Political Quotes

“Today I would like to pay tribute to Anthony Lewis who passed away on March 25. As a reporter covering the Supreme Court and through his books, including ``Gideon's Trumpet,'' Mr. Lewis shaped the way millions of Americans understand the role of the judiciary in safeguarding our democracy. He was truly an iconic figure in American journalism and he will be greatly missed. Reading Anthony Lewis changed the way so many of us thought about justice in this country. He brought legal decisions to life and made clear the impact the law has on our lives. He made us aware of the humanity behind the technical legal arguments. Nowhere did he do this better than in ``Gideon's Trumpet,'' his 1964 book about the Supreme Court decision in Gideon v. Wainwright. That landmark case affirmed a fundamental principle of our democratic society: that no person, regardless of economic status, should face prosecution without the assistance of a lawyer. I have spoken countless times over the years about the importance of that decision. And each time, whether it was here on the floor of the Senate, in the Judiciary Committee questioning nominees to the Supreme Court, or in conversations with young law students, I have thought about ``Gideon's Trumpet'' and the powerful impact that book had on me. In fact, on the 50th anniversary of the Gideon decision, which was just days before Mr.…”