Political Quotes

“I say to my colleague, we do, but it is about balance. No one has claimed perfection. We are trying to strike a balance where the Federal Government, for the first time, becomes a better partner with our States and simultaneously saying, in exchange for that partnership, there are certain minimum requirements--certain ones, not every one I would like, not every one one might imagine, but certain ones on which a majority--hopefully a large majority--of Democrats and Republicans, with very different points of view on this issue, can find common ground. That is what we try to do when we legislate, and that is what I tried to do with this bill. I could think of 20 more minimum Federal requirements I would write into this bill if I were king. But I am not king, yet. So I am working with my friend from Kentucky. If he were writing this bill, he would have a very different set, I presume, and it would be the same with my colleague from Missouri. I say to my friend, this is not easy, I admit. It is complicated, and we are not writing this bill in tablets. We have established a commission so there will be an ongoing process. We do not have to wait another 40 years to talk about changes to be made in the system. I urge States to do this.”