Political Quotes

“I wanted to take a moment from our legislative business to recognize and commemorate the end of a tour of duty for our 1996-97 House pages. This year, 61 young men and women from across America took time away from their families and friends to come to Washington and perform a time-honored public service. The tasks of a House page are not always glamorous, but are nonetheless necessary and valuable. They serve as messengers and aides. They learn about the workings of Government and observe history being made. In fact, I believe some of my colleagues in this House once had the honor of serving in the page program. I wish I could take the time to name all of our pages, but allow me to at least make mention of those in our Michigan delegation: Ryan Hemker, Virginia Cloutier, Antonia Henry, Paul Soderberg, and Aric Nesbitt. I have had the privilege of sponsoring one of these fine pages: Ryan Hemker of Coldwater, MI. Ryan, a top student at Quincy High School, has demonstrated all of the characteristics we have come to expect from our pages. He is industrious, intelligent, and a true leader in the page program. It was my privilege to have the opportunity to get to know him and the other pages in this year's program. Now, as their term as pages comes to a close, I wanted to salute these young people for their efforts, their dedication, and their enthusiasm to serve the Members of this, the people's House.”