Senator Angus King Jr. Is an American lawyer and politician. He has been serving as the junior United States Senator from Maine since 2013.
He also served as the 72nd Governor of Maine from 1995 to 2003. For committee assignment purposes, he caucuses the Democratic Party.
Angus Stanley King Jr was born in Alexandria, Virginia, on March 31, 1944. He enrolled in Dartmouth College and graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in 1966. He furthered and earned his law degree at the University of Virginia School of Law in 1969.
After his law degree, he worked as a staff attorney for Pine Tree, a legal assistance agency in Skowhegan. In 1972, he became the chief legal counsel to the US Senate Subcommittee on Alcoholism and Narcotics in Washington. He also served as the legal assistant for Senator William Hathaway.
After surviving cancer, King returned to Maine in 1975. There, he worked with a private law firm in Brunswick. American politician, Angus King has also described himself as a moderate independent or a political independent. He has called himself “neither a Democrat nor a Republican, but an American”.
In 1983, Senator Angus King was employed as an executive and counsel to Swift River/Hafslund Company. In 1989, he founded Northeast Energy Management Inc., which fostered electrical energy conservation projects. But, he sold the company in 1994.
In 1994, King started his political career with a bid to run as the governor of Maine. Formerly affiliated with the Democratic Party, he announced his desire to run for the seat as an Independent.
He won the election with 35%, compared to former Governor Brennan’s 34%. He was reelected again and served till 2003.
In 2012, King announced his intention to run for a seat in the US Senate. This was after Senator Olympia Snowe vacated her seat. King won and assumed office in 2013. He was Maine’s first Independent US Senator. He won again in 2018.
In October 2019 King was one of 27 senators to sign a letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer advocating the passage of the Community Health Investment, Modernization, and Excellence (CHIME) Act, which was set to expire the following month.
You can find out more about the senator here.
Here’s our collection of the best Angus King Quotes:
Table of Contents
Angus King Quotes on Politics/ National Security/ Public Policy
I had no intention of getting back into politics. I was teaching at Bowdoin and happily retired from politics.
Angus King
I’m old enough to remember Richard Nixon. They called it the imperial presidency when he was refusing to spend money that Congress had appropriated.
Angus King
The choice is clear. Joe Biden is a proven leader with the experience and temperament needed to guide our nation through these troubled times.
Angus King
I think that people have to reward those individuals who are prepared to work across the political aisle. I don’t see any other way; if you don’t talk to people with whom you disagree, you’re never going to solve problems.
Angus King
I’ve come to realize that an unencumbered U.S. senator is a profound threat to the whole system. It’s somebody that they can’t put in a box and say, ‘Oh, well, we know how this guy is going to vote.’
Angus King
I worked in the Senate in the 1970s. I worked for the Labor, Public Welfare Committee, and we had Ted Kennedy and my old boss, Bill Hathaway, and Walter Mondale.
Angus King
It’s hard running as an independent. I wouldn’t have won the Senate election if I hadn’t been governor. I had credibility. The hard part is getting voters to the point where they think it’s thinkable and not a waste of time.
Angus King
Well, first let’s say that the fundamental responsibility of any government is national security – in the preamble to the Constitution, provide for the common defense and insure domestic tranquility.
Angus King
The only, the only possibility would be if the Republicans are in the majority and they can offer me something that would be especially advantageous to Maine. Somebody said, ‘You may be a committee chair.’ I don’t think so. I don’t think anybody would want me that much,
Angus King
I’ve come to realize that an unencumbered U.S. senator is a profound threat to the whole system. It’s somebody that they can’t put in a box and say, ‘Oh, well, we know how this guy is going to vote.’
Angus King
I’m too fiscally conservative for the Democrats and too socially liberal for the Republicans, like 75% of the American people.
Angus King
The intelligence community, in particular the FBI, have been sounding alarms about this for more than a year. So to argue that suddenly we have to do this because of the San Bernardino case doesn’t really pass the straight-face test. I mean, they’ve been talking about this. And to say, well, it will only apply to this case, that just – that doesn’t wash. This is a major piece of public policy.
Angus King
The idea of some contact of Donald Trump’s office with the Russians to try to find areas of common ground is not irrational or unusual. The question is: Were you doing it in an appropriate way and through proper channels?
Angus King
As your Senator, I remain determined to continue working for all Maine people in my next term, because it’s my job to serve our state and see that folks can provide for their families and put food on their table. The business of politics isn’t about speeches and parades, it’s about people.
