THREE SENATORS AND A LETTER
RULE 19
COMPILATION AND OPINION BY LUCY M WARNER
FEBRUARY 8, 2017


NOTE: 2/8/17, 10:08 PM, THE VOTE ON SESSIONS IS BEING UNDERTAKEN NOW.

FOR PBS LIVE VIDEO COVERAGE,GO TO -- https://plus.google.com/collection/cVZQmB



THIS FASCINATING TERM “MANSPLAINING” IS VERY APPEALING, PARTLY BECAUSE IT’S CUTE AND PARTLY BECAUSE EVERY WOMAN ON EARTH KNOWS EXACTLY WHAT IT MEANS, AND EVERY MAN ON EARTH WILL SAY IT DOESN’T APPLY TO HIM. MORE FEMINIST BOMB THROWING.

INTERESTINGLY, IT JUST DOESN’T SEEM TO WORK AS WELL AS IT USED TO AS A TECHNIQUE AGAINST WOMEN. MOST MODERN WOMEN DON’T SIT DOWN AND SHUT UP LIKE THEY SHOULD. RIGHT? SORRY, GUYS!

THAT SENATE RULE 19, WHICH INEVITABLY STIFLES DEBATE AND ENLIGHTENMENT, RATHER THAN MERELY PREVENTING THE WORST KINDS OF VIOLENT AND TOTALLY UNPRODUCTIVE DISCORD – FIST FIGHTING AND CHAIR THROWING -- IS TOTALLY OUT OF PLACE WHEN USED MERELY TO BRING ABOUT, BY A SYMBOLIC COUP, THIS PARTY LINE SUPPORT FOR TRUMP AND HIS CABINET. DEMOCRATS NEED TO RISK THE DISPLEASURE OF THEIR COLLEAGUES BY FIGHTING BACK MUCH MORE OFTEN, THOUGH COGENTLY. SO MUCH OF THE ARGUMENTATION THAT HAPPENS BETWEEN PEOPLE DOESN’T REALLY MAKE MUCH SENSE. IN THIS CASE, WARREN WAS PROVING THE SAME IMPORTANT POINT THAT WAS BROUGHT UP AGAINST SESSIONS IN THE 1980S IS JUST AS APPLICABLE TODAY, BUT THERE WERE FEWER DEMOCRATS LAST WEEK AND FLEXIBLE AND ETHICAL REPUBLICANS, SO THEY LISTENED WITH HARDENED HEARTS.

THERE WAS MORE TO IT THAN PARTY COOPERATION, THOUGH. IT WAS A MATTER OF MALE PRIVILEGE IN THIS CASE, PLUS A LONG-STANDING GRUDGE AGAINST ALL OF THE PROGRESSIVES IN THE SENATE. SANDERS AND WARREN, SPECIFICALLY, WHO HAVE BEEN DESCRIBED OFTEN IN NEWS REPORTS AS “CONTENTIOUS” OR “FEISTY,” ARE PROBABLY LESS WELL-LIKED THAN OUR MORE “MODERATE” DEMS. THOSE WHO WANT OTHERS TO KNUCKLE UNDER TO THEIR EVERY WHIM, DO HAVE A TENDENCY TO BE FONDER OF THOSE WHO DO IT. TOO BAD. A BOY FRIEND OF MINE ONCE TOLD ME THAT I’M “TOO FEISTY.” HE SAID IT WITH A GRIN, BUT I KNOW HE MEANT IT AT LEAST HALF WAY. I MENTIONED IT TO MY FEMALE FRIEND, WHO QUIPPED, “FEISTY IS GOOD.” IT REALLY IS ALL IN YOUR PERSPECTIVE.

BUT “GOOD” OR “DIFFICULT," ALL PARTNERS SHOULD HAVE AN EQUAL SHARE OF RIGHTS AND PRIVILEGES. THAT IS THE PATH TO A FAIR AND HELPFUL “CONSENSUS” WHICH IS THE ONLY BASIS OF A GOOD GROUP DECISION. IN THIS CASE, SEVERAL MALE SENATORS WERE NOT SILENCED IN THAT SHAMING WAY FOR, ALSO, SAYING ANGRY THINGS ABOUT OTHERS. THAT, TO ME, LOOKS VERY MUCH LIKE THE OLD RULE THAT WHILE BOTH WOMEN AND MEN MAY DISOBEY RULES, MEN ARE MORE LIKELY TO GET AWAY WITH IT THAN WOMEN. IN THIS CASE, AN UNPOPULAR PROGRESSIVE FEMALE SENATOR WAS RAILROADED BY A LARGER GROUP OF CONSERVATIVE MALES BASED SUPERFICIALLY ON A FREQUENTLY BROKEN SENATE RULE. THE OTHERS WHO BROKE IT, THOUGH, WERE MEN, SO THEY WEREN’T CENSORED.

