Political Quotes

“I join my colleague from California (Ms. Lee) in expressing my profound sorrow at the tragedy that has been visited upon the people of Haiti. Even now, a week after the earthquake that shattered Port-au-Prince and much of the surrounding area, rescuers are still pulling survivors from the rubble, including a 15-day-old baby girl who was pulled from her home, destroyed, yesterday, after 7 days without food and water. Happily, the baby has been reunited with her mother, who told the Wall Street Journal that her daughter's survival was 'the mercy of God.' Hours later, 69-year-old Anna Zizi was dragged singing from the rubble of the Roman Catholic cathedral of Port-au-Prince, while Hotteline Lozama, age 25, was pulled from the ruins of a shopping center. But, despite these miracles, the horror is overwhelming. Current estimates place the death toll at 200,000, and more than 1.5 million Haitians have been made homeless as a result of the earthquake. Major aftershocks, including a magnitude 6.1 tremor this morning, have hampered rescue efforts and kept survivors in a state of near panic. The extent of the damage and totality of the need have overwhelmed the massive international aid effort that is racing to get food and water to more than 3 million people. Even as U.N. reinforcements and additional U.S. military and civilian assets scramble to the stricken island, an estimated 20,000 people a day are dying, most from lack of adequate medical care.”