Political Quotes

“I respect my colleague from Oklahoma. There is one simple fact of legislative rule and law that he does not express accurately. There is a world of difference between an authorization and an appropriation. An authorization gives you permission to ask for money to spend. The appropriations bill spends the money. This is an authorization bill. It would have to go through the regular appropriations process. What he refers to was an attempt at appropriating money to the Department of Justice without enacting the underlying law. It is totally different. Again, for the third time this morning, the Republicans have obstructed and stood in the way of bringing up legislation, first Senator Cornyn of Texas on a registry for the victims of Lou Gehrig's disease, then Senator Cornyn on behalf of Senator Coburn for a veterans bill to deal with traumatic brain injury, and finally Senator Coburn of Oklahoma objecting to considering even moving to a bill that would deal with solving these civil rights crimes which so sadly reflect on a period of American history that should be closed in the right way. Mr. President, I yield the floor.”