Political Quotes

“Today, I stand before this House heartbroken. This past weekend, tragedy struck our Dearborn community as we learned of the death of all five members of the Abbas family. They were killed by a drunk driver while driving back from a family vacation in Florida, and their loss has devastated our community in ways that you cannot imagine. In every sense of the word, they were our community. The parents were born and raised there. Rima served many as a respected doctor at Beaumont and had just been promoted to head all of the doctors at the hospital. And Issam had a successful career as a lawyer and real estate agent. Their children--Ali, age 13; Isabelle, age 12; and Giselle, age 7--were gifts from God and the center of their parents' lives, and so many other families in Dearborn. Their family, their very extended family was devoted to everything that they did. Their absence stunned this community and is felt deeply and emotionally. Thousands attended one of the memorial services this week and then the funeral. Many in attendance chose to remember the good memories-- the smiles, the laughs, their careers, their deep connections to friends, neighbors, coworkers, classmates, and friends--but some came up to me and spoke very honestly. I was struck by the children and grown men who came up to me in tears, asking me why we hadn't done something to stop drunk driving. A young girl, a classmate, who will never see her friend again, had channeled her grief into research.…”