Angus King
Angus King Quotes on Public Service/ Cyber Security
When it comes to public service, I’ve always felt that the person — their policy views, but more importantly their character — was more important than the party.
Angus King
America’s veterans risked their lives so that we may live free, and they deserve our deep gratitude and undying support as they transition back to civilian life.
Angus King
That’s why I’ve voted for Republicans, Democrats, and independents; it’s why, as an Independent Governor and now Senator, I’ve hired from both sides of the aisle to make sure I’m hearing every perspective. And it’s why this year, I’m supporting Joe Biden for President.
Angus King
I always had a kind of Myth of Cincinnatus idea about politics — that public service was something you do for a while in between stints at real life. And when your time is up, you return to the plow, which is hopefully still somewhere close to where you left it.
Angus King
The Cyberspace Solarium Commission made a massive impact on America’s cyber defense posture over the last two and a half years.
Angus King
As we wind down our work, I’m grateful that more than three dozen CSC recommendations to strengthen America’s cybersecurity have been enacted into law.
Angus King
Though we accomplished a lot, cyberthreats continue to grow and threaten the American people. Our scheduled work may be wrapping up, but we won’t be walking away from this fight – because there’s much more to be done to improve America’s posture in cyberspace.
Angus King
Angus King Quotes on Democracy/ Elections
Democracy is an anomaly in world history, and ours is still a fragile experiment; but each election, each vote, brings us closer to the more perfect Union dreamt of so long ago; it’s not always a straight line, but as long as it’s the people doing the choosing, we’ll be ok.
Angus King
The success of our campaign on election night was due to the hard work and dedication of these people.
Angus King
From gathering signatures to get on the ballot, to organizing volunteers across the state, to holding weekly phone banks and canvasses, to delivering almost 10,000 lawns signs to supporters across Maine… the list goes on and on! They were the engine that made our campaign run, and I’m grateful to have had such an amazing team to stand with over the past year.
Angus King
There’s something truly extraordinary about an election; millions of regular people quietly expressing their hopes and exercising the ultimate power in our country.
Angus King
And while campaigns can be hard for the candidate, I find them ultimately redemptive — a chance to renew commitments and, most importantly, listen.
Angus King
Angus King Quotes on Life/Technology/Travel
You have to take advantage of the opportunities that life gives you, particularly the moments in time when you have time, when you’re between jobs or you retire.
Angus King
We need to take a deep breath and do things that maybe don’t fit the normal picture of what we’re supposed to do at that stage of life.
Angus King
I think we’re going to demonstrate the power of one-to-one computer access that’s going to transform education. … The economic future will belong to the technologically adept.
Angus King
One of the real benefits of any travel is gaining some perspective. You see things from different points of view. That came home to me in a variety of ways: politically, economically, seeing what was going on in other states.
Angus King
Michael Jordan did not get good at basketball by practicing 42 minutes a week, which is what most kids have in the computer lab. … Whether it’s a scalpel, baseball bat or a computer, the skill in the use of a tool rests upon practice and familiarity, and that’s what these kids are going to have to an unprecedented extent.
Angus King
One of my life principles is that if something isn’t working, doing something harder isn’t necessarily going to produce the same result.
Angus King
Other Angus King Quotes
My desire is to be as independent as I can be, as long as I can be, subject to being effective.
Angus King
Angus King Bowdoin Academic Spotlight interview (2011) he said, You have to take advantage of the opportunities that life gives you, particularly the moments in time when you have time, when you’re between jobs or you retire. Get out and go.
Angus King
I think that people have to reward those individuals who are prepared to work across the political aisle. I don’t see any other way; if you don’t talk to people with whom you disagree, you’re never going to solve problems.
Angus King
Every day in America, about 25,000 people buy a quarter-inch drill. But nobody in America wants a quarter-inch drill. What they want are holes.
Angus King
If it’s necessary to join a caucus and get a committee assignment, I’ll do it.
Angus King
My view of the filibuster is either you’ve got to lower vote edge or make people really filibuster if they feel that seriously about a piece of legislation.
Angus King
I haven’t seen – I haven’t heard the arguments that would make that case. And I haven’t seen a proposal yet that satisfies the objections. The problem is, you create a key like this, and it can’t – it’s hard to say that it’s going to be hidden. And then it becomes used both by our government in multiple cases, but also it could get out as far as hackers are concerned or other countries.
Angus King
I have a Twitter account; I have a fantastic Facebook page.
Angus King
It wouldn’t take but four or five centrists like me to completely change the dynamics.
Angus King
Summary
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