Political Quotes

“I join with my friend and colleague, Senator Wyden, to recognize the somber anniversary of the tragedy that struck our home State of Oregon a year ago. On October 1, 2015, the town of Roseburg was changed forever. Roseburg is a quiet, beautiful, small town, like so many others across our Nation. I spent part of my childhood in Roseburg. I was there as a toddler, in kindergarten and first grade. That is where I learned to swim, in the Umpqua River. It is a place where I find it hard to imagine anything terrible happening. Community members are so supportive of each other, but something terrible did happen that beautiful autumn day of October 1, when the lives of 9 Oregonians--students and teachers--at Umpqua Community College were tragically cut short by the actions of a crazed gunman. Nine incredible, innocent people were taken from us in the blink of an eye. I want to take a moment to share the names of those nine victims and to say a few words about each of them. There is 19-year-old Lucero Alcaraz, who was a freshman who had graduated from Roseburg High School. She wanted to become a pediatric nurse and to help care for the most vulnerable of our citizens. Quinn Cooper was a member of the Cow Creek Band of Indians who graduated with Lucero from Roseburg High School. That fateful October day was only his fourth day of college. He loved dancing and voice acting. He loved martial arts and was just a few days away from taking his brown belt test.…”