Political Quotes

“I say to my friend, that is absolutely right. Barkett, Paez, and Berzon all required 60 votes--60 votes. Without 60 votes, these people could not serve. And so for someone to have the audacity to say: By filibuster, the first time it has been done in the history of our Nation; it has never been done before--it has been done not only here but other times. Other times it has happened. Now, I say to my friend, there have been other occasions where the filibuster was conducted, and it was obvious to the nominee that person was not going to be able to break the impasse, so to speak, and they quit. We know that Abe Fortas, who wanted to become the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, he withdrew when he saw he could not get enough votes to break the filibuster. So that is simply the fact. That is a fact of life. So, please, I say to my friend, the majority leader, or anyone else, do not say it has never happened before. We have done it four times this year to protect our role. As the Senator from Illinois, Mr. Durbin, pointed out earlier today, our role, which article II, section 2 of the Constitution of the United States states, is that we advise and consent to the President of the United States. We believe that is our role as it relates to those Federal judges. These are lifetime appointments. These are very important positions. They are prestigious. They are important.”