Orrin Hatch: “Furthermore, Madam President, the minority leader has turned his daily remarks on the floor into constant diatribes…”

“Furthermore, Madam President, the minority leader has turned his daily remarks on the floor into constant diatribes against the chairman of the Judiciary Committee. These diatribes rank among the most vicious and most personal attacks I have heard on the Senate floor in my nearly four decades in this Senate body. Having myself served as chairman of the Judiciary Committee for more than 8 years, I know that the position is no stranger to controversy and political hardball. But the vile and unfair attacks on Senator Grassley's independence and work ethic have gone too far. I have had the privilege of serving with Senator Grassley for more than 35 years. I know no one more committed to doing his job. Senator Grassley has not missed a vote in a record-setting 27 years--when he was home in Iowa, touring the awful damage of the Great Flood of 1993-- and yet still manages to hold townhall meetings in all 99 of his State's counties every year. He sets the gold standard of service in the Senate. If anyone knows his mind, it is Senator Grassley. Each of us is entitled to our opinions on issues that come before this body, even controversial ones, but I want to condemn in the strongest possible terms the notion that a difference of opinion with Senate Democrats means that Senator Grassley is compromising his own integrity or the independence of the Judiciary Committee he leads.…”