Political Quotes

“I ask to speak as in morning business. I certainly will not take 10 minutes that the majority leader has requested because I know the Senator from Alabama is eager to speak. I wish to make sure I understand where we are with regard to the debt ceiling. I have an article from The Hill, dated yesterday. It points out--it heard the same thing in the speech the rest of the Nation heard when the President spoke--the President said he would be willing to work on any plans lawmakers brought to him over the weekend. The President went on to say: The only bottom line I have is that we have to extend this debt ceiling through the next election, into 2013. I ask my colleagues what does the election of 2012 have to do with the debt ceiling? What does it have to do with deciding to pay our obligations after August 2? What does it have to do with avoiding the calamity we have all heard about from both sides of the aisle and certainly from the administration? It strikes me as very odd that most debt ceiling extensions have been about 7 months during a decade-long period, and for some reason because of the election of 2012, the President of the United States wants to extend the deadline past that election into 2013. I think it makes Americans wonder if the President is playing politics with this very important issue. The President went on to say in the press conference that we all listened to that he wondered if the Republicans were able to say yes to any agreement.…”