Political Quotes

“Mr. President, one of the frustrations of local government is that good work tends to go unnoticed. If the streets are clean and the trains run on time, it can be easy to overlook the hours upon hours of work and collaboration that go into good governance. And in my home State of Illinois, we have a team of heroes working behind the scenes of local government every day, in the second-largest county in the country. They are the 17 members of the Cook County Board of Commissioners. And each one of them is responsible for funding Cook County's many agencies, keeping our streets safe, and providing oversight for everything from Chicago's courtrooms to one of the largest health systems in America. This year, one of Cook County's best is retiring after nearly 20 years of effective, dedicated service to the 13th district. His name is Larry Suffredin. And I have been honored to count him as a friend and admire his leadership for many years. Larry entered office as a reformer, a title he has proudly lived up to since he was first elected to the board of commissioners in 2002. Over the past two decades, he has been a staunch advocate for the health and safety of his constituents--from Rogers Park to Glencoe--and an expert on the innerworkings of county government. But long before Larry was elected commissioner, his commitment to the people of Cook County was clear to anyone who knew him.…”