Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I know Senator Grassley is waiting and I am going to be brief. I thank him for his indulgence. But when Senator Sherrod Brown of Ohio came to the floor to speak of John Glenn, I could not help but stay, and I am glad I did. First, for those who were listening, the good news is we are celebrating his birthday. He is still alive and well, with Annie, and we are sure happy that is the case. When I was just getting started in politics, 1982, I was running for Congress in Springfield, IL, and Senator John Glenn called and said: I am going to come and campaign for you. I cannot tell you how excited I was to meet him face to face in my hometown. He is truly an American hero. For all his service to the United States, a naval pilot, Marine pilot in World War II, in the Korean war, our first man into space, an astronaut who reprised his performance at the age of 77. He went back into space. It tells you what kind of person he is, his courage and his strength, his physical strength that he could do that. I had the good fortune of being on the floor of the Senate for my orientation in 1996, and your predecessor, Mr. President, Senator Robert Byrd, would sit in that chair and tell all the new Members and their spouses the history of the Senate. I sat right over here, and Loretta sat next to me. At one point, Senator Byrd said: Open that desk drawer in front of you. You are going to see a great Senate tradition. Remember how the teachers told you, don't write on the desks.…”