Political Quotes

“Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I want to start first of all by talking about the tenor of debate in this Chamber. Historically, we've had great debates in this Chamber. I think that the Speaker of the House, John Boehner, is an honorable man who cares deeply about this institution, and I think on both sides of the aisle we have very intelligent people who care passionately about their beliefs. We have a Nation that's in the midst of the worst recession since the Great Depression. It prevails on us as Americans to come together and face the problems that our Nation is currently dealing with. You heard Representative Chu mention it earlier. Ronald Reagan did so at that time with a Democratic Speaker, Tip O'Neill. He did so by appealing to both Chambers about the need to come together, facing the daunting reality of defaulting for the first time on the country's full faith and credit and the impact that that would have on the global economy, on the Nation's economy, but I daresay, more importantly, on one's household economy. From my perspective as a Member here and going back home and listening to our constituents, I think that's the most important thing, is their household economies that are hanging in the balance here.…”