Political Quotes

“Father's Day is coming up. Father's Day is this Sunday. As a dad--and, actually, my two daughters are coming into the Galleries right now--it is a time for reflection and for gratitude, quite frankly. I delivered my maiden speech earlier this week, on Tuesday, and a big part of that was of the influence that my father had on my life. Growing up in a working-class neighborhood and seeing him work 7 days a week on the 12 midnight shift and going to events and being a great role model for me is something that I am eternally grateful for. I have had a lot of different positions or jobs or titles, but the most important one that I will ever have is being a father to my son Stephen and to my two daughters, Sophia and Olivia. I also mentioned in that maiden speech the inspiration that my son gave me to run for office. Stephen was born with a rare genetic condition and suffers from epilepsy. He is nonverbal. He gave me and has given me, every day, a perspective on what is really important and what my focus is. I know, for a lot of dads out there, being a father keeps them grounded. It is the most important thing that they will ever do. We all have important business to do even in this place, but being a dad is paramount. And I have got my two daughters. I talk about Stephen a lot because Stephen, again, was my inspiration. He has profound medical challenges that my wife and I--and Jaime is here as well--deal with every day.…”