Leadership Quote by Robert. L. Ehrlich

Ehrlich is doing two things at once: paying tribute and laundering the institution. By praising “public service” and “thoughtful people,” he frames politics not as power but as virtue, a move that protects government from the cynicism that inevitably clings to it. The word “appropriate” is the tell. It’s not emotional gratitude spilling over; it’s a cue about civic etiquette. Celebration becomes a norm citizens are gently instructed to observe.

Calling them “thoughtful” does strategic work. It’s a rebuttal to the stereotype of legislators as self-interested hacks without ever naming the insult. The compliment also narrows the circle: the ones worth celebrating are those who meet a certain moral and temperamental standard. That implied sorting matters in a political context where the audience may be asked to distinguish “good” public servants from the broader, messier cast of political actors.

“Symbolize what is good and decent” shifts attention from outcomes to character. If legislative results are contested, the speaker offers a safer metric: decency. It’s an appeal to legitimacy through tone, not policy. The phrase “historic citizen legislature” adds a civic-myth gloss, evoking the American ideal of ordinary citizens temporarily taking up governance. That’s especially potent in state politics, where low pay, high scrutiny, and part-time structures are often invoked to justify both limitations and pride.

The closing “we thank them” sounds communal, but it’s also a claim of representation: Ehrlich positions himself (and the institution) as the voice of the public’s gratitude, smoothing over the friction between “them” (lawmakers) and “us” (citizens) by briefly turning it into “we.”