Political Quotes

“Madam President, I know that Senator Roy Blunt has already delivered his farewell remarks a short time ago. Regrettably, I was tied up in a longstanding appointment and couldn't be on the floor to hear them, but I want to say a few words about my friend from Missouri and thank him for his service to the Senate and to our Nation. I grew up in East St. Louis, IL, just across the Mississippi River from St. Louis, MO. My hometown now is Springfield, IL, and Roy Blunt's hometown is Springfield, MO. We often joke about catching the wrong plane to St. Louis and ending up in one another's homes. Senator Blunt and I came from different parties, obviously. We have different ideas about a lot of things. But over the 12 years he served his State of Missouri in the Senate, he has become a friend and ally. Managing the Mississippi River is an issue that we share. Many of the locks and dams that keep the river navigable are nearly 100 years old. For many years now, Senator Blunt has worked with me and with the Army Corps of Engineers to come up with a plan that we call the Navigation Ecosystem Sustainability Program--shorthand, NESP. It will expand and modernize seven locks at the most congested locations on the upper Mississippi and Illinois Rivers to make sure the waterways can continue to serve as major navigation channels moving crops and other goods. I am really grateful to Roy Blunt for his leadership supporting biomedical research. There is a good story here.…”