Political Quotes

“Well, I thank the Senator from Maine for explaining the change in position. I was not seeking an apology, merely an explanation, since I haven't heard that much over the last year or so. I can respond to a few of these points. The Senator from Maine said it was the nature of the issue at stake. Well, first off, I will point out, I have the letter in front of me here. It is very short. It is only two paragraphs long, but there is nothing in there about the nature of the issue at stake, about whether we are talking about immigration or gun control or, in this case, election takeover laws. The Senator from Maine referred to the cheap and easy filibuster. I don't necessarily agree with that characterization, but I would point out that that is exactly the kind of cheap and easy filibuster that was in place in 2017, when 28 Democrats signed this letter. I will also point out that I wouldn't necessarily agree with the characterization that the current filibuster was created by accident in 1975. We are going to have a debate, but the rules and customs under debate today go back to the second decade, the second decade of the U.S. Senate. And, perhaps more importantly, every time those rules have been modified--up to and including the most recent changes on the legislative calendar--they have been modified in accordance with the rules, not using the nuclear option, breaking the rules so we can change the rules. I also note we have had a few other signatories to that letter arrive.…”