Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I also rise today to voice my concerns about Senator Jeff Sessions to serve as U.S. Attorney General. While I respect Senator Sessions' public service, I cannot and will not support his nomination. I also rise to raise the concerns of thousands of my constituents who have contacted me about Senator Sessions. These Virginians worry about what his confirmation would mean for the rights of all Virginians and all Americans. Senator Sessions' long record of opposing bipartisan, commonsense policies relating to voting rights, anti-discrimination, domestic violence, and criminal justice reform leads me to conclude that he is not the right person to serve as Attorney General. I would like to take a couple of minutes--and I know I have my friend the Senator from Minnesota coming after me--to talk about five areas of concern I have with his nomination. First, voting rights. In 2013, the Supreme Court ruled in Shelby County v. Holder to gut a key section of the Voting Rights Act. Senator Sessions applauded that decision which eroded voter access and protection in several States once covered by the preclearance provisions in the Voting Rights Act. Those States included the Commonwealth of Virginia. Moreover, he has failed to support important legislation that would restore those protections. The bipartisan legislation, the Voting Rights Advancement Act, was introduced last Congress and would serve to once again protect our Nation's hard-fought equal access to the ballot.…”