Political Quotes

“Mr. Chair, I yield myself the balance of my time. Mr. Chair, we have a bedrock principle in this country, and that is that all Americans deserve their day in court. We make a mockery of this principle, however, when individuals can be stripped of this fundamental right and be forced into private arbitration proceedings without the safeguards our judicial system affords. We make a mockery of this right not only when individuals can be stripped of this right, but when almost all Americans are stripped of this fundamental right and are forced into private arbitration proceedings without the safeguards our judicial system affords. Now, we heard the statistics cited by the gentleman, which come from the Chamber of Commerce, and Mr. Cicilline showed how wrong those statistics were. But the real point is, of course, that, under this bill, if a plaintiff thinks that he can get a better deal under arbitration, then arbitration is available voluntarily, as it should be. What this bill seeks to ban is individuals--almost all Americans-- involuntarily giving up their sacred constitutional right to a trial by jury, to their day in court, whether they like it or not. This bill will guarantee that people have their rights. They can opt for arbitration if they want to, but they don't have to. This bill supports liberty; it supports constitutional rights; and it supports the little guy against the giant corporation. H.R.…”