Political Quotes

“Thank you, Madam President. As we stated, some of us had serious objections to changing the formula, but thankfully the modified amendment follows in a tradition of compromise. And I appreciate my colleagues from Tennessee, Washington, and North Carolina working on it. As a result, we will continue to abide by the ``do no harm'' principle. New York's funding will not be cut, and neither will the funding in any of the other 13 States that would have been cut by the original amendment. We will not punish schools unfairly by using a formula that creates winners and losers. This takes the idea of losing school districts off the table. So, again, I would like to thank my colleagues for working with me to ensure that our students in New York and the 13 other States do not start the next school year at a disadvantage with fewer school resources. The title I changes we have agreed to reflect our commitment to increasing funding and supporting funding for low- and moderate-income students. I appreciate the commitment my colleagues from Tennessee and Washington have made, and I would like to confirm those here on the floor. I would ask my dear friend Senator Alexander--I would like you to confirm your commitment to maintain this title I funding proposal which we just passed which is contained in amendment No. 2247, as modified-- when the Senate and House convene a conference, that we will not go any lower than this. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Tennessee.”