Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I take this time to underscore the points that Senator Menendez made in regard to the vote we will have tomorrow here on the floor of the Senate. I really want Members to know that we are really talking about the fundamental protection of the checks and balances in our system. I don't think most Members know about the process we use for arms sales and review, but I can tell you that it has been to protect the interest of this country and the legislative branch of government. The requirement is for consultation and notice to Congress before arms sales are consummated. Yes, we have a Republican President, and we have Members of Congress who object to sales and want to get further information, and those holds can be lifted after additional information is provided. But I want to remind the Members of this body that it was in the last Congress, with a Republican President, that the Republican chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee put holds on sales in this region for good reason--because of the inconsistent policies we had among Gulf States that needed to be clarified before we divided the support for America even more in that region. Senator Corker was right in what he did, and our country is stronger today because of what he did. If we allow President Trump to go forward with these arms sales under emergency circumstances, we forever could lose the ability of the legislative branch to weigh in on arms sales. Senator Menendez is absolutely right.…”