Quote

When I came to Washington, I was troubled to observe so many similarities between the behaviors of drug-addicted patients and my political colleagues. In Washington power is like morphine.

Tom Coburn

Change background

T
T
T

Change font

TAGS & TOPICS

Tom Coburn
Age: 72 †
Born: 1948
Born: March 14
Died: 2020
Died: March 28
Obstetrician
Physician
Politician
United States Senator
Casper
Wyoming
Thomas Allen Coburn
Many
Patient
Behaviors
Like
Drug
Similarity
Behavior
Troubled
Came
Addicted
Politics
Patients
Term
Colleagues
Political
Observe
Morphine
Power
Washington
Similarities

More quotes by Tom Coburn

Image
An easily accessible and transparent database of contract information will bring sunshine into the confusing and sometimes shadowy practice of government contracting.
Tom Coburn
Image
The career politicians in Washington had transformed a government for the people into a government for themselves and for special interests.
Tom Coburn
Image
Welfare reform happened with reconciliation half the Democrats voted for it. The Bush tax cuts happened with reconciliation twelve Democratic Senators voted for it. You didn't have a real partisan issue on those times that it was used
Tom Coburn
Image
My relationship with Barack Obama isn't based on my political philosophy or his.
Tom Coburn
Image
I would like to believe I would not have behaved differently had I not made a term limits pledge, but my own frailties and human desire for prestige and position tell me my term limits pledge did make a difference in how I approached my job in Congress.
Tom Coburn
Image
It is inexcusable for the White House and Congress to not even make the effort to find at least some offsets to this new spending, ... No one in America believes the federal government is operating at peak efficiency and can't tighten its belt.
Tom Coburn
Image
The founding fathers never once rationalized getting in power and having control so they could stay in power.
Tom Coburn
Image
Republicans should simply focus on first principles and give the American people what they want - an honest party dedicated to common sense, fiscal responsibility and limited government. If we govern to save the country, we'll do well as a party.
Tom Coburn
Image
A super-legislator body is not what the court was intended to be, When I ponder our country and its greatness, its weakness, its potential, my heart aches for less divisiveness, less polarization, less finger-pointing, less bitterness, less mindless partisanship.
Tom Coburn
Image
I firmly believe that the court should take another direction on many of these moral issues that face us.
Tom Coburn
Image
The danger of what's happening right now in terms of using reconciliation is, the purpose of the Senate is going to be defeated. And that is to bring consensus to big issues in this country.
Tom Coburn
Image
Careerism: the self-centered philosophy of governing to win the next election above all else.
Tom Coburn
Image
When we have heartbeat and brain waves, we refuse to accept it as the presence of life - this lack of logic of which we approach this issue because we like and we favor convenience over ethics. We favor convenience over the hard parts of life that actually make us grow.
Tom Coburn
Image
I'm proud of our country that we elected Barack Obama. I mean, it says something about us nationally. You know, it's kind of like crowning your checker when you get to the end of your checker board. Here's another thing that says America's special: Barack Obama, president of the United States.
Tom Coburn
Image
You have to be courageous to not spend money, ... and we don't have many people who have that courage.
Tom Coburn
Image
You deliver 2,000 babies or better - 3,000 by that time. And that's, you know, at minimum, three people each. And then if you take grandparents or grandparents of siblings and aunts and uncles, you know, you get - a 100,000 votes outta that
Tom Coburn
Image
Lesbianism is so rampant in some of the schools in southeast Oklahoma that they'll only let one girl go to the bathroom. Now think about it. Think about that issue. How is it that that's happened to us?
Tom Coburn
Image
Expose widespread waste and duplication in federal spending.
Tom Coburn
Image
Everybody in America is going to have to sacrifice to help us rebuild the Gulf Coast. Every government program, every individual, we are all going to have to sacrifice
Tom Coburn
Image
It is easy to see how after receiving this adoration for a term or two most members become convinced they are indispensable.
Tom Coburn