Dick Durbin: “I know it is late, and I will be very brief. I want to make a quick response to my colleague and friend from…”

“I know it is late, and I will be very brief. I want to make a quick response to my colleague and friend from Pennsylvania, Senator Santorum. I am sorry I had to leave the floor while he was speaking. What I am about to say I would be happy to say with Senator Santorum in the Chamber and would be happy to respond to tomorrow. The Senator from Pennsylvania made the point that he thinks the golden rule here is, the principle here is that every judicial nominee is entitled to a majority vote up or down. That is an interesting idea, and it might be appealing to some people if they do not know the rules of the Senate. For 214 years, we have said if you bring an amendment, a bill, or a nomination to the floor of the Senate, it is subject to Senate rules. And Senate rules are very clear. Any Senator can take the floor and begin a debate and hold the floor as long as that Senator physically can, unless 60--now 60 members of the Senate--vote otherwise. So you need an extraordinary majority-- 60 Senators--to stop a filibuster. That is the way it has always been. In the beginning it was different. Senators could not stop a filibuster until 1919. In 1919 it took 67 votes; a few years back we changed that to 60 votes. But it has always taken more than a majority to stop a filibuster. In ``Mr. Smith Goes to Washington,'' Jimmy Stewart is on the floor, holding the floor as long as he did. That is the Senate. That is the tradition of the Senate.…”