Quotes by Tom Harkin - Page 1 | QuoteForever

A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z

Prions are highly indestructible.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Danger
Indestructible
Copy Quote
There is no such thing as a pro-nuclear environmentalist.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Environmentalist
Nuclear
Copy Quote
The Gulf War was like teenage sex. We got in too soon and out too soon.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
War
Gulf War
Sex
Teenage
Gulf
Soon
Copy Quote
Politics is like driving. To go backward put it in R. To go forward put it in D.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Copy Quote
You [the Gallaudet students] have brought the deaf community together.... You are my heroes.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Community
Hero
Together
Copy Quote
I've always been for immigration reform; in 2007 I just didn't feel it had enough protections.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Had Enough
Immigration
Reform
Copy Quote
Let's face it, in America today we don't have a health care system, we have a sick care system.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Health
America
Care
Health Care
Health Care System
Sick
Today
Face
System
Copy Quote
The President must stop gambling with taxpayers' money and get the country back on the path of fiscal sanity.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Country
Gambling
Path
President
Sanity
Taxpayers
Fiscal
Copy Quote
America's health care system is in crisis precisely because we systematically neglect wellness and prevention.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Health
America
Care
Crisis
Health Care
Health Care System
Neglect
Prevention
Wellness
Health Care America
Because
Precisely
System
Systematically
Copy Quote
Stem cell research holds enormous promise for easing human suffering, and federal support is critical to its success.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Cells
Critical
Enormous
Human Suffering
Promise
Research
Stem
Stem Cell
Stem Cell Research
Support
Cell
Cell Research
Easing
Federal
Holds
Copy Quote
While President Bush's tax give-aways for the rich are pushing us further into debt, he compensates by increasing the out-of-pocket costs to our veterans.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Debt
Giving
Our Veterans
Pushing
Rich
Vaccines
Tax
Bush
Further
Increasing
Veterans
Copy Quote
If we are serious about combating the childhood obesity epidemic and improving child nutrition, then everyone must chip in -- parents, schools, and yes even Congress.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Children
Obesity Epidemic
School
Copy Quote
When I campaigned, I'd let them throw a punch, but by gosh, I'd throw two back. I always said, the first rule in politics is never defend, always attack. I still believe that.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Believe
I Still Believe
Copy Quote
That signal's come and gone a lot in my life-time, that prairie progressivism died . I think prairie progressivism is still there. Every once in a while, odd things take place.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Odd
Progressivism
Thinking
Copy Quote
I am a Democrat and I love my party and I want them to have good policies and good candidates, so I hope to be supportive in some way, but I don't intend to be any kind of 'godfather' or something like that.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Love
Party
Supportive
Copy Quote
When those pictures of Abu Ghraib came out, I thought, my gosh, this is like the tiger cages for prisoners in Vietnam all over again. Only we were actually doing it ourselves, we weren't hiring another government to do it.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Hiring
Prisoner
Tigers
Copy Quote
Obesity now contributes to the death of more than 360,000 Americans a year. The incidence of childhood obesity is now at epidemic levels. Alarm bells are going off all over the place. But our government has done virtually nothing.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Government
Epidemics
Years
Copy Quote
Let's face it, in America today we don't have a health care system, we have a sick care system. We wait until people become obese, develop chronic diseases, or become disabled - and then we spend untold hundreds of billions annually to try to make them better.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
America
People
Sick
Copy Quote
Today, only two groups in the United States have total immunity from lawsuits: foreign diplomats and HMOs. We believe it's time to end diplomatic immunity for HMOs. Holding them accountable is the only way to guarantee that you get the health care your family deserves.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Believe
Guarantees That
Two
Copy Quote
I think the American people said, look, you know, we can't control what every government does to its people, but we shouldn't be aiding and assisting a government in having these kinds of repressive prisons. It added to the public outcry against our involvement in Vietnam.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Kind
People
Thinking
Copy Quote
I don't know if there's any secret recipe. Just a lot of hard work. Pay attention to your constituents. I always had a great Iowa staff that did all my great constituent service work. And I found that people would forgive me for a lot of my "liberal sins" because I paid attention to the home front.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Home
Hard Work
People
Copy Quote
[A]s we celebrate 75 years of the minimum wage, we must also recognize that it is no longer achieving its potential impact in our economy or for America's working families. Every American deserves the chance to build a better life for his or her family - and raising the minimum wage will provide that opportunity.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Opportunity
