Political Quotes

“In this body, I see cowardice now. I see people afraid that the President will retaliate against them if they stand up and say something. Well, Thomas Jefferson said clearly: When the people are afraid of government, there is tyranny. When the government is afraid of the people, there is liberty. We have a President that calls people up and threatens to run primaries against my colleagues. We have billionaires that say: I will put $21 million in opposition if you don't submit to the unconstitutional actions of the Executive. Two of our colleagues, arrested for their free speech--a grand jury summoned to try to arrest them for their free speech, and I hear silence. We are in a constitutional crisis. The silence is complicity. The failure to stand up and speak up is an insult to our ancestry. We are in a moment of crisis. I fear for this body. I fear for this institution. I fear for our Constitution. But I still have faith in the people. We can stop this erosion of our constitutional norms. We can stop this democratic backsliding. We can protect our rights and our values. But more people need to speak up. And it is a shame upon this body that those who have power and position now do nothing.”