THAT ISN’T ONLY UNFAIR, BUT IT DOESN’T LEAD TO REALLY GOOD DECISION-MAKING. GOOD DECISIONS PRODUCE BETTER LAWS WHICH SERVE THE WHOLE GROUP, AND CAN STAND THE TEST OF TIME. IN THIS CASE, THE GOAL SHOULD BE – IF BASIC ETHICS AND MORALITY WERE THE STANDARD – TO KEEP AN UNREPENTANT RACIST OUT OF A POSITION WHICH HAS THE POWER TO DENY JUSTICE TO BLACK PEOPLE WILLY NILLY, BY THE SIMPLE MEANS OF REFUSING TO PROMOTE THEIR CAUSE OR SEND IN JUSTICE DEPARTMENT PEOPLE TO INVESTIGATE. WE HAVE SEEN A GREAT DEAL OF THIS IN OUR HISTORY AS A NATION. IN THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS AN AG HAS BEEN INVOLVED IN CASES WITH THE RESULT OF HAVING BETTER INVESTIGATIONS AND DECISIONS. WITHOUT A STRONG AND ETHICAL PERSON IN THAT SPOT, JUSTICE ON THE LOCAL LEVELS WILL BECOME A TOTALLY HOLLOW WORD.

THIS KIND OF THING IS PART OF THE REASON WHY OUR LIBERAL DEMOCRATS HAVE BECOME SO SUBMISSIVE IN GENERAL IN THE LAST TEN YEARS OR SO. THEY WANT TO REACH JUSTICE, AND THE REPUBLICANS WANT TO WIN FOR THEIR CORPORATE PARTNERS AND MAKE MONEY. THEY ARE SHOUTED DOWN, BRIBED, AND SHAMED INTO CONFORMING. IN LAW-MAKING BODIES, THE PRODUCT CAN BE ABSTRUSELY WORDED, IRRATIONAL AND UNGAINLY LAWS, THAT READ AS THOUGH THEY ARE THE PRODUCT OF A SAUSAGE GRINDER. THERE WAS A GREAT ARTICLE I READ SOME TWENTY YEARS AGO, WHICH QUOTED TEXT FROM A NUMBER OF INEPT PIECES OF LEGAL WRITING. OTHERS WERE INCLUDED BECAUSE THEY ARE BADLY OUT OF SYNCH WITH MODERN REALITY DUE TO THEIR AGE. SOME OF THE LAWS THAT THE SUPREME COURT DISSECTS IN SUCH EXCRUCIATING DETAIL, IN ORDER TO INTERPRET THEIR MEANING, WOULD BE MUCH BETTER OFF REWRITTEN IN MY VIEW. THAT NEWS ARTICLE WAS VERY FUNNY, THOUGH.

AS FOR THAT FAMOUS GOODWILL WITHIN THE SENATE, THE PHRASE “GO ALONG TO GET ALONG” IS THE MANTRA THAT’S REALLY BEHIND THE MATTER. TO ME, THAT KIND OF THINKING JUST WASTES EVERYBODY’S TIME AND DOESN’T PRODUCE GOOD LAWS. I WOULD PREFER AN APPROACH LIKE GIVING EVERY SENATOR HIS OR HER CHANCE TO SAY HIS PIECE, EVEN IF IT IS UNPOPULAR. DEBATE INVOLVES HAVING BOTH PERTINENT INFORMATION AND GOOD ARGUING POINTS BROAD AND NARROW, IN ORDER TO REACH A REALLY GOOD GROUP CONCLUSION FROM THE FACTS. THE REPUBLICANS, IN THIS CASE, DENIED WARREN HER VERY APPLICABLE PIECE OF INFORMATION, THE LETTER FROM CORETTA KING. EVEN THOUGH IT WASN’T NEW INFORMATION, IT WAS STILL APROPOS, AND THAT PARTICULAR PIECE OF NEGATIVE CRITICISM IS IMPORTANT TO SESSIONS’ LACK OF ABILITY TO PROVIDE JUSTICE FOR ALL.

THERE IS A SUGGESTION I HAVE SEEN SEVERAL TIMES RECENTLY, USUALLY BY CONSERVATIVE LEGISLATORS, BUT EVEN TO MY PERSONAL VIEW OF THE WORLD, IT WOULD MAKE GOOD SENSE TO HAVE A NEW “CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION.” THAT SHOULD, OF COURSE, GUARANTEE EQUAL TIME FOR EVERY SENATOR OR CONGRESSPERSON TO BRING UP POINTS TO DISCUSS. THEN A SERIES OF COMMITTEES COULD BE FORMED TO DO THE DRAFTING OR REVISING OF LAWS. THOSE COMMITTEE MEMBERS SHOULD ALL HAVE GOOD CREDENTIALS AS LAWYERS AND AS WRITERS. LAW REVIEW EXPERIENCE IN COLLEGE, FOR INSTANCE; AND A JD DEGREE WOULD BE BETTER THAN A BUSINESS DEGREE.

A BUSINESS DEGREE IS GREAT FOR STARTING A COMPANY, BUT THAT’S NOT