Political Quotes

“Last Tuesday, war was declared, not just on the United States but on civilized people everywhere. The American people were instantly united and resolved around this challenge. This resolution this evening is another step in the long struggle for the American people to see that their Nation's leadership is equal to this challenge. While I am one who believes that the American President has these powers and more, there is a chance here to jointly define the challenge. There is an opportunity for Congress and the administration, people in both parties, to be very clear about what our challenge is and what we are going to do. Our Nation has never quite undertaken this issue in quite the same way. We can avoid the problems of the past. We saw in the Spanish-American War we had the wrong cause for the wrong war. During World War II, we saw our government commit, sadly, acts against the civil liberties of Japanese-American citizens. I think we have learned from those experiences in the past. I am hopeful this resolution will be the first step for more direct actions that will be inclusive, inclusive here on Capitol Hill, inclusive of citizens around the country, inclusive with our friends and allies abroad, and, indeed, with some countries with whom we may not have the warmest of relations; but we are all united in this effort to protect the rights of many men and women in civilized countries everywhere.”