Political Quotes

“Mr. President, along with my colleagues I just had the opportunity to be at the unveiling of the statue of Senator Barry Goldwater in Statuary Hall. I had the privilege of serving with Barry Goldwater. We traveled together many times. He came to Vermont at different times with me, and we became very close friends. It was interesting to watch Senator Goldwater form alliances across the aisle with different people. But I remember expressly one very personal thing. I was very close to my father, and my father passed away late one evening in Vermont. The next morning, the first two telephone calls my mother received were condolences. One was from Barry Goldwater, and one was from Ted Kennedy. The two had both talked before they called. I mention that because that was the type of people they both were. It had nothing to do with ideology; it was who they were. In 1980 I had the second closest election in America. Somebody suggested to me that it must be because of my philosophy. I thought probably, but I can't figure it out. So I called up the man who had the closest election in 1980, the year of the Reagan sweep. I said, ``Senator Goldwater, what is the message we are being sent?'' Barry laughed and said, ``We have to change our luck.'' He suggested that he move into the office of the retiring Senator Abe Ribicoff of Connecticut, a Democratic Senator from New England. He said, ``I am going to move into his office and change my luck.…”