Political Quotes

“this amendment implements what President Bush is requesting. Specifically, the President requested that for the next 2 years we keep our assessment at 27 percent. Mr. President, 10,000 forces are being sent to the Sudan under the auspices of the United Nations. They are responding as we are asking them to respond. We are in the process of making genuine progress. The last thing we need to do is start to build up arrearages again; it took years to work ourselves out of the hole, both politically and financially. If my colleague from Indiana is correct that the administration wants room to negotiate, the President is going to be President for 3 rac{1}{2} more years, God willing and the creek not rising, as my grandpop used to say. The truth is, this lasts for 2 years. It gives all the negotiating room possible. To now go ahead and change the deal in the minds of every Ambassador to the United Nations--here they go again--at the very time we are sending the worst person we can possibly send, not in terms of morality but in terms of his attitude to the U.N.--the double whammy of sending Bolton to the United Nations and cutting our commitment that we have kept to for the past years, and over the request of the President we cut by 2 percent our commitment, would be a very serious problem. I strongly urge my colleagues to support the Biden amendment. I fully appreciate the position of my friend from Indiana, but I think he is mistaken on this point.”