Political Quotes

“Mr. President, at the end of each session of Congress it has long been a tradition in the Senate to take a moment to express our appreciation and say goodbye to those who will not be returning in January for the beginning of the next Congress. One of those I know I will miss who will be heading home to North Dakota to begin the next chapter of his life is Byron Dorgan. Byron was raised in the ranching and wheat growing region of North Dakota in the town of Regent. Looking back, he has often said that he graduated in the top 10 of his high school class. ``There were nine of us,'' he then adds with a smile. Growing up in a community that was so heavily involved in agriculture gave him an early taste of what rural life is all about. He experienced firsthand the importance of farming to his home State and the hard work associated with taking good care of the land and the resources it provides. He saw the way people who live on farms schedule their days-- working from sunrise to sunset, going from task to task knowing there was always more work to be done than there were hours in the day. It was a lesson about the true meaning of hard work that would stay with him throughout his life and help direct his efforts and his service in the Senate. One issue we shared an interest in and worked together on for years has been sales tax fairness. Byron took his experience as a former tax administrator and I used my background as an accountant to focus our work on the issue.…”