Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I too wish to offer congratulations and gratitude to Dr. James H. Billington on the occasion of his 25th Anniversary as Librarian of Congress on September 14, 2012. Dr. Billington was sworn into office as the 13th Librarian of Congress on September 14, 1987, after being nominated by Ronald Reagan and unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate. A distinguished Rhodes Scholar, author, and humanitarian, he has received over 40 honorary doctorates and has authored several books on Russia and the former Soviet Union. Earlier in his career he served in the U.S. Army and taught history at Harvard and Princeton Universities. Later he went on to become the director of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C. where he founded the Kennan Institute for Advanced Russian Studies and seven other new programs as well as the Wilson Quarterly. Mr. Billington's tenure at the Library has been remarkable for his vision, his commitment to excellence, and for the wide-ranging intellect and experience he has applied to making the Library of Congress one of the most respected citadels of knowledge in the world. Dr. Billington led the Library into the digital age, giving on-line access to its many treasures to Members of Congress and people throughout the world with the Library of Congress National Digital Library Program, the THOMAS data base, and the Open World Program.…”