Political Quotes

“Mr. President, reserving the right to object, the Republican leader is now proposing an amendment to the Senate-passed bill--a Senate-passed bill that we are very proud of. It has been engineered and advocated by all Democratic Senators but mainly by the 12 women who are part of our caucus. This is an important piece of legislation. We all feel very strongly about this. I haven't looked at all the details of this amendment, but I understand it. My first response is that the amendment is something the conferees should be working on. We can't do that without the proper input from all the interested parties, and we have 52, other than myself, on my side of the Capitol. That is why I have sought to go to conference with the product the Senate passed. It may be that sometime in the future, after we evaluate all these pieces that have been suggested by my friend, the Republican leader, we may be able to proceed along this route, if, in fact, we get to conference. But we have to get to conference, and we have to have wider discussions airing the proposed amendment we have had just a little time to look at, at this stage. I understand my friend's proposal, and I object to it. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Objection is heard. ____________________”