Gary Ackerman Quotes

"Patriots don't let their nation default."

"Whether rich people make money or lose money, they get no sympathy from the public."

"I've personally demanded that tyrants let their people go. I've tried to feed the hungry, clothe the poor, protect the elderly and infirm, and defend the needy from the aggressively greedy. I've led a blessed life. What a kick for a kid from the projects."

"I just thought it was unconscionable for the Congress to insert itself into this debate. We are particularly unqualified to make that decision and to intrude ourselves into the lives of this family."

"No, you can't call your vote in. You have to be there on the floor to vote."

"Sometimes people who are Jewish are held to a higher standard which sometimes we take great pride in."

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

"India is a regional power. It does not need anything to establish it."

"I am always fascinated by India."

"I'm in favor of immigration but we also need rules."

"We have to have some rules and regulations in America, or the world would empty out here."

"If a jerk burns the flag, America is not threatened, democracy is not under siege, freedom is not at risk."

"As a state senator and then a congressman, I've had the privilege of trying to do good things for people to whom I owe so much and can never fully repay."

"Without a musket to raise, a barricade to storm, a flag to wave, the question hit me in the face like the cold air: 'Who am I?'"

"From the U.S. Capitol Building to the White House, our national symbols that represent freedom to so many of us, were built by people who were anything but free."

"Using official government resources to help bankroll an explicit political agenda - whether on the right or left - is flat out wrong."

"For some reason, the military seems more afraid of gay people than they are against terrorists, but they're very brave with the terrorists... If the terrorists ever got a hold of this information, they'd get a platoon of lesbians to chase us out of Baghdad."

"The ability to convince people of the wackiest notions - and both parties can do it - it's part of the dumbing down of America that's really highly problematic."

"The media's gotten lazy. They don't check anything out. You report what he reports."

"It used to be you had real friends on the other side of the aisle. It's not like that anymore. Society has changed. The public is to blame as well. I think the people have gotten dumber."

"Politics was my third act. But I could have a fourth. I don't know what that will be yet, but there will be one."

"Looking forward, it might prove constructive to examine the true historical record of an issue prior to assuming the worst of anyone's motive and deconstructing and questioning anyone's Democratic bona fides. After all, we liberals got feelings."

"There's a delicious irony in seeing private luxury jets flying in to Washington, D.C., and people coming off of them with tin cups in their hands saying that they're going to be trimming down and streamlining their businesses. There's a message there."

"Telling people not to have children is unthinkable and inhumane."

"We're not looking at banning all weapons."

"I've had meetings with Fidel Castro. I've had meetings with Kim Il-Sung. I've had meetings with other dictators. I've met with the Butcher of Beijing. You know, I think it's important to hear, you know, each other's perspective."

"Every gun sold should require a background check, period."