America
Impact
Copy Quote
There's no one silver bullet, but money really is the root of all evil. The single biggest problem is how much more money is flooding into politics these days. It not only tends to enable a more extreme candidate to get elected, but because so much money is required to bankroll a campaign, everyone spends all their free time fundraising instead of reaching across the aisle.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Evil
Problem
Silver
Copy Quote
When I first arrived to Congress in 1975, I would spend several hours every week with Republicans - having lunch, drinking a beer. But by the time I left last year, that was a rarity. Every moment of free time is eaten up by fundraising. And the advent of all these groups that can threaten passage of this or that with an avalanche of money or a primary opponent has poisoned our politics.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Beer
Drinking
Republican
Copy Quote
A lot of times, candidates for office, especially incumbents, seem to get drawn into their opponents' arguments, and fighting on their turf, because you want to defend yourself. That's wrong. Fight on your own turf. Make them come to you. Make them explain why they don't agree with your position. I think that a lot of times, too many liberals, progressives, lose because they're afraid to really stand up for what they believe in.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Believe
Fighting
Thinking
Copy Quote
Whereas Iraq has consistently breached its cease-fire agreement between Iraq and the United States, entered into on March 3, 1991, by failing to dismantle its weapons of mass destruction program, and refusing to permit monitoring and verification by United Nations inspections; Whereas Iraq has developed weapons of mass destruction, including chemical and biological capabilities, and has made positive progress toward developing nuclear weapons capabilities
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Agreement
Fire
Iraq
Copy Quote
I fully support President Bush's decision to strike Al Qaeda's terrorist network. Now more than ever, we must stand united as a nation and support our President and our military. It is important to remember that this carefully targeted response is not an attack on a religion, nor a nation, but an attack on terrorism. In Congress, we will continue to work with the White House to do what's needed to bring justice to those who committed the heinous and evil attacks of September 11.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Evil
Military
White
Copy Quote
The burning issue of our time is the growing inequality in income and wealth in our country, and it's got to be addressed. We've got to stop it. It's eroding our politics. It's separating our society into the haves and the have-nots. It's condemning a whole younger set of our population to not be able to enter the middle class. And, it hits hardest in the prairie areas of the United States, our small towns and communities, where the jobs just aren't available and the incomes are low.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Community
Country
Wealth
Copy Quote
The planes were hijacked, the buildings fell, and thousands of lives were lost nearly a thousand miles from here. But the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon were an attack on the heart of America. And standing here in the heartland of America, we say in one voice We will not give in to terrorists; We will not rest until they are found and defeated; We will win this struggle not for glory, nor wealth, nor power, but for justice, for freedom, and for peace; So help us God.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Heart
Struggle
Winning
Copy Quote
It is long past time to eliminate bigotry in the workplace and to ensure equal opportunity for all Americans. It is time to make clear that lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender Americans are first class citizens. They are full and welcome members of our American family and they deserve the same civil rights protections as all other Americans. It is time for us to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Such discrimination is wrong and should not be tolerated.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Bisexual
Gay
Past
Copy Quote
When you dig down, people are pretty progressive, by and large. I guess, I've said it many times - that a lot of people say we're a conservative country, that people are conservative. And my response to that is, yes, that's true, and you know what the people want to conserve most? The progressive traditions of our country - freedom of speech, and of the press and of assembly. Freedom to dissent. The freedom to practice your own religion or not practice religion as you see fit. Yes, we're conservative! We want to conserve those.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Country
Freedom Of Speech
People
Copy Quote
It's been years, but I still say that I went out with the same progressive values and liberal ideals that I went in with. I made a couple of mistakes, I will honestly admit. In retrospect, there are a few votes I wish I could take back. But, through it all, I kept my support for organized labor, I kept my support for income equality, I kept my support for making sure that kids that come from poor families have access to education. So, yes, I still believe that you don't have to give up your ideals and go along. One person can still stand up and make a difference.
Tom Harkin / United States Senator
Couple
Giving Up
Mistake
Copy Quote

Share This Page