Political Quotes

“I rise to remember my colleague of these past ten years, Representative Patsy Mink, who passed away this weekend. During my first years in Congress, I worked closely with Patsy when we both served on the Education and Labor Committee. Patsy was a wonderful person who believed in the power of education. She wanted to ensure that all Americans, especially women, received a quality education. She was a tireless warrior for women and education, authoring the Women's Educational Equity Act of 1974, which provided funding for schools attempting to eliminate inequities and discrimination against women as required by Title IX. She worked to increase Impact Aid to Hawaiian public schools, which helps offset the cost of educating the children of Federal employees and military personnel. But Patsy did not limit herself to only education issues. She was also a champion of all working Americans, fighting to protect the landmark Davis-Bacon Act, which requires federal contractors to pay local prevailing wages. She lead efforts to protect the Legal Services Corporation, which provides needy individuals nationwide with legal assistance. In short, Patsy was a champion of the forgotten--the poor, the homeless, those who needed financial assistance for college, those who were without health insurance, and those who were unemployed. And like the best Members of Congress, Patsy fought hardest for her people at home.”