Political Quotes

“Congressman Jeffries, you have given us a lot to reflect on tonight. You have given us the roll call of how President after President has reauthorized the Voting Rights Act. As I was listening to you, it appears that there is an uncommon denominator that we now have in this great America: a Black man as President of these United States. I want to stand here and say, Mr. Speaker, that I am very suspect when I listen to how eloquently my colleague walked us through the history and shared with us how 51 years ago our colleague, John Lewis, was putting his life at risk with other great leaders as a very young Black man, that it was because he understood what was at stake. He was probably ahead of his time. But when you think about that, everyone in this Chamber should want to have that experience. I can remember a year ago, almost to the date, that I took that journey to Selma, Alabama. I took that journey with Congressman John Lewis and some of my colleagues on the other side of the aisle, who stood there and locked and latched hands and talked about how we should overcome. For a moment, Congressman Jeffries, it gave me that hope that I came here for, that hope that one person can make a difference and change the lives of others. It wasn't 48 hours later that we came back to this institution, to this House floor, and all of that was washed away. It was back to business as usual.…”