Political Quotes

“Madam President, you know, it is often said here that everything has been said, but not everybody has said it yet. (Laughter.) This is actually a case where everything won't be said today and can't be said. The remarkable legislative accomplishments that Rob has made are truly that--they are just remarkable. When we were serving early in the House together, there was this big retirement bill. I thought, for a while, of Senator Portman that then- Congressman Cardin's first name was ``Portman'' because it was all about the Portman-Cardin Act, the Portman-Cardin ``this and that.'' (Laughter.) I had a little piece we were able to put in that was called the SIMPLE Plan. Maybe that is because the only thing I understood was the SIMPLE Plan. It was a helpful plan, but we probably wouldn't have gotten it done if Rob hadn't been constantly making the legislative things happen that he makes happen. As I have said in my remarks, I have never served on a committee with Rob Portman, in the House or in the Senate, in our more than 20 years of working together, but I have probably spent more time with him in meetings, as we have tried to figure out how to move forward, than I have with almost anybody else, whether they had been the House leadership meetings or have been the Senate leadership meetings.…”