Quotes

“I thank my colleague from Rhode Island, and I thank him for the opportunity to speak directly to this bill this afternoon. Mr. President, I wish to speak briefly about the measure we have on the floor today, the Every Child Achieves Act, the bill where we have all been waiting for about 15 years to fix the flawed one-size-fits-all No Child Left Behind Act. I begin my comments by thanking Senator Alexander, who is the chairman, as well as Senator Murray, the ranking member, for how they have managed this legislation from the very beginning. I think we know there is a little bit of inside baseball that goes on around here that perhaps isn't interesting to many. But I think it is important to note that Chairman Alexander and Ranking Member Murray have led this bill in a way that has fostered consensus building and, I think, very constructive negotiations. More importantly, in the process they allowed the voices of the American people--of Alaskans--to be heard. I think that was one of the reasons why we saw this legislation move unanimously through the HELP Committee in April, and I think that is one of the reasons that you are seeing us move through a series of amendments on issues that are considerable but in a very constructive manner and certainly respectful of one another. So I wish to acknowledge and recognize the masterful work they have done in guiding this bill forward. I also wish to recognize the work of my staff.…”