Andre Carson: “my fellow colleagues, thank you for your warm welcome. Today, I want to thank the people of Indiana's 7th Congressional…”

“my fellow colleagues, thank you for your warm welcome. Today, I want to thank the people of Indiana's 7th Congressional District. I am truly and extremely humbled by the trust they have placed in me, grateful for their support, and committed to serving them each and every day. I want to thank my wife, Mariama, who has stood with me every step of the way, and our 1-year-old daughter, Salimah, who inspires me to serve. I also want to thank and honor and salute a great leader who I wish were here, my grandmother, Congresswoman Julia Carson. Thank you. For 11 years, she came to this floor as the people's champion. I am committed to building on her accomplishments and service to the people of the 7th Congressional District and the City of Indianapolis. I can think of no better way to honor her memory than by rolling up my sleeves and getting to work on day one. Our working families, our seniors, our children and our troops are counting on us to stand up and take responsibility for the changes we need in our country. In Indianapolis and across America, working families are struggling in our failing economy. As we are all painfully aware, in February alone, 63,000 Americans lost their jobs, many of them in the great Hoosier State of Indiana. Overseas, we must honor and care for our brave troops. And the best way to honor them is to change our direction in Iraq, end this war, and bring our troops home.”