Political Quotes

“Madam President, closer to home in Illinois, we are fighting the floods. It happens regularly, and we have had a tough time with it. The Ohio River, the Illinois River, and the Mississippi River have all been threatening communities such as Metropolis and Old Shawneetown. I was down in Cairo, IL, a couple of weeks ago and saw how bad it was. It was a scary situation in a very poor town. The Corps of Engineers had a tough decision to make. They had to blow a levee, which means opening farm land to be flooded. To take the pressure off the rivers, they did it. I said to General Walsh when he was in the process of making the decision: Do what is right and I will stand by you. I know what I want you to do, but do what is right. I think he did the right thing, and I stand by him. Now I stand by those living in Missouri who were affected by that decision. If they in any way suffered hardship or inconvenience or loss of income as farmers, we need to stand by them, as we do with so many across America in times of disaster. I know we have had a big challenge in our State. Governor Quinn and I were on the phone the day before yesterday talking about the response. He was on his way down to Metropolis. A mutual friend of ours, Mayor Billy McDaniel, down there is working with Pulaski County Board Chairman Monte Russell to find places for people to stay as they wait for the flood waters to recede in Metropolis.…”