Political Quotes

“Madam President, I rise to express my strong support for the Democracy Is Strengthened by Casting Light on Spending in Elections Act, also called the DISCLOSE Act. I want to thank Senator Schumer for his work on this important bill and say that I plan to support it every step of the way. Before I discuss the merits of this legislation, I think it is important to provide some context. This bill is a legislative response to a Supreme Court decision. In 2002 we passed the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act. The law was bipartisan, widely supported, and we firmly believed it to be constitutional based on prior decisions of the Court. In 2003, the Supreme Court upheld portions of the law in the case of McConnell v. Federal Election Commission. But on January 21 of this year, the Roberts Court handed down a 5-4 decision striking down parts of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act. That decision--Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission--flew in the face of nearly a century of congressional law. It also overturned two prior rulings of the U.S. Supreme Court. The overturned cases were McConnell v. Federal Election Commission, 2003, and Austin v. Michigan Chamber of Commerce, 1990. The case is not alone. It is part of a trend of decision after decision from the Roberts Court overturning prior precedents. I have real concern that this Court is going out of its way to rewrite and reinterpret prior law.…”