Floor Speeches

"The president doesn't want people reading about pink slips in the weeks before his election," the Senate minority leader said.

Sen. Schumer suggested that Democrats make it clear that their goal is not to repeal the Second Amendment.

Sen. Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) claimed a victory on the Senate floor Thursday after he requested that the Department of Agriculture remove a suggestion of “Meatless Mondays” from its website.

“I always assumed the Department of Agriculture was the farmer and rancher's friend,” Moran said on the floor Thursday. “We need to make sure the Department of Agriculture is promoting farmers and ranchers.”

Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) got choked up after taking his 14,000th vote Wednesday.

Recognizing his achievement both the Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) mentioned how helpful Leahy’s wife, Marcelle must have been during his time in the Senate.

Democrats have so far refused to let Republicans quickly fix their mistake on the floor by unanimous consent.

Visibly emotional, Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) read the names and described each of the 12 people killed in last week’s movie theater massacre.

Crying on the Senate floor, Bennet described how the youngest victim, Veronica Moser, had just learned how to swim.

Seconds after Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said lawmakers should be patient introducing gun control measures so soon after a tragedy, Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) called for a ban on high capacity magazines.

Speaking on the floor, Lautenberg asked his colleagues to stand up to the gun lobby.

"It hurts, we all hurt," said Rep. Ed Perlmutter (D-Colo.), who spoke on behalf of Colorado's entire Congressional delegation.

House Chief Deputy Majority Whip Peter Roskam (R-Ill.) said Thursday evening that Republicans would give Democrats a chance to offer their own amendment to a GOP bill extending all George W. Bush-era tax levels for another year when the bill comes up the week of July 30.

"There will be an opportunity ... for the minority party to offer the president's alternative as an amendment on the floor to have the debate," Roskam said on the floor to Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.). Roskam was the stand-in for Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) in his weekly scheduling discussion with Hoyer.

Sen. John McCain decried as a "specious" attack GOP lawmakers' claims that Huma Abedin is connected to the Muslim Brotherhood.