Olympia Snowe Quotations

I understand why so many Americans are fed up with government. The 112th Congress was almost universally derided as the worst ever. It was the most polarized body since the end of Reconstruction, according to one study, and I grew embarrassed by its partisan bickering, inactivity, and refusal to address the vital challenges facing America.

What happens is that, you know, on Mondays, at least in the Senate, you know, Monday night wed have what youd call a bed-check vote. Just to get, you know, the machinery of the Senate up and running so they can start the committee process; on Tuesday morning, things go. By Thursday, you know, jet fumes, the smell of jet fumes.

In today's world, it is no longer unimaginable to think that business can operate - and even thrive - in an environmentally-friendly manner.

What motivated me to dedicate myself to public service for nearly two-thirds of my life was the chance to produce results for those people who entrusted me to be their voice and their champion.

What is the purpose of public service? It's to solve problems for the people you represent and certainly in the United States Senate, thinking about your state and thinking about your country as well.

Unfortunately, money in politics is an insidious thing - and a loophole in our campaign finance system was taken advantage of with money going to existing or new 527 groups with the sole purpose of influencing the election.

Two truths are all too often overshadowed in today's political discourse: Public service is a most honorable pursuit, and so is bipartisanship.

I represent what I think is a traditional Republican... a limited government, fiscal responsibility, strong national defense, individual freedom and liberty.

Ive never backed down from a fight and I relish a good debate.

I have worked for three decades as a staunch advocate of building a 'big tent' party that includes both pro-choice and pro-life Republicans.

We recognized in 1996 that, with progress in the field of genetics accelerating at a breathtaking pace, we need to ensure that advances in treatment and prevention of disease do not constitute a new basis for discrimination.

At an unprecedented time with the worst attack ever on our soil, our President displayed extraordinary determination, leadership and resolve when history was thrust upon him and the United States.

Most breast cancer-related deaths can be prevented through simple and painless preventive measures. A late diagnosis can result in more serious, long-term consequences.

Hopefully, 21 years later, Judge Roberts possesses an openness with respect to issues of gender-based wage discrimination.

Joining the Bipartisan Policy Center is a natural extension of my efforts to achieve results throughout my tenure in Congress, and it provides an ideal means for developing strategies that can garner the broad support necessary to achieve real solutions to the challenges confronting our nation.

In a politically diverse nation, only by finding that common ground can we achieve results for the common good.

My concept of government's role in people's lives is that it is limited but legitimate, and essential when people have nowhere else to turn.

It is time that we provide clarity for our seniors, informing them of the services available that will lower the costs of their prescription drugs and strengthen the overall integrity of the Medicare entitlement.

One difficulty in making the Senate work the way it was intended is that America's electorate is increasingly divided into red and blue states, with lawmakers representing just one color or the other.

When my first husband died, what I tried to do is to sort of, you know, try to bring some rationale to the circumstance and think about worse circumstances, and also open the door to what other women experienced when all of a sudden they were left alone. And particularly if they had children.

Indeed, we must foster cost-saving competition. And that means joining the marketplace of other industrialized countries - not just for the manufacturers who sell drugs, but for consumers as well.

You can never solve a problem without talking to people with whom you disagree. The United States Senate is predicated and based on consensus building. That was certainly the vision of the founding fathers.

I have been immeasurably honored to serve the people of Maine for nearly 40 years in public office and for the past 17 years in the United States Senate. It was incredibly difficult to decide that I would not seek a fourth term in the Senate.

The United States Senate wasn't designed to be a majority-rule institution. It was designed to include and accommodate the rights of the minority in small states as well as large states.

Until then, the four companies will continue their work,

We are here today because we want to be responsible stewards of the surplus,

The reality is, this is a very different world than where we were even six months ago,

She did make an extraordinary difference for women as I can tell you from my own personal experience. I well remember the sense of awe when I came to Washington, D.C. ... as a senior in college, sitting across the desk from her. Little did I realize that because of the doors that she opened she would make it possible for me to sit one day at her very desk on the floor of the United States Senate.

More mouthpieces doesn't guarantee diversity and localism and competition, ... Diversity of ownership does.

needed to offer a personal, passionate and sincere renunciation of racism and segregation in all its forms, and he did that.

People will have trouble keeping a job, or even getting a job if their genetic information gets to an insurer, a potential employer or even an employer,

I don't believe any amount of cost savings can justify leaving an entire quadrant of the nation defenseless, ... This decision ... could result in incalculable harm to our nation's security.

I am confounded by the failure of this rule to meet either the spirit or letter of the law, ... It is clearly delinquent in protecting all Americans equally from the hazards of mercury.

I believe the Congress - as a coequal branch of government - must immediately and expeditiously review the use of this practice.

I believe the Congress ù as a coequal branch of government ù must immediately and expeditiously review the use of this practice.

I find it regrettable that there are those who are trying to resurrect a filibuster even as there is clearly nothing in the record that constitutes extraordinary circumstances.

Given all the problems, people might get a plan that doesn't meet their expectations. Recognizing that, we should be flexible.

We have to be concerned about future obligations,

He didn't repudiate what he said (in 1985), ... What he did say is that he has changed since that time over 20 years, and of course the court rulings have also been issued that established the precedent and reaffirmed Roe.

I think it demonstrates their effectiveness, ... It makes you realize they are critical at moments like this, as we have seen off the coast of Maine.

I think that public discussions thus far, without a specific proposal, has created and enhanced a lot of confusion and fear among seniors, wondering if their benefits now are going to be cut.

