Political Quotes

“Mr. President, the end of every Congress brings with it the reality that fellow colleagues in the Senate will no longer serve with us when the new Congress convenes in January. As we rush to complete the work of this Congress and in our eagerness to return home to spend time with our families for the holidays, it is important that we pause to thank departing Members for their years of public service to their constituents and to the country. On December 15, I spoke on the floor to commend the Senate service of my fellow Pennsylvanian, Senator Pat Toomey. Senator Pat Leahy of Vermont has served nearly 48 years in the Senate, and his list of accomplishments is as long as his tenure. I first got to know Senator Leahy when I was a new Senator and a junior member of the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Foresty, a committee that Senator Leahy once chaired. I was able to work with him and learn from him about all issues related to the dairy farming, which is of particular importance to both Vermont and my home State of Pennsylvania. Senator Leahy is also known, among other things, for his fierce commitment to human rights around the world, his long-time work advancing the cause of justice on the Judiciary Committee, his outstanding work on the Appropriations Committee, his fierce defense of the Senate as an institution, and, most of all, as the greatest advocate for the people of Vermont that the State has ever known.…”