Political Quotes

“I come to the floor to say thank you to someone who has, for more than 20 years, been my right hand on Capitol Hill. Tom Faletti is one of the most decent, honest, and caring persons I have ever known. Tom came to work for me 24 years ago, when I was an unknown second-term Congressman from downstate Illinois and he was a 20-something idealist with a master's degree in public policy and a determination to change the world. We have been a team for 24 years. Now Tom is preparing to leave Capitol Hill for a new career--not to cash in as a K Street lobbyist but to work at an inner-city high school as a teacher. I know he is going to be an excellent teacher because I know how much he has taught me about how to turn noble ideas into good laws. Among the legislative accomplishments of which I am most proud, almost all of them bear Tom's fingerprints. Tom Faletti is a quiet, effective person, who has achieved more than many of the most celebrated on Capitol Hill. He is a profoundly good person, too--deeply spiritual, with a deep devotion to his faith, and he is a remarkably patient man. How else could he have survived 24 years with me? One of his greatest personal qualities is his persistence. He has great staying power, and when you consider that many of the historic bills he has worked on require that kind of patience, you understand that is the key to his success.”