Political Quotes

“Madam President, this is an important victory for the U.S. Postal Service and the American economy. The Postal Service is the linchpin of a $1.1 trillion mailing and mail-related industry that employs nearly 8.7 million Americans in fields as diverse as mail, printing, catalog companies and paper manufacturing. Those industries and the jobs they sustain are in jeopardy. The Postal Service lost $13.6 billion over the past two years and has seen a 26 percent drop in first class mail since 2006. But today we have begun to right the ship. There is still much work to be done, including working with our colleagues in the House to present the President with a bill he can sign. Nevertheless, I appreciate the solid bipartisan support that this bill received. It's gratifying that so many of my colleagues understand that the Postal Service should not choose the destructive path of cutting service and raising prices. This vote sends the message that we can't allow the Postal Service to drive customers away to other communication options. Once they leave the mail system, they won't be coming back, and the Postal Service will be sucked further into a death spiral. As we move toward a conference with the House, we must continue to resist ill-conceived policy changes. We must avoid short term ``fixes'' that undermine service and thus jeopardize the long-term sustainability of this American institution. Today's vote is also a win for bipartisanship.…”