Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague, Congressman O'Rourke, my fellow west Texan, with whom I share the privilege of representing El Paso County, for yielding me this time to talk about some issues that are critical to the border. I have to say, Mr. Speaker, that I don't want to use any incendiary rhetoric. I don't want to use any flashy words because, frankly, I think that the people of this country elected their Members of Congress not to cheerlead or use harsh rhetoric or add fuel to fires, but to solve problems. So I would like to talk about some of the challenges that in real terms this Congress has the opportunity to make a difference on. The 23rd Congressional District, which I have the privilege of representing, runs some 800 miles along the Texas-Mexico border. It includes five ports of entry: Eagle Pass, Del Rio, Presidio, Fabens, and El Paso. No other congressional district shares a larger border with Mexico. The district is both rural and urban; and, frankly, it looks like what the rest of Texas will soon look like because it is evenly split between Democrats and Republicans. Because this district has the largest border with Mexico, the policy discussion about border security, about immigration reform, these conversations greatly impact the 23rd Congressional District. Frankly, they impact the entire State of Texas. The passage or failure of immigration reform will profoundly affect us all.…”