Arlen Specter: “It would be a travesty of the procedures of the Senate to vote on this bill without giving Senators an opportunity to…”

“It would be a travesty of the procedures of the Senate to vote on this bill without giving Senators an opportunity to file amendments. It would just be--it is hard to find the right characterization--a travesty, unheard of, unthinkable, unprecedented, idiotic--strike idiotic; the Supreme Court has that word for its own--but our procedure is to vote on amendments. Mr. President, I ask the distinguished Democratic leader if he would agree to start voting tomorrow morning at 9:30 on the list of amendments he identified. Senator Leahy and I are prepared to work through the night and start voting tomorrow morning at 9:30 on those amendments.”