On the recordJanuary 27, 2011
I want to close by clearly reaffirming my view that if we are going to change Senate rules, we must do so within those rules. As rule 5 states, the Senate is a continuing body, and the rules continue unless changed within the parameters of the rules. I strongly reject this notion that a simple majority can muscle their way to new rules at the beginning of a new Congress. I believe this is a flawed approach. Majorities come and go. My Democratic colleagues should be wary of attempting this maneuver because they will not always be in the majority. The Senate is not the House of Representatives, and our Founding Fathers never intended it to be.
