Political Quotes

“I thank my colleagues for having this Special Order. When Jennifer Brennan was pregnant with her first child, her husband, Thomas M. Brennan, would play Grateful Dead tapes loudly, hoping the music would reach the ears of the unborn daughter. When the baby kicked, as she invariably did, Mr. Brennan was delighted. She, too, he would say, was a fan. The last day he spent with his family, the Sunday before September 11, Mr. Brennan, age 32, played Grateful Dead in the car in Westchester. Strapped to her car seat, Katherine, now 19 months, laughed and moved to the music, and that is how Mrs. Brennan would like to remember her husband, as the only person who could make their daughter giggle uncontrollably. With his wife pregnant with the couple's second child, a boy who was born last month, Mr. Brennan took on many of the child care duties. He often fed his daughter breakfast and carried her when she needed a hug. Mr. Brennan, an investment banker with Sandler O'Neill, treasured the time with his family, in part because he traveled constantly for work. Tuesday, September 11, was the only day that week that he was scheduled to be in the office. Mr. Speaker, I did not know the Brennans, and I do not know them, but in a way I think all of us in America knew the Brennans because this heinous crime, this terrorist attack, was so anonymous. It just struck out and hit innocent people who were living the American dream.”