Armey

Yesterday, Dick Armey (R Texas) retired from his post as House Majority Leader. I listened to his speech, excerpted here on DrudgeReport. It was truly a stunning speech - I plan on finding the whole text. Here's a part I loved:

"We, the people, had better keep an eye on we, the people; that is, our government. Not out of contempt or lack of appreciation or disrespect, but out of a sense of guardianship. How do you use these tools we have given you to make us safe in such a manner that'll preserve our freedom?

"That is a duty to our very essence as a nation. Who we are, what is it about us that has set us apart in the history of the world is our love for freedom.

"As I said earlier, freedom is no policy for the timid. And my plaintive plea to all my colleagues that remain in this government as I leave it is, for your sake, for my sake, for heaven's sake, don't give up on freedom.

. Dick Armey's a great man. I'm particularly proud to note that he, also, is an expat North Dakotan - from Cando, just up the road from my own birthplace. He graduated from Jamestown College, my own alma mater, two years ahead of my father.

He's leaving to join the ACLU - perhaps one of the best moves the civil liberties organization could make to bolster its own credibility.

And for all that, the thing I'll always most associate with Armey is a line from a Dennis Miller rant several years back: "Dick Armey - that's like the most macho name ever!"

Posted by Mitch at December 7, 2002 06:12 PM