Political Quotes

“in 1844, a man came to Washington recognizing the country had been in a deep recession in 1837 and it spilled over a number of years. He came to Washington with an idea. He came to Congress with an idea. What he wanted to do was build some power poles, put some wire on them, and he said if he did that, this infrastructure--and he had money to do it--would revolutionize communications in America. This man, Samuel Morse, convinced Congress to do that. They appropriated $40,000. In that day that was a huge amount of money. The Federal Government appropriated that money and a telegraph line was built between Washington, DC, and Baltimore, MD. The rest is history. It changed America. It changed the world. The first telegraph line revolutionized communications. It was so significant. Some opposed funding for the new invention that Morse was talking about, but once the wires connecting the two cities were laid, our country's communication structure, as I mentioned, was changed forever. What started as a government investment became a major private sector enterprise, creating thousands of jobs and new opportunities to connect people and ideas. If that sounds familiar, it is exactly what created one of the greatest economic opportunities of our lifetime--not only of our lifetime but ever--the Internet.…”