Political Quotes

On the recordMay 4, 2010
I thank my colleagues for raising this important issue pending on the floor of the Senate, this major piece of legislation, the Financial Stability Act. Of all the many amendments that will be offered, this is clearly a game changer. I am supportive of this amendment even though I know some of my friends in the banking industry won't be happy with it. They are talking about dealing with the concentration of wealth and of economic power to a level that can literally bring the economy down. That is what we went through, leading into this recession. That is what led to massive taxpayer bailout and that is what the Brown-Kaufman amendment addresses foursquare. I commend them for their leadership on the amendment. Immigration I want to speak to an issue that is timely in light of recent news events. Ninety-nine years ago, a boat pulled into the harbor in Baltimore, MD, which came over as a passenger ship from Germany. Down the gangplank walked three individuals--my grandmother, my uncle, my aunt, and my mother, who was 2 years old, in the arms of my grandmother. They had come from Lithuania to the United States. When they arrived, none of them spoke English. My grandmother carried a slip of paper with her, which had the words ``East St. Louis, Illinois'' written on them, because she knew that is where her husband was and that was her destination. I cannot imagine how they navigated themselves onto a train to East St. Louis to meet my grandfather, but they did it.…
Said by
Dick Durbin
Democratic · Illinois
Source
govinfo.gov
May 4, 2010

Editor's note · Context

Senator Durbin discusses the Financial Stability Act and shares a personal immigration story.

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