Quotes from Dan Webster

Nothing happens in any legislative body that's not purposeful.

Some people have been talking about - every place I go, they bring up the issue of foreign aid. I go, 'You can't get rid of all foreign aid.'

I have a problem with the way the House is run. I believe that a few people at the top of a pyramid of power have controlled this place for a long time.

My job was to get a fair and open hearing to all ideas.

I've never hidden my faith, but there are only a couple of issues I would die for. There are a few others I would dig my heels in on, and I've told my caucus that what they see is what they get.

The principle is that every member needs to represent their district.

I was told freshman Republicans don't get their bills heard.

Are we going to just change the personalities in the speakership? Or are we going to fundamentally transform the way we do business here in Washington, D.C.?

The only way to improve the GOP brand and make good public policy is to fix the process. This requires transforming the way Congress does business.

You lay out a plan and - say a three-year plan or a two-year plan - and say, 'This is what we can do. We can do the transportation packages, like the highway bill and the water bill, and we can do some of these other areas - a farm bill - whatever it is, we lay out a schedule, and we put that committee to work to do that.'

For most of my time in Tallahassee, I did a lot of transportation.

I'm going to be as sincere as I can in delivering the message I think is right. If people agree, great, and if they don't, I did my best.

Do I like foreign aid? Sometimes, but not every time. Don't like giving money to our enemies, but I love giving money to Israel.

There's a picture there that people realize that, we stop helping Israel, we lose God's hand, and we're in big time trouble.

If you need a door kicked in, just call, and we'll kick it. Now, it may not always be the answer you want, but you will get an answer.

You have got to clean your own house first before you tell other people that they aren't doing it right.

Every member in Congress has a seat, and they deserve a seat at the table.

I changed that system in Florida when I was the Speaker of the House - I was the Minority Leader; I saw for 16 years the way a power system works.

I've been a speaker. I've been a majority leader. I've been a minority leader. Those are the sort of things I don't need any more.

I was Speaker of the House in Florida, first Republican speaker in 120 years. And I totally dismantled the way this House worked and turned it around to what I believe is right.

Every member of Congress deserves a seat at the table to be involved in the process. I will continue fighting for this to become a reality in Washington, and will be running for speaker of the House.

I have saved $1,638,580 over my four years. That may not seem like a lot, faced with our deficit, but multiply it by 435 members of the House - and then the senators get three times as much - and you are adding up several millions in savings.

I will say this: I've had more pro-life bills, I believe, I ruled unconstitutional - but I tried - than the entire total membership of Congress together.

If you push down that pyramid of power and spread out the base, every member gets a chance to file their bill and have it heard and file their amendment and have it heard, as opposed to the system that we have now, which closes out, closes down bills, limits debate, and so forth.