Bill Clinton: “Thank you, Congressman Payne. He was up here talking about me and our administration and laying it on so thick, it…”

“Thank you, Congressman Payne. He was up here talking about me and our administration and laying it on so thick, it sounded so good I wasn't quite sure who he was talking about. [Laughter] And Alexis Herman, sitting over there with me--and he got down to the end, she said, ``He's talking about you. This is your introduction. Stand up; stand up.'' [Laughter] Thank you so very much. Thank you, Congressman Don Payne, for your leadership of the Congressional Black Caucus and for your passion for the people of America and indeed for people around the world. Thank you, Congressman Bill Jefferson, for chairing this dinner for 2 years in a row. [Applause] That is worth more than applause, folks. Thank you for being my friend for so long and way back in the beginning when only you and my mother thought I could be elected President. [Laughter] Thank you, LeBaron Taylor, for chairing the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation. To all the members of the Congressional Black Caucus, Senator Carol Moseley-Braun, honored guests. I'd also like to recognize and thank for their service the retiring members of the CBC: Kweisi Mfume, Cardiss Collins, Cleo Fields, Barbara Rose Collins, and my neighbor Harold Ford from Tennessee. Please give them all a big hand. They have served our country well.…”