Political Quotes

“I ask Members to vote for a new gift ban rule today not for themselves, but for their Nation's Capital. For Members, the gift ban represents the loss of trivial token gifts. For the District of Columbia, the gift ban has caused millions of dollars in lost revenue. The District is just now emerging from a financial crisis that brought insolvency to the Nation's Capital. The Congress made great strides last Congress to hasten the District's recovery with the passage of the National Capital Revitalization and Self-Government Improvement Act (the Revitalization Act) in 1997. Last Saturday, a new, tough, fiscally prudent mayor and new City Council took the oath of office, ushering in new era in the District's political culture. Most importantly, downtown D.C. is coming back and is increasingly alive with people taking advantage of new reasons to go to downtown. Despite these great strides, however, the District's recovery remains in its infancy. District revenues are significantly dependent on tax receipts from downtown businesses. Moreover, these revenues have been flat, partly because of the effect of the gift ban. Small retail businesses have been particularly hurt. However, the most prominent example of the effect of the gift ban is the new MCI Center, the centerpiece of the revitalization of downtown D.C.…”