Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I join with my colleagues today to express my profound and heartfelt sadness on the passing of Senator Robert C. Byrd, as the U.S. Senate, the people of West Virginia, and our entire Nation mourn the loss of a giant of public service--a distinguished, iconic legislator whose life and legacy will forever be synonymous with the greatest deliberative body the world has ever known. Senator Byrd's counsel, wisdom, and knowledge of the Senate was unmatched and awe-inspiring. As the longest-serving Member of Congress and a former majority and minority leader of the Senate, Senator Byrd was time and again the conscience and champion of Congress and a vigorous and stalwart sentinel of the first branch of our government. Protector, steward, advocate, and guardian these descriptions only begin to convey Senator Byrd's lifelong commitment to the Senate in which he served for a record 51 years and an unprecedented nine terms. No one fought more to ensure the preservation of the U.S. Senate and its constitutional prerogatives than Senator Byrd. No one was more masterful in comprehending and harnessing the powers of parliamentary procedure in the upper Chamber. No one was fiercer in battling against any encroachments that would dilute or diminish the role of Congress as a coequal branch of government. And no one possessed greater command of Senate history and used it to better effect than Senator Byrd, who himself authored a four-volume history of the Senate.…”