Political Quotes

“thank you. Prior to arriving in the U.S. Senate after the election of 2010, I was a Member of the House of Representatives, and I am one of the 30 percent of us in Congress today who were here in 2001 and approved the use of military force in response to the terrorist attacks of 9/11. I hate to say this at this moment because the vote is so closely pending, but I don't know what the right answer to this question is-- the one we face today. I firmly believe that it is the U.S. Senate and U.S. Congress's authority and constitutional responsibility to declare war. I worry that the resolution that is before us only eliminates the current resolutions, only eliminates the current authority. What is missing is the followup. I just heard my colleague from Connecticut indicate that he will work vigorously to see that we have the opportunity to vote for a resolution authorizing force, but in some ways we have the cart ahead of the horse. I will be the one who will always argue that it is our responsibility, it is Congress's responsibility to make these decisions as determined by the U.S. Constitution. It gives us that authority and that responsibility. The question in my mind is, Is it prudent to eliminate the authorization today before we have a new authorization in place? And I don't know the answer to that question. While I have heard my colleagues say we will work to accomplish that, having experienced the U.S.…”