Political Quotes

“last week, when I was first informed of the proposal by the Senator from New Jersey, I was torn. I agreed totally with his philosophy, but I also have a great deal of respect for the States and for their legislatures that, of course, have full jurisdiction over this problem. Many States have acted, and other States are in the process of acting. Over the weekend, however, I ceased to be pulled in two separate directions on this subject by a remarkable article directly on point in the Sunday Seattle Times. I would like to share with my colleagues some of that article. Then at the end, I will place the entire news story in the Record. The news story was on a great success story in American society, the reduction in automobile deaths. While it deals with the State of Washington, I am certain that it is of relatively universal application, to a greater or lesser extent, all across the United States. An early paragraph in the article reads: The numbers are clear: The state's roads are not just a little safer in the 1990s than in decades past, they're much safer. You're a lot less likely to be in an accident than in earlier times. And if you are in one, you're less likely to be seriously injured or killed. Last year, there were 1.3 deaths for every 100 million miles driven on Washington's roads and highways. In 1953, as far back as comparable statistics are available, the figure was four times higher--at 5.1 deaths per 100 million miles.”