Political Quotes

“And Members of the House, first of all, let me thank the chairman for his willingness to allow me to speak on an issue on which we do not agree. I appreciate the courtesy; I appreciate the lively debate that has preceded me in, I think, probably a far more articulate way than I'm going to be able to articulate. But let me just, Mr. Chairman and Members of the House, address this in a bigger sense and then maybe in a specific sense from the standpoint of a Republican Member of the United States Congress. To begin with, I believe that this addition is largely unrelated and almost entirely disconnected from the underlying bill. I believe it demonstrates some concern--or I believe it reveals some lack of concern--for sensitivity, and I think in a lot of ways reveals the duplicitousness that I think is inherent in a discussion of this issue. I think it is statist and antithetical to our beliefs, at least my beliefs and I think most of the Members' on this side of the aisle, with respect to what America is all about. I look at this from the standpoint of a Republican Member in a Republican Party who has been a forerunner and who has dealt with the issue of states' rights and, quite frankly, has attacked this health care bill--and the Attorneys General--on a states' rights and interstate commerce basis. It is a classic example, Mr. Chairman and Members of the House, of what has historically been an area for states' rights.…”