Marcy Kaptur Quotes

The one thing I'm convinced George W. Bush is good at is bipartisanship. It's clearly something he enjoys personally.

As a member of Congress, I'm often reminded that in baseball, as in diplomacy, you have to know when to hit, when to run, and when to show grace.

When I was elected governor of my state, I had a legislature 87 percent Democrat. It was not lost on me that to get anything done, I couldn't be attacking them. I had to find ways to reach out to them.

I haven't given up on working... across the aisle on issues and maybe it'll take an election or two for that to fully ferment, maybe it you know sometimes it takes awhile for people to realize what the best path is.

I think if you're going to get anything done in the Senate, you have to be on the same sheet of music. If you don't get people on the same sheet of music it comes out pretty horrible.

Our country must be strong enough to solve problems, and that means we must learn how to work together again.

Gingrich, Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole, and Clinton passed legislation because they understood and appreciated the difficult political process. They fought for their principles yet recognized the need for compromise to get anything done.

To be successful, you really have to put your ego in the background and try to be diplomatic to achieve what you want to achieve.

I've grown up a little bit. I understand the importance of the negotiation. It is a collective act.

I did look for compromise. I worked in a bipartisan way.

Though the views of members of the House and Senate are as divergent as the people we represent, we bear the responsibility to work through our political differences and get things done. That's our job.

While one party may possess the levers of power, one party does not possess a monopoly on good ideas. Good lawmaking, after all, is about the ability to craft effective solutions.

A lot about Congress is about forming good working relationships with people, and humor can really help you do that.

I learned some valuable lessons about the legislative process, the importance of bipartisan cooperation and the wisdom of taking small steps to get a big job done.

Goodness knows, we have horrible problems to face in this Congress. I hope we can face them as colleagues in working unitedly for the people of this country and certainly not indulging in animosity or referring to each other as ''enemies.''

I don't twist arms. I shake hands.

The secret to legislative success in Virginia is courtesy, patience, and persistence; you usually get what you want. You won’t get it if you scream about it, and you won’t get it if you’re not willing to wait a long time.

The Senate is a place filled with goodwill and good intentions, and if the road to hell is paved with them, it's a pretty good detour.

Bipartisanship means you work together to work it out.

In campaigning, you want to slay your opponent. In governing, you want to make love to your opponent.

In the art of governing you have to almost make love to your opponents and say “No” to some of your fiercest supporters. In campaigning it’s the exact opposite.

Governing in a polarized society means, making bipartisan deals.

I am a Republican who is prepared to compromise—and contrary to the current misconceptions, compromise is not a capitulation of one’s principles

The middle in Congress is gone now. That is where we got most things done.

If you really want to get something done in Washington, it has to be done in a bi-Partisan way.