Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I rise to thank the Senator from Alaska for her powerful endorsement of this bill. She is a member of the HELP Committee. Along with Senators Mark Kirk and Orrin Hatch, she led the Republican support for this bill when it was being considered by the HELP Committee. I believe the Senator from Alaska did an extraordinary job of outlining why this bill should pass and why it must pass. It is a matter of fairness, and it is a matter of demonstrating that there is simply no place in the workplace for discrimination. It is significant that most of our large businesses and many of our smaller ones have voluntarily adopted antidiscrimination policies. They have done so because they want to attract and retain the best and brightest employees they can find. They know that sexual orientation and gender identity are irrelevant to an individual's ability to do a good job. What counts are qualifications, skills, hard work, and job performance. The legislation--which I am very hopeful we will pass tomorrow--will help ensure that is the focus in workplaces throughout America. As the Senator from Alaska has pointed out, however, we were also very careful to respect religious freedom and liberty in this bill. I agree with her assessment that the amendment offered by Senator Portman and his colleagues helps strengthen that part of the bill by prohibiting any retaliation against religious organizations or employers who legitimately qualify for an exemption under ENDA.…”