Political Quotes

“The gentleman is very generous, and I appreciate it. I would say to my friends, the District of Columbia deserves the same respect that any of our governments deserve and that, in fact, we demand for them. And I always lament how the District is demeaned. When I was the majority leader, I made sure that Ms. Norton had a vote on the floor of this House and that the Virgin Islands' Representative had a vote on the floor of this House. One of the first things you did when you took the majority was take that away. It was not a vote that made a difference. It was a vote that was symbolic. But it gave them the opportunity to have their name as our equals, as Americans, on that board and express their opinion. Let us not take this degree of autonomy away from them. Let us respect these local citizens as you would want your local citizens respected. I urge the defeat of this legislation. If the courts tell us that they could not do this, so be it, but let us let the system work its will. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to this bill, which is an exercise in Republican hypocrisy. We are witnessing the party that proclaims itself to be a champion of local autonomy and less Federal Government involvement in local affairs bring to this floor legislation that would do exactly the opposite. The District of Columbia deserves a form of home rule not characterized by constant and intrusive micromanaging by congressional Republicans.…”