Robert Byrd: “This is a clear record. A blatant disregard for the welfare and the safety of Massey miners. Shame.”

The reconciliation process was designed to facilitate legislation to reduce deficits. Instead, the process has been used to enact multi-trillion-dollar tax cuts that led to record deficits over the last 8 years.

Senator Robert Byrd, the expert extraordinary on the Senate, spent weeks on end trying to figure out a way that you could assure the passage of bills that pertained to the budget and not destroy the filibuster rule.

I respectfully exercise my Fifth Amendment right and decline to answer.

The Senate is the proverbial saucer intended to cool the cup of coffee from the House.