I think you are putting the cart before the horse.

I think that the issue here is a fundamental fairness in having a hearing so that these issues can be explored and concerns can be raised,

I think we have to look at, you know, many issues. And first of all, we have to reach a consensus on the level of urgency and the magnitude of the problem before we develop a long-term solution.

I think today we're setting a constitutional marker and also a constitutional check on presidential power because you can't allow the president to move forward with unfettered fashion.

Just because we have different views, that doesn't mean that we lack principles.

Manufacturers and sellers acting within the law should not be held responsible for the actions of criminals who misuse their products.

The apparent widespread abuse of loans provided through the Supplemental Terrorist Activity Relief Act is nothing short of an outrage,

We must provide adequate funding for an essential program that serves as a lifeline to some of our most vulnerable citizens.

travesty and a strategic blunder of epic proportions on the part of the Defense Department.

We need to ensure that our voice is heard in the process because obviously we do have different views and we can't always accept fait d' accompli positions when they clearly don't reflect the view of our constituents,

While we must pursue any legislative option to extend this program, I also urge my colleagues to consider the National Dairy Equity Act as a fiscally responsible means of providing price stability to our dairy industry,

We have not heard, clearly, what they intend to do, ... I hope the commission makes it clear what this new status is in terms of aircraft and staffing.

We are reasserting congressional responsibility of oversight with respect to this program.

We are reasserting congressional responsibility and oversight with respect to this program.

We want to avoid creating this sort of inevitability that it's an all-or-nothing proposition that leads us down the path of a dead-end street. This package really does reflect, I believe, the more cautionary approach.

The existing program, as it has been developed in the last 70 years, provides a stable monthly income that has prevented seniors, almost 50 percent from falling into poverty. I don't think we want to erode the principles of that system.

We should not be acting precipitously to undermine the basic tenet of this program, that has worked well for 70 years by providing a defined, guaranteed benefit,

There is only one reason for that change, and it is to punish people.

Yes, we should consider ways to address the deficit and bring real, direct relief to the gulf region, ... but we must not lose sight of maintaining the infrastructure that supports our economy and way of life.

To allow this program to lapse could potentially jeopardize thousands of dairy farms throughout the United States,

We like to think that was the Maine influence rubbing off. Or better yet, that of his wonderful, exceptional wife, because to know Cap was to know Jane. They were truly one soul.

Discrimination and bigotry have no place in our society, and I believe Senator (Rick) Santorum's unfortunate remarks undermine Republican principles of inclusion and opportunity,

It was wonderful and heartfelt. We told him he had a lot of friends who care about him and the issues he has embraced over his career.

scathing indictment of the climate and leadership to permit sexual harassment to permeate all levels of the Army.

Apparently she's the only one who is happy with this bill,

As a Greek-American, I am especially pleased that Ambassador Negroponte has earned the honor of being nominated to this most prominent position of responsibility in the intelligence community. He is a role model to all Greek-Americans, making the entire Hellenic community proud.

This desperation tactic, by those who seek to dismantle the reconstruction process, will only solidify the determination of the United States and the international community to rid Iraq of these henchmen of Hussein's brutal regime and bring stability to the country,

As we have seen in Bosnia, we have been there for more than three years, and it wasn't just one deadline lapse -- it was three. We are now running up to $20 billion and going. And I don't think anybody really knows exactly when the end point will come.

Does the difficulty in ensuring each and every employee of such companies is not tied to insurgent groups and not potentially providing useful targeting information to these groups argue against continuing to employ such firms unless there is no alternative?

Congress must seek and find answers when confronted with a situation that represents a possible betrayal of the public trust especially at a time when the people of the Gulf Region need every resource available to recover, ... ...I intend to exert my oversight power to determine how such flagrant abuse could happen and to ensure that Small Business Administration loans truly go to those who need them.

Congress has a right and a need to know what this proposed deal would mean for terminal operations and security at our ports. Even if they come later than we would have liked, we must get the facts.

The administration has obviously gotten the message that they need to be more forthcoming.

There's various scenarios and interpretations about that urgency. I think first we have to get the facts. There are too many interpretations of the facts, and those scenarios could change based on the variables incorporated in those projections,

That's an important statement to make, and I think that certainly has to get out there because I think it is still -- there is a lot of fear among seniors,

I'm certainly not going to support diverting $2 trillion from Social Security into creating personal savings accounts,

In the long run, the loans will help Iraq make its own way to a vibrant, free and prosperous future.

He strikes me as being very disciplined, ... I thought he clearly was one that really gives strong preference for what the law and precedent is. I mean, he talked about that a lot, that he's very methodical and restrained in that regard.

I believe it is not a question of whether or not we support tax cuts, ... It really is a question of what we can afford to do now in the current economic and fiscal climate.

For our most disadvantaged families struggling to make ends meet, it is my sincere hope that this money will give them the support they so desperately need so they won't be forced to chose between paying for food or fuel.

These initial findings are troubling and the committee ... will continue with its own investigation of the STAR program to get at the truth and inform Congress for the future.

You can't have the legislative and executive branch working in a parallel universe...the partisanship that has gripped Washington has prevented us from dealing with the issues that this country needs to grapple with to determine its future.

When history calls, history calls,

I have worked for three decades as a staunch advocate of building a big tent party that includes both pro-choice and pro-life Republicans.

The American spirit is stronger than stone and mortar, tougher than steel and glass, and more enduring than any pain or suffering that can be inflicted on our national conscience.