Congress Members Quotes

#1. In many states, voters didn't get to choose their own members of Congress. Members of Congress got to choose their own voters.

Ian Millhiser

#2. If there's a distinct group of Americans who harbor open contempt for constitutional principles and rule of law, it's lawyers, judges and members of Congress.

Walter E. Williams

#3. The problem ... is that most members of Congress don't pay attention to what's going on.

John McCain

#4. Today, as an independent, an entrepreneur, and a former mayor, I believe we need a president who is a problem solver, not a bomb thrower. Someone who can bring members of Congress together to get things done. And I know Hillary Clinton can do that because I saw it firsthand.

Michael Bloomberg

#5. Once it becomes impossible for members of Congress to make a career of legislative service, the temptation to bend a vote for whatever reason may yield to the better angels of their nature.

James L. Buckley

#6. As parties began to develop around the turn of the 19th century, you had party nominees for President nominated in caucuses made up of party members in Congress.

Michael Beschloss

#7. It was nonsense to talk about its being a sacrifice to come there; for if it were, they would not see so many grasping to be members of Congress.

David Crockett

#8. Members of the Congress, the Constitution makes us not rivals for power but partners for progress. We are all trustees for the American people, custodians of the American heritage. It is my task to report the State of the Union
to improve it is the task of us all.

John F. Kennedy

#9. For years, members of Congress have heard from constituents who want them to protect the nation from crime, terrorism and intellectual property violation. They have not faced equally robust demands that online rights and freedoms be preserved.

Rebecca MacKinnon

#10. As Members of Congress, we should not be using public office for private gain.

Sheila Jackson Lee

#11. Congress shall also create a tax code weighing more than the combined poundage of the largest member of the House and the largest member of the Senate, plus a standard musk ox.

Dave Barry

#12. I could end the deficit in 5 minutes. You just pass a law that says that anytime there is a deficit of more than 3% of GDP all sitting members of congress are ineligible for reelection.

Warren Buffett

#13. We saw what happened in Jimmy Carter's administration. President Carter was a good man with the best of intentions. But he came to Washington without a good working relationship with Democratic members of Congress, which played a big part in his administration's problems.

Jim Hunt

#14. Amendments occupy a great deal of most legislators' time, particularly those lawmakers in the minority. Members of Congress do author major bills, but more commonly they make minor adjustments to the bigger bill.

Matt Taibbi

#15. As legislators and as Members of Congress, it is our obligation to speak up for those who are being ignored in our society. The Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) does just that.

Gwen Moore

#16. What five members of the Supreme Court say the law is may be something vastly different from what Congress intended the law to be.

Benjamin Franklin Fairless

#17. For many members of Congress, the time for choosing is near - do what the party leadership demands, or do what the people have asked you to do. If my colleagues don't mind some advice from a newcomer, I'd suggest going with the will of the people.

Scott Brown

#18. As Members of Congress we can now engage with our constituents via online innovations like the Huffington Post, while a small business in rural Oregon can use the Internet to find customers around the world.

Ron Wyden

#19. The right to life is guaranteed to all Americans in the Declaration of Independence, and ensuring this is upheld is the Constitutional duty of all members of Congress.

Rand Paul

#20. The Populist Caucus is the only caucus in Congress devoted solely to addressing middle class economic issues. We formed the caucus because the founding members felt like there wasn't enough focus on middle class issues in Washington, and we're going to keep it focused on middle class issues.

Bruce Braley

#21. We have the right as individuals to give away as much of our own money as we please in charity; but as members of Congress we have no right to appropriate a dollar of the public money.

David Crockett

#22. If the flag needs protection at all, it needs protection from members of Congress who value the symbol more than the freedoms that the flag represents.

Jerrold Nadler

#23. Congress has always had a soft spot for "experts" who tell members what they want to hear, whether it's supply-side economists declaring that tax cuts increase revenue or climate-change skeptics insisting that global warming is a myth.

Paul Krugman

#24. All members of Congress should be required wear NASCAR uniforms. You know, the kind with the patches? That way we'd know who is sponsoring each of them. I think he was kidding; they'd never be able to do it but it's a great idea and would wake people up in this country.

Brad Thor

#25. I don't believe in lobbying only progressives and liberal members of Congress. I don't believe in doing interviews only with those who share my views. I want to reach a wider audience.

