Political Quotes

“Madam President, Dr. Francis Collins, the Director of the National Institutes of Health, will retire this month after serving as the Director since 2009. That will be 12 years in one of the most challenging jobs in Washington, maybe even in the world. Dr. Collins served under three Presidents in that job. No other person has served under more than one President. During that 12 years, certainly there had been amazing advances in healthcare. As a Washington Post reporter put it, and this was a quote from his article, ``News that Francis Collins is stepping down as Director of the National Institutes of Health is a bit like hearing that Santa Claus is handing off his reindeer reins.'' This is the time of year to think about that. When he announced his retirement earlier this year, it was certainly followed by a flood of comments from the scientific community. They used words like ``brilliant,'' ``national treasure,'' ``smartest man in any room,'' ``beloved,'' and ``gentleman.'' I would also echo those words. I think I would add, from the great opportunities I have had to work with him and spend time with him, ``straightforward,'' ``kind,'' ``respected.'' By the way, he never seems to need to act like the smartest person in any room even if and when he is. You know, throughout the 12 years he has been Director, he has made countless contributions to biomedical research and public health.…”