Political Quotes

“Madam President, I go home every weekend, back to northeast Ohio where I live in a town called Avon in Lorain County. I want to go home at Christmas. I want to be with my 3-year-old grandson and my three daughters and son. But I also think our obligation, as Senator Durbin said, the assistant majority leader, is to stay here and get our work done. And ``get our work done'' means extend the payroll tax cut and extend unemployment benefits. If we do not do that, frankly, we are ruining the holiday season for tens of thousands and dozens of tens of thousands, if you will, of Ohioans and Illinoisans and North Carolinians. If we do not do that, we do not deserve to be able to go home and be with our families. I am not trying to be a martyr, but I think it is shameful a group of people, in order to protect the highest income taxpayers in this country--those making over $1 million a year--continue to block an extension, a continuation, if you will, of this tax cut for working families. In my State the average tax cut that we will vote for today, and continue until it happens is about $100, $110, $120 per family per month. It is absolutely unconscionable not to do that. Senator Durbin also talked about the constitutional amendment to balance the budget. I want to recount something I heard earlier today on the Senate floor. Two of my conservative colleagues--one from Kentucky, one from Utah--spoke about the importance of a balanced budget amendment.…”