Senator Harry Reid stands up for America. His speech was magnificent.

[Cyrano]

I just finished reading the speech that Sen. Reid made on the floor of the senate. Jimmy Stewart couldn't have done a better job in Capra's "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington." (If you've never seen it, go rent a copy.)

The text of his entire speech can be read at:

http://www.buzzflash.com/alerts/05/05/ale05079.html#top

Don't expect to see too much coverage of it in the MSM. After all, speaking the truth, especially with words that move you and stir real patriotism, isn't part of the BushCo/MSM script.

Nonetheless, Reid's words need to be heard by every American.

[mcscajun]

1. Thanks for the link! This was a great read.

If I had the money, I'd put it in two-page ads in every major newspaper in the country.

Reid spells out in detail what's going on, why it matters, what's at stake, and who's trying to subvert the Constitution.

[wiggs]

2. Awesome. I hope they are listening. nt

[Clarkie1]

3. "Consent" = "Consensus"; not the tyranny of the majority rule.

"The Senate is a body of moderation. While the White House is the voice of a single man, and the House of Representatives is the voice of the Majority, the Senate is a forum of the states. It is the saucer that cools the coffee. It is the world's greatest deliberative body.

How will we call this the world's greatest deliberative body after the majority breaks the rules to silence the minority?

This vision of our government – the vision of our Founding Fathers - no longer suits President Bush and the Republicans in the Senate. They don't want consensus or compromise. They don't want advice and consent.

They want absolute power. And to get it, the President and the Majority Leader will do all they can to silence the Minority in the Senate and remove the last check on Republican power in Washington.

The White House is trying to grab power over two separate branches of government – Congress and the Judiciary – and they're enlisting the help of the Republican Senate leadership to do it.

Republicans are demanding a power no president has ever had, and they're willing to break the rules to do it.

And make no mistake Mr. President. This is about more than breaking the rules of the Senate or the future of seven radical judges.

At the end of the day, this about the rights and freedoms of millions of Americans.

The attempt to do away with the filibuster is nothing short of clearing the trees for the confirmation of an unacceptable nominee on the Supreme Court. If the Majority gets its way, George Bush and the far right will have the sole power to put whoever they want on the Supreme Court -- from Pat Robertson to Phyllis Schlafly. They don't want someone who represents the values of all Americans, someone who can win bipartisan consensus. They want someone who can skate through with only a bare partisan majority, someone whose beliefs lay in the fringes of our society.

Nobody will be able to stop them from placing these people on the highest court in the land – extremist judges who won't protect our rights and who hold values far outside the mainstream of America.

Here's what's really at stake here:

The civil rights of millions of Americans.

The voting rights of millions of Americans.

The right to clean water to drink and safe air to breathe for millions of Americans.

The right to free speech and religious beliefs.

The right to equality, opportunity and justice.

And, nothing less than the individual rights and liberties of all Americans.

It is up to us in this Chamber to say no to this abuse of power. To stand up for the Constitution and let George Bush and the Republican Party know that the Supreme Court is not theirs to claim.

This debate all comes down to this: will we let George Bush turn the Senate into a rubber stamp to fill the Supreme Court with people from the extreme right's wish list?

Or will we uphold the Constitution and use of advice and consent powers to force the President to look to the mainstream?

Mr. President, I hope it's the latter. I know that is what my fellow Democrats and I will fight for, and I hope the responsible Republicans we've heard from will have the courage to join us."

I salute you, Senator Reid!


:patriot:

[splat@14]

4. Great speach. I heard portions of it quoted on the way home tonite.

Will be a truly sad day in America as we all watch another layer of democracy being stripped away for this lunatic administration.

Thanks for posting it, good read.

[libodem]

5. That was awesome,

powerful, true and inspiring! It makes me believe in my country again. Whoever runs in '08 should be singing the same song.

[ClarkUSA]

6. He's the Senate leader this party has needed for a long time

I don't miss that wimp Daschle one bit.

[Raiden]

7. Give 'em hell, Harry!

I can't believe I was ever worried that he wouldn't do a good job. What a great minority leader. We should repay the favor and make him the MAJORITY leader in 2006!




HARRY! HARRY! HARRY!

[snowbear]

8. On a scale of one to ten...

(One being a Bush speech) :evilfrown: (and ten being a Galloway speech) O8) ...

How did it rate? ~~ LOL! :smoke: :headbang: B-)

[Sapphire Blue]

9. As I've said before, we may be seeing the emerging of the next president.

Another "Give 'em hell, Harry!"