Bianca Jagger

#26. It's wrong that members of Congress can purchase luxury airfare with taxpayer money when many families in my district and across the county are struggling to make ends meet.

Raul Ruiz

#27. Millions of Americans are struggling to pay their mortgages. They have a right to know whether members of Congress receive sweetheart deals in order to pay for theirs.

Jeb Hensarling

#28. It is precisely those members of Congress who have had the most to do with creating the risks that led to the current economic crisis who are making the most noise against others, and summoning people before their committee to be browbeaten and humiliated on nationwide television.

Thomas Sowell

#29. It's sad to think right now, but probably the Russian and Chinese government know more about Hillary Clinton's e-mail server than do the members of the United States Congress. And - and that has put our national security at risk.

Scott Walker

#30. If you create a system that makes the small donors the linchpin of the system in terms of how members of Congress directly raise the funds for their campaigns, then it gives everyday citizens much more of a role - a leveraging role - in the funding of those campaigns.

John Sarbanes

#31. A local spirit will infallibly prevail much more in the members of Congress than a national spirit will prevail in the legislatures of the particular States.

James Madison

#32. Over the past year, several cases of human rights abuses, specifically sexual exploitation and abuse, by individuals involved in U.N. peacekeeping operations have raised the suspicions of many Members of Congress and members of the International Relations Committee.

Michael McCaul

#33. I request that they may be considered in confidence, until the members of Congress are fully possessed of their contents, and shall have had opportunity to deliberate on the consequences of their publication; after which time, I submit them to your wisdom.

John Adams

#34. The Pentagon got fed up with its recruits getting ripped off by payday lenders and in 2007 got Congress to make it illegal to extend such loans to members of the military. But civilians remain fair game.

Timothy Noah

#35. Americans want to have what members of Congress have: guaranteed health coverage.

Hillary Clinton

#36. Members of Congress must live according to the same laws as everyone else.

Bobby Jindal

#37. Charity requires sacrifice, and members of Congress could set a good example of charity by giving up their pay increase.

Tom Coburn

#38. If you think about it, 534 members of the U.S. Congress cannot all be religious. That's just statistical nonsense. Many of them are quite well-educated.

Richard Dawkins

#39. The White House approved an exemption in Obamacare coverage for Congress and members of their staff. Members complained that the Affordable Care Act will cost them thousands extra a year in premiums. Wait a minute. It's their bill. If it's too expensive, why did they name it the Affordable Care Act?

Jay Leno

#40. For Members of Congress, we are saying here on the Democratic side of the aisle we are not going to vote for another pay increase for Members of Congress until the American people get an increase.

Kendrick Meek

#41. Earmarks are almost always inserted by a member of Congress without any notice to other members, and without a chance for Congress as a whole to debate a particular earmark as they relate to national priorities.

Marsha Blackburn

#42. Members of Congress should be compelled to wear uniforms like NASCAR drivers, so we could identify their corporate sponsors.

Caroline Baum

#43. I think all members of Congress are very concerned about the fact that, while we want to see our law enforcement agencies have every means they can possibly have to combat terrorism, we've got to remember that we've had a Constitution in place for 225 years, and it has served us well.

Saxby Chambliss

#44. We have to get rid of the constant fundraising that happens inside the Congress. Before, political parties used to raise money; now, individual members are raising money through the DCCC and the RCCC. It is absolutely corrupt.

Marcy Kaptur

#45. I put myself and all the members of Congress in the same boat of things that could have been done better.

John Breaux

#46. It's time for compassionate Americans to send a wake-up call to their members of Congress and demand passage of legislation to end the wholesale slaughter of America's horses once and for all.

Jane Velez-Mitchell

#47. I can see it now: Osama bin Laden goes up to the pearly gates where George Washington comes out, starts beating him and is then joined by 70 other members of the Continental Congress. Osama will say, Hey, wait! Where are my 71 virgins? And George will reply It's 71 Virginians, you asshole!

Robin Williams

#48. I've learned from being in the woods that titles don't mean much and that actions speak a lot louder than words - even in Congress. I always look for the people who want to act - people who want to run the river or climb the mountain - even if they're not members of my political party.

Mark Udall

#49. It's an embarrassment that we don't have a broad enough consensus among political leaders that true reform should take place. I could count the members of Congress on one hand that took these issues seriously.

