G. K. Butterfield: “Let me begin tonight by thanking the gentleman, Mr. Jeffries, for yielding to me this evening and to thank him for his…”

“Let me begin tonight by thanking the gentleman, Mr. Jeffries, for yielding to me this evening and to thank him for his extraordinary friendship and leadership in the Congressional Black Caucus. I want to publicly thank you for coming to my district this past weekend. You spoke--some would say you preached--at Mount Vernon Baptist Church in Durham, North Carolina, and I thank you so very much for the message that you brought to my constituents in North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, moments after the death of Justice Scalia, the majority leader of the United States Senate announced to the country in a tone of defiance that the Senate will not consider any nomination--any nomination--of President Barack Obama to replace Justice Scalia. Mr. Speaker, the American people can see right through this. Though I represent a Democratic-leaning district in North Carolina, I represent many Republicans in North Carolina. Many of them have told me how disappointed they are with the Senate Republican leadership in making this announcement. Senator McConnell is reinforcing the Republican political agenda to disrupt--to disrupt--governmental functions when the circumstances do not line up with their conservative philosophy. It is imperative that we have nine members of the U.S. Supreme Court deciding constitutional issues that are important to the American people.…”