Political Quotes

“He kept his commitment. Senator Helms was wary at the front end of this when he was named, whether or not he really was going to do it. He held up his nomination until he came before the committee to say: I will commit to Helms-Biden. Once he did that, it was home free and he headed to work. But he did a remarkable job. So I do not, in my praise for Senator Helms, mean to in any way suggest that at the end of the day this could have been done without the ingenuity, intelligence, and dedication of Ambassador Holbrooke and his staff, who, as the chairman has pointed out, many nights toward the end stayed up close to around the clock getting this locked down. So I think we are at a good place. I have been with my friend from North Carolina too long not to think I understand what is behind his reluctance to lift a cap that locked into law the amount we would pay for peacekeeping. In 1994, out of frustration with the United Nations and its waste and failure to modernize, the U.S. Congress passed a piece of legislation that said starting October 1, 1996 we will not pay any more than 25 percent of the peacekeeping assessment.”