Political Quotes

“I want to very quickly and simply emphasize a couple of those very important points, and maybe the overriding one is the need for action. The Presiding Officer has demonstrated repeatedly his convictions and conscience, and I want to say how much I have admired much of what he has done during his Senate career. My hope is that others in this body will step forward and say: Enough is enough. The FISA Court--Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court--is a carefully crafted bipartisan institution meant to protect our country against foreign threats that would destroy our democracy--the very kinds of threats that Russia has repeatedly mounted against us. Its function is balanced by a concern about civil rights and civil liberties, which is why it is a court that must approve warrants for surveillance and searches. Its secrecy goes to the core of what it does so that the agents, operatives, and informants who are the sources of intelligence are protected. The House Intelligence Committee is about to trash that carefully crafted structure. They are about to release a memo that says, in effect: That court--that carefully crafted balance as a result of bipartisan work over many years, involving many in this Chamber--means nothing. We will use it for the most gross partisan purposes, partisan gutter politics, and character assassination.…”