Political Quotes

“Madam President, regarding the vacancy on the Supreme Court, many of our colleagues in the minority party have said the same things we are saying today. Let's stop kidding each other. This kind of political showmanship--and, yes, indeed, hypocrisy--is exactly what makes everyone in my home State absolutely apoplectic with Washington. The last time I addressed the Supreme Court vacancy on the Senate floor, I urged my colleagues on the other side of the aisle not to let the nominations process get bogged down in partisan politics--that is not what this should be about--not to let this process turn into political theater because that is exactly what has happened far too often in this body ever since the Bork nomination way back in 1987. The organized campaign of vilification and character attacks surrounding Judge Bork's nomination was so unprecedented and so extreme that it took the creation of a new word, ``to Bork,'' to describe what had happened. The process for nominating Justices to the Supreme Court has been thoroughly politicized ever since. That politicization has done great damage not only to the Court but to this body, the U.S. Senate. It has expanded beyond just Supreme Court nominees and now affects so many of our nominees for circuit judgeships as well.…”