William M. Daley Quotes

The challenge has been, we make policy in the world of politics.

I want to have a good vote in the Senate so we send the message that the Republicans and the Democrats are together in favor of immigration reform.

The most effective executive branch officials try to help legislators develop explanations for the votes they are being asked to take.

The view that we hold in Iraq now is this - that democracy is associated with elections. I believe that elections are possible.

I should prefer to see incorporated into the Constitution a guarantee of universal suffrage; as we cannot get the required two-thirds for that, I cordially support this proposition as the next best

All legislation of any consequence is a compromise. You have to recognize that.

I hate to see the entire issue decided on as narrow a base, but ... the size of the vote is more important than the arguments that are made.

Vote counting is 90 percent art, 10 percent science, and all about human nature

We are going to get the Civil Right Bill! Dirksen is going to come out in support…. and don’t ask me what I had to give him.

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.

Washington's a mess, but that's not stopping me from getting bills to help Montana signed into law by President Trump.

As much as the Congress is criticized - and a lot of it is well deserved - the fact is there are many quiet victories if you keep your head down and know how to maneuver in the process and get things done.

It took six weeks of debate in the Senate to get the Arms Embargo Law repealed--and we face other delays during the present session because most of the Members of the Congress are thinking in terms of next Autumn's election. However, that is one of the prices that we who live in democracies have to pay. It is, however, worth paying, if all of us can avoid the type of government under which the unfortunate population of Germany and Russia must exist.

I would argue that you're only going to get the conservatives, particularly a Republican House, to pass immigration reform if we, as conservatives, are reassured that the border is controlled and that we get to vote on whether the border is controlled.

I am not interested in state politics.

The role of the speaker of the House is to deliver enough votes by understanding and accommodating the individual bottom lines of enough members to pass the bill.

Dialogue is the essence of parliamentary politics.

I have learned how to take votes where I had to hold my nose because I had to compromise - something that you learn to do, especially when you have been in the minority.

The government was built on compromising. And it's frustrating as hell.

The shelf life of a seventh-year State of the Union address is about five minutes. Presidents can propose stuff. They're probably not likely to get it done.

In politics, you have to understand that there are some cases where you'll never be able to get votes.

If you want to change a law, you have to pass a law. Presidents don't write laws. Congress writes laws.

I have always been critical and skeptical of fast-tracking. It is a take-it-or-leave-it approach to trade agreements which really deals members of Congress and their concerns out of the picture.

There's a lot of work you have to do before you ever fire the starting gun on a health reform bill - doing the scut work with members of Congress, talking to your allies - to figure out the best plan.

Usually, even when a bill draws extreme opinions, there can be a process of expression and negotiation.