Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I join my colleagues in singing the praise of our staff. But let me just note--and, of course, I have had great staff as well, Rick Dykema and Kathleen Staunton, who have been with me the entire 30 years that I have been a Member of this body. But staff, as well as the Members, we quite often take for granted what does really enable us to conduct ourselves in this way. It is very easy to overlook. The American people overlook it. We all overlook this. And, that is, we take for granted the safety and security that we operate in. No matter how good our staff is, no matter how great we are, if we were not safe, we could not be conducting this business of our democratic country. Let us note that Officers Jacob Chestnut and Detective John Gibson were two law enforcement officers who gave their lives while I have been here in order to secure the safety we need to do the public business. So as I leave this body, I would like to make sure they know--I am sure they are listening from above and maybe their families will hear--that there are Members who are grateful to the sacrifice that they made. They gave their lives to keep a terrorist out of this building that would have done damage or murdered Members. So with that said, I have been here 30 years. I am overwhelmed with gratitude toward the voters who sent me here and to God that gave me the opportunity to live life that permitted the voters to elect me as their representative in Washington.…”