Political Quotes

“Madam President, we have had competing claims about who is really at fault. I think the answer to that question is becoming unquestionably undeniable to any fair observer. Actions speak louder than words and there is no denying the actions of the minority party, which, before this Congress, was the majority party in the Senate for 8 years. Even in the minority, they are up to their old tricks of blocking amendments and grinding the Senate to a halt. Given the distortion of the Senate rules during those 8 years, it is no wonder the American public, and perhaps even some Senators, are confused about how the Senate rules are supposed to work. So I wish to take a few moments to talk about a procedure in the Senate called the cloture motion. With cloture, the Senate is actually voting on the question: Is it the sense of the Senate that the debate shall be brought to a close? The proper use of cloture is when the Senate has had time for debate and consideration of amendments and it seems as though the Senate is getting bogged down. If a cloture vote fails, then that means the Senate has decided, as a body, to keep on considering a particular piece of legislation. This is a crucial point and one that was routinely distorted under the previous majority, and they did it for partisan ends. A vote against cloture is a vote to continue considering a bill until at least 60 Senators are satisfied they have had their say and are ready to vote a bill up or down, yea or nay.…”