Political Quotes

“as Senator Reed said, the amendment we have offered has been very carefully crafted. It has been a compromise among those who have had concerns about the program and those of us who believe it is critical we continue to support it. This is something all of those who have been watching this program have now agreed to, and I hope the objection we are hearing from some, that I think is unrelated to this issue, can be addressed. I close with a story that says to me how important this program is. Senator McCain and I had the opportunity 2 years ago to sit down with a former Army captain, a man named Matt Zeller, and his interpreter, an Afghan named Janis Shinwari, who had just been allowed into the United States. When I asked Matt Zeller how he met Janis and about the help he had provided him, his response was that they had met basically when he and his unit were under attack from the Taliban and he was knocked out in that attack. When he woke up, it wasn't he and fellow unit members of the military who were dead, it was the Taliban, and they were dead because Janis Shinwari was there and had protected Matt and the fellow members of his unit. I think that says so much about how important these interpreters and those who have provided support to our men and women on the ground in Afghanistan have been.…”