Political Quotes

“I thank my colleague from Maryland. And yes, indeed, there are other cases of human rights violations, not the least of which I have highlighted time and again on this Senate floor--being the cases of Mikhail Khodorkovsky and Platon Lebedev. Each is an appalling story such as the one Senator Cardin pointed out with regard to Mr. Magnitsky, a story about the corruption within the Russian Government itself. My colleagues and I will continue to speak out about these cases in the hope that attention will inspire change. I look forward to the day when the focus of a floor statement can be about the progress we have made with Russia. This is something to which my colleague and I dearly look forward. We look forward to the day when Russia begins to uphold democracy, human rights, and the rule of law. Unfortunately, today is not the day. In recent months, an overwhelming number of headlines out of Russia focus on the Russian spring. Opposition groups, citizens, and, in many cases, the mainstream media have reacted to moves by the Russian regime they view as no longer acceptable. On September 24 of last year, President Medvedev struck a deal that would clear the way for his predecessor, Vladimir Putin, to run next month for a third Presidential term. As the Wall Street Journal noted in an opinion piece last December: Even the most thick-skinned citizens saw that turning the Presidency into the object of a private swap made a mockery of the Constitution.…”