Political Quotes

“Madam President, as I indicated initially, this Congress--and particularly the Senate--has had an unusually productive period of time of late. It may be hard for some people to believe, but the most common word I heard used to describe Congress last year, and in recent years, has been ``dysfunctional.'' But we have actually been functioning very well. We have been able to accomplish quite a bit. Today the Senate is marked by something that we refer to as regular order. What does that mean? It means that we operate according to the rules, where not only the majority but also the minority get to participate in the process, both at committees and on the floor of the Senate. If anybody has a good idea, they can offer that idea, and they can actually get a vote on it up or down. I was pleased to read in the Wall Street Journal yesterday that two former Republican majority leaders wrote that they were encouraged to see ``the Senate addressing big problems after years of inaction.'' I couldn't agree more. Bringing the amendment process back is one obvious way we have done so under the new majority after years of inaction.…”