Posted on 07/26/2015 9:09:00 PM PDT by VinL
Despite a call for decorum, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz's high-stakes showdown with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell bled into an unusually tense Sunday session featuring a parliamentary duel between the Senate's top Republican and the 2016 presidential hopeful from Texas.
Two days after Cruz seized national headlines by accusing McConnell of lying about a vote to revive an export subsidy bank that many conservatives oppose, the two faced off over an unrelated Cruz measure to block a nuclear agreement with Iran.
McConnell, facing an Aug. 1 deadline to pass a national highway and transit funding bill, blocked Cruz's amendment, as well as another by a Cruz ally, Utah Republican Mike Lee, to defund Planned Parenthood.
The standoff kept the tea party champion in the political spotlight at a critical juncture in the race for the GOP presidential nomination that has been dominated in recent weeks by Donald Trump, a conservative firebrand who has blunted much of Cruz's momentum.
The first televised debate in the race is scheduled for Aug. 6, and will be limited to the top 10 GOP rivals in the polls.
Casting himself as a truth-teller in the widening gulf between establishment Republicans and the party's grass-roots, Cruz lambasted McConnell Friday on the Senate floor for permitting a vote to include an Export-Import Bank provision in the pending highway bill.
On Saturday, Cruz's campaign swung into action. "Fireworks broke out on the Senate floor yesterday as Ted set out to shine a light on the backroom deals taking place in our nation's capital," campaign manager Jeff Roe wrote in an email to supporters. "The long knives came out against Ted because he dared to tell the truth and expose what was really happening."
By Sunday, there was little doubt who Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch, the Senate president pro tempore, was addressing when he called for civility and complained of using the Senate for political grandstanding and fundraising.
"The Senate floor has … become a place where senators have singled out colleagues by name to attack them in personal terms and to impugn their character," Hatch said.
Cruz soon took to the Senate floor himself to endorse Hatch's call for civility. But, far from backing down, he added that civility should be consistent with "speaking the truth." (snip- more at source)
“In my many years I have come to a conclusion that one useless man is a shame, two is a law firm, and three or more is a congress.”- John Adams
What they have done will never be undone unless they collapse the economy and we go through a reset.
The way it’s going if they don’t secure the borders it’ll be National Action Party (PAN), the Party of the Democratic Revolution (PRD) and Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI).
Money changers? More like the Gadderine swine
Well said, #1!
I am just wondering why some conservative Freepers have not finally come to the conclusion that there is only one big republicrat oligarchy party in Congress that will do anything to keep from being tossed out of power?
Why are they letting the Kenyan Muslim punk in the white hut get away with all of his misdeeds?
Coild it be that they all like the the status quo?
The so called “leaders” live like kings, while the sheeple grovel with no representation.
Coild = Could
Those losers Mc Connell and other Rino’s are about to hear from me.
"The Senate floor has … become a place where senators have singled out colleagues by name to attack them in personal terms and to impugn their character," Hatch said.Horse hockey.
If McConnell is lying to his fellow senators about senate business, there is nothing "personal" about calling him on it.
Yep. And if the commentary is true, he got some donations and new followers from this event.
“they don’t understand how the system works!”
“The System” is the problem! One man,One Vote falls appart when our elected representatives get to Washington!
You betcha, and it has been this way for many many years, more than any of us want to think it could be.
The Republican NEVER EVER wanted to be in Control. If they are they have/will and ARE exposing themselves to WHAT and WHO they really are, as witnessed by McCollum and others on Sunday. Fully exposed now, they can't take it back.
When not in control they get to HIDE behind the Dems, reap all the benefits the D's vote for themselves, come back home and tell us "WELL THEY TRIED".
Except TODAY: they are so empowered that they no longer have to fear us, they can and are so unashamed that we now KNOW EXACTLY who they are and what they are up to, they make no apologies and it is abundantly clear they no longer care that we know they are all LIARS/aka Democrats. Before we just suspected, but now we finally have been assured they hate us.
Frankly, I loved Newt Gingrich as Speaker, but he had to be gotten rid of as he was making changes to their "playhouse". What makes me so disgusted: Cruz and Trump as crushing and exposing that playhouse right now. Think of all the Senators elected in 2015 who PROMISED to do right. WHERE THE HELL ARE THEY NOW to help defend CRUZ.
My own Mr.Jim Inhofe and James Lankford? where in the hell are they in this matter. THEY both espoused how conservative they are during the election, afterward? Looks like they just gave us the Finger.
Who among us on FR, would not have stood up for CRUZ, go stand by his side and make a statement by that gesture. I dare say there is not one on FR that wouldn't have leeped at that a chance. BUT Republican Senators just sat SILENT, how dare they. VERY TELLING and should never be forgotten.
Have we heard yet from any of these "Self Righteous" vote for me because I'm a Conservative Republican, YET?
Pardon me, but I have never been so DISGUSTED about Politics than I am at this moment on this very issue.
Reminds me of "I've got your back" statement, so often used, then when someone does STEP out and do the right thing, they turn around and try to find just ONE of those that made the statement. They are no where to be found.
Sorry for this long RANT, it's my turn, I'm old and I needed this. lol
This is not the government the founding fathers gave us.
Professional politician/lawyers must be sent home, and new people with real jobs need to run this country again.
That, or it will implode and be lost for good.
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