Political Quotes

“1 year ago, on May 5, 1993, our esteemed colleague Robert C. Byrd initiated a series of 14 addresses on the subject of the line-item-veto. During the following 5 months, he delivered each of these speeches--packed with names, dates, and complex narratives--entirely from memory and without recourse to notes or consultation with staff aides. In effect, Senator Byrd had created a 14-week university seminar on the constitutional history of separated and shared powers as shaped in the republic and empire of ancient Rome. To prepare himself for this task, he read extensively in the history of England and ancient Rome. He began with the writings of Montesquieu, the 18th-century French philosopher who had also studied and thought deeply about the history of Rome and the operation of contemporary English governmental institutions. Montesquieu's political philosophy had profoundly influenced the thinking of those who framed the U.S. Constitution.”