Political Quotes

“my colleagues and I rise today to express our sadness at the passing of our beloved former colleague, and my dear friend, Tip O'Neill. Although Speaker O'Neill has left us, he lives on through his cherished memory and through his contributions to public life, particularly this institution that he loved so well. I first got to know Tip when I was appointed to the Rules Committee in 1965. At that time, the legendary Judge Howard Smith was still the chairman of the committee, which Tip had been a member of since the Democrats regained control of the House 10 years earlier. The Rules Committee has always been the most partisan committee in the House, and Tip freely admitted that the only reason he was there was because he could be counted on to toe the party line. However, in those days, the committee met around a long oval table, so that junior members like Tip and myself sat facing one another, instead of on opposite ends of the room. This both promoted collegiality and created fast friendships that would last for decades. I always knew that Tip O'Neill was a man of his word whose heart was as big as his expansive personality.”