Political Quotes

“Madam President, it is an honor to stand here for my first speech on the Senate floor. I am honored to be part of this body and to speak where hundreds have spoken before and thousands will speak after me. A normal first speech for a Senator is usually a proactive, forward- looking speech. We are not in normal times. A normal first speech for a Senator usually happens much later, after a Senator has been around for a number of months. We are not in normal times. A normal first speech for a Senator is often in connection with the introduction of a piece of legislation. We are not in normal times. So I am speaking a bit earlier than I would have thought likely when I took the oath of office on January 3, but I am speaking in particular because we are not in normal times, and the abnormality of the times has a huge effect on the Commonwealth I am proud to represent. In the summer of 2011 Congress passed a bill we are now talking about, a bill dealing with the sequestration cuts of the Federal Government. There is no precedent I am aware of in congressional history for what is about to happen in 48 hours. Congress designed a set of punishing, nonstrategic, ugly cuts designed to hurt the economy and hurt individuals and all--however they voted on that bill--did not want these cuts to come into place.…”