Political Quotes

“I just found out that Senator Rockefeller is going to vote for the conference report. Senator Gorton has said that Senator Rockefeller could never vote for a bill if it had a cap in it, a definite cap. And as I read it--now, maybe he can, in some way or another, explain this language --we have a language on page 10 of the report relating to punitive damages. First, the language in the report says the ``greater'' of two times the sum of the amount awarded to a claimant for economic loss and noneconomic loss, or $250,000. That is not a definite cap because the amount of economic loss and noneconomic loss is a variable. But language immediately thereafter says, ``special rule.'' This applies to the rule on punitive damages for small businesses where these corporations have 25 employees or less. I might add that this language applies also to individuals. The ``special rule'' provides that punitive damages shall not exceed the ``lesser'' of two times the economic loss and noneconomic loss, or $250,000. So punitive damages cannot exceed, in any event, $250,000. So that is a definite, established cap. I am not going to hold Senator Rockefeller to that since he did not make the statement to me. He must have made that statement to Senator Gorton who is present on the floor. I would not want to put him in an embarrassing situation. But I think this special rule shows very definitely that there is a cap in the bill.”