Political Quotes

“I want to speak to my colleagues on another issue as well, and that is something that came out of our Judiciary Committee a long time ago and is still on the calendar but probably will be brought to the Senate floor. A few weeks ago some were calling for the majority leader to bring up the so-called Smarter Sentencing Act to the Senate floor for a vote. So I come to the floor today to express my strong opposition to this bill and argue against taking the Senate's time to consider it. In the past I pointed out that this bill would put at risk our hard- won national drop in crime. It would also reduce penalties for importing and distributing heroin, a drug that is currently devastating our communities with an epidemic of addiction and a rising number of deaths from overdoses. In part, for these reasons many law enforcement professionals have come out against this legislation. The National Association of Assistant U.S. Attorneys, Federal law enforcement officers associations, and a long list of former high-level officials-- in Republican and Democratic administrations alike--are all opposed to it.…”