Political Quotes

“I am very pleased to be on the floor with my friend and colleague from Mississippi to talk about Bosnia- Herzegovina and about our trip to commemorate the horrible massacre in Srebrenica that occurred in 1995. As Senator Wicker has said, that was a very moving trip for us. One of the things that was very particular to New Hampshire that I found hopeful was listening to the very young mayor from Srebrenica, the current mayor, whose name is Camil Durakovic. He had actually spent a number of years in New Hampshire and had gone to Southern New Hampshire University. His family had fled after the massacre in Bosnia and came to New Hampshire. He went back in 2005 and was elected mayor. One of the things he talked about was the need to work with Serbia, to work across the ethnic and religious lines in Bosnia to achieve peace. It was, as Senator Wicker said, so heartening to think that we were actually able to get these Dayton Accords that ended that long conflict in Bosnia--very bitter and bloody--and see some real progress. One of the things we talked about on the flight back with President Clinton and former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright was what we could do to help Bosnia continue to progress and move forward, because one of their challenges is economic. This is a country that has a very high level of education, and it has a lot of young people who need opportunities for the future.…”