On the recordJuly 29, 2021
as we have undertaken this conversation, I can't help but reflect on the fact that we are here in a representative body. We are here in order to have an exchange of ideas. We are here to engage in political speech, not the kind of political speech that people think of when they think of the word ``politics,'' where they think of something necessarily unpleasant. You know, when people hear the word ``political'' or ``politics,'' they think of the two great roots of the word ``politics.'' You have poly, which means many; and ticks, which are blood-sucking parasites. And they assume if it is political, it is unpleasant. But I am using the word ``political'' here in a different sense, the sense that refers to the body politic. It refers to the fact that we are doing the people's business. The exchange of information, of ideas is essential to everything we do. Then it occurs to me that the mask discussion does carry a deeper meaning here, a deeper meaning that takes into account the fact that when we communicate--sometimes with words, sometimes without words, sometimes in print, sometimes with the spoken word, sometimes without any words at all--we are engaging in activity that is protected by the First Amendment. Now, this is important to note in a wide swath of areas. It is important for how we worship or decline to do the same. It is important in how we express our viewpoints in our news, in our entertainment, media.…
