Political Quotes

“I thank the gentleman for yielding and for his leadership in bringing us together today, along with our distinguished leader, Mr. Hoyer; our distinguished whip, Mr. Jim Clyburn; Congressional Black Caucus Chair Karen Bass; Chairman Bennie Thompson; Congresswoman Barbara Lee; and Mr. Butterfield. I thank Mr. Butterfield for leading this critical effort, so important. Mr. Speaker, as our country knows, nearly 2 months after the murder of George Floyd, America remains gripped by anguish as racial injustice continues to kill hundreds of Black Americans and tear apart the soul of our country. Last month, inspired by the activism of the American people and led by the Congressional Black Caucus, the House passed the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act to fundamentally transform the culture of policing, to address systemic racism, curb police brutality, deliver accountability, and save lives. On Juneteenth, I had the privilege as Speaker of the House, by my authority as Speaker of the House, to remove four paintings of Speakers of the House who were in the Speaker's lobby, to remove them because they were part of the Confederacy, three of them before they came to the Congress and one who came after his participation in the Confederacy. It was long overdue. When we were checking out the statues, we found out about the paintings, and on Juneteenth we said good-bye to those four.…”