Political Quotes

“Yesterday, Senator Olympia Snowe announced that she wouldn't run for reelection--not that she couldn't win, but that she didn't want to, not in this environment. This storied representative will be a loss to the institution here. But it doesn't have to be that way, Mr. Speaker. This week on Capitol Hill we have friends who have joined us from the public broadcasting community, representing public television stations across the country. Today, the Women's Garden Club of America are here in force. Now, these are people that have an approach that can help us unwind the problems that we have here in Congress. Public broadcasting is America's voice, and for most of America it's the only locally owned and managed source of news and local interest. It's commercial free. It is focused on our kids, our culture, our environment. Last year, amidst the Tea Party effort to defund public broadcasting, we had a poll that showed 78 percent of Americans wanted the funding to remain the same or be increased. Two-thirds of Republicans wanted it to be held steady or increased. Now, from this year's budget it hopefully appears that we've dodged that bullet--maybe some people have come to their senses. Americans were heard from coast to coast: Don't play games with public broadcasting. We've got a few minor holes in the President's budget, but I hope we can come together in a bipartisan way, listen to Americans, listen to these representatives, and do it right.…”