DeForest Soaries

#50. George W. Bush was good as his word. He visited the Gulf states 17 times; went 13 times to New Orleans. Laura Bush made 24 trips. Bush saw that $126 billion in aid was sent to the Gulf's residents, as some members of his own party in Congress balked.

Donna Brazile

#51. I've actually cut my personal pay individually; we didn't vote on that, but I've done that individually. It's important that folks know that we're going to roll up our sleeves and work on things, and members of Congress are going to sacrifice our own budgets first.

Steve Stivers

#52. It would be almost politically suicidal for members of Congress to espouse a balanced position between Israel and Palestine, to suggest that Israel comply with international law or to speak in defense of justice or human rights for Palestinians. If they did so, they couldn't be reelected.

Jimmy Carter

#53. I think if more members of Congress would talk about what they see and what they want to do and what they want to accomplish, rather than talking about their opponent, we would begin to shape and reshape American public opinion on what the political world looks like.

Reid Ribble

#54. As members of Congress, we take an oath to uphold the Constitution and bear true faith and allegiance to the United States, not the Republican or Democratic party. I have been willing to stand up to my own leadership when it's in the national interest.

Jackie Speier

#55. As things are now, no one can tell to whom members of Congress are responsible, except that it does not often appear to be to the people. Everyone else is represented in Washington by a rich and powerful lobby, it seems. But there is no lobby for the people.

Shirley Chisholm

#56. We are more united than ever before. I think this was exemplified in a very moving way when the members of our Congress stood shoulder to shoulder the other day and sang God Bless America.

Billy Graham

#57. Some members of Congress are among the best actors in the world.

Shirley Chisholm

#58. The government needs to help those in need, but members of Congress shouldn't take advantage of the situation and use a national tragedy as an opportunity to spend taxpayer dollars on their pet projects.

Chris Chocola

#59. I've spoken in front of members of the U.S. Congress about a new dream of living in communities where everybody is welcome and everyone can live and go to school and work without facing the fear of bullies.

Lauren Potter

#60. Members of Congress are incredibly blessed and fortune to have the jobs that we have. Nobody makes us run. Every two years we offer for public office, and if you don't want to do it then don't run. But the notion that you can make $174,000 in this country and be underpaid is laughable.

Trey Gowdy

#61. President Obama signed a bill preventing members of Congress from profiting from insider trading. Didn't you think that was already illegal?

Jay Leno

#62. The problem we have had on the budget all along is a lack of adult supervision on the part of the White House. You can't blame members of Congress for looking out for their parochial interests. It is the president's responsibility to look out for the national interest.

Bruce Bartlett

#63. I think some of our members may have thought the default issue was a hostage you might take a chance at shooting. Most of us didn't think that. What we did learn is this - it's a hostage that's worth ransoming. And it focuses the Congress on something that must be done.

Mitch McConnell

#64. One thing members of Congress need to realize is how much their reliance on staffers is hurting the institution and helping make it unaccountable.

John Fund

#65. Historically, the minority party in Congress votes against raising the debt limit, forcing the majority party to whip its members into casting politically painful votes in favor.

Peter Welch

#66. Thousands of members of Congress have come and gone over the years, their individual achievements hidden in committee reports, private compromises, amendments pushed through or blocked, and innumerable, unnoticed meetings.

Elliott Abrams

#67. Some members of Congress now are complaining they are underpaid. They want to propose a pay raise. You can't blame them. A lot of them took a big income hit when Enron folded.

Jay Leno

#68. Households and businesses cut expenses every day. Passing a financial down payment alongside the debt limit sends the right message to the public, and gives members of Congress greater comfort, or cover, depending on your perspective.

John Sununu

#69. There's a different leader in Syria now. Many of the members of Congress of both parties who have gone to Syria in recent months have said they believe he's a reformer.

Hillary Clinton

#70. President Obama is so much smarter and a better communicator than members of Congress in either party. The contrast, side by side, is almost ridiculous ...

Jonathan Chait

#71. As one of the most conservative members of Congress and a staunch supporter of the 2nd Amendment, I am constantly under attack for my values and beliefs.

Paul Broun

#72. One of the first members of Congress I met when I was first elected in 2008 was Barney Frank.

Chellie Pingree

#73. It's been said that members of Congress love receiving pats on the back weekdays in Washington, D.C., but they would benefit greatly from going home regularly to receive valuable slaps on the back of the head in their districts.

Tim Walberg

#74. I think it's difficult for members of Congress to be as independent as they need to be in their voting.

Jim Moran

#75. I firmly believe that if members of Congress fail to perform their most basic duty in passing a budget, then they do not deserve to be paid.

Kurt Schrader

#76. There are 435 members of Congress. There's one 'Morning Joe' show. Hopefully, we can keep hammering the argument that you can disagree with other people and have debates but remain civil.

Joe Scarborough

#77. Incumbency adds a layer of advantage on top of this party dominance. But rather than foster an environment in which members of Congress feel free to buck popular sentiment and wrestle seriously with the problems confronting the country, it reinforces the ideological divide between the parties.

Thomas E. Mann

#78. Having plead guilty, I do not believe that I am any different than the vast majority of the members of Congress.

Dan Rostenkowski

#79. Members of Congress have more in common with the people they hobnob in Washington, D.C., than they do with the people they're supposed to represent.

Ben Shapiro

#80. Reasons why members of Congress deserve a pay raise: Many big corporations are cutting back on bribes; nearly half the members have never been indicted.

David Letterman

#81. If a trip is worth taking, members of Congress should be prepared to justify paying for it out of their office accounts.

Russ Feingold

#82. Maybe the Jefferson case will give members of Congress second thoughts the next time they get ready to legislate away the rights of ordinary Americans.

Helen Thomas

#83. I've been told that some members of Congress disagree with my tax cut proposal. Well, you know it's been said that taxation is the art of plucking feathers without killing the bird. It's time they realized the bird just doesn't have any feathers left.

Ronald Reagan

#84. No one talks about the real ethics disaster in Washington. It's that many members of Congress will listen to any argument against a bill except for two: that it's not moral or that it's not Constitutional.

Ron Paul

#85. There's nothing that irritates Americans more than the fact that some members of Congress think they are entitled to their own set of rules. And it's true - too many people in Washington live in an alternate reality.

Claire McCaskill

#86. Congress allows lemonade to the members and has it charged under the head of stationery-I move also that whiskey be allowed under the item of fuel.

Davy Crockett

#87. As Members of Congress and people of conscience, we must work to overcome the indifference and distortions of history, and ensure that future generations know what happened.

Jerry Costello

#88. The budgets we work on in Congress are more than just fiscal documents; they are a reflection of our moral values as well. In choosing where to spend money, members of Congress choose what priorities they value.

Tim Walz

#89. The centralization of power in Washington, which nearly all members of Congress deplore in their speech and then support by their votes, steadily increases.

Calvin Coolidge

#90. If you have health care, my plan will lower your premiums. If you don't, you'll be able to get the same kind of coverage that members of Congress give themselves.

Barack Obama

#91. The security intended to the general liberty consists in the frequent election and in the rotation of the members of Congress.

James Madison

#92. The Constitution I uphold and defend is the one I carry in my pocket all the time, the U.S. Constitution. I don't know what Constitution that other members of Congress uphold, but it's not this one. I think the only Constitution that Barack Obama upholds is the Soviet constitution, not this one.

Paul Broun

#93. As Members of Congress, we swear an oath to uphold the United States Constitution. It means something to be an American because we believe in our country, we believe in our people, and we believe in our constitution.

Todd Tiahrt

#94. We're sad about some of the losses of members of great seniority and distinction in the Congress, and some very new members, who will no longer be serving with us.

Nancy Pelosi

#95. I support efforts to limit the terms of members of Congress, especially members of the House and members of the Senate.

Dan Quayle

#96. There are bills being discussed to raise the amount that Members of Congress pay in to their benefits and I support these pieces of legislation.

Rob Woodall

#97. We have some Jewish members of Congress, not a lot but there's a bunch of us.

Gary Ackerman

#98. Over the last several days, we have heard from members of Congress who want their voices to be heard. I absolutely agree.

Barack Obama

#99. We are telling veterans they must sacrifice to pay for the pet projects and contracts to campaign donors of powerful members of Congress.

Nick Lampson

#100. The retirement system that is in place for members of Congress and other federal workers features what is known as the Federal Employment Retirement Plan.

Virgil Goode