Political Quotes

“We are talking about a procedural strategy. We are not even talking about an outcome here. We are talking about the full utilization of the procedural rights of each and every Member of this body. We have been asked to give our consent and to effectively vote for a procedure that people on both sides of the Capitol have now admitted could and may well be utilized as a mechanism for raising the debt limit in a way that circumvents the 60-vote threshold of the Senate. It seems to me that is troubling, and if we analogize that yet again to other circumstances where we have to represent someone else, that can be troubling. Let's suppose the Senator from Texas is representing a client in court--let's say in the U.S. Supreme Court. For example, when the Senator is in the position of the petitioner, he has the right, as the petitioner--meaning the person filing the petition for a writ of certiorari--to seek review by the Supreme Court of the United States, and let's say review is granted. After review is granted, a briefing schedule kicks in and the petitioner has the opportunity to file the first brief. That is the Senator's prerogative as the petitioner. The other side then has about a month to file its brief, and then the Senator gets something the other side doesn't get to file--the Senator gets a reply brief. Procedurally, under the rules of the Supreme Court of the United States, that is the Senator's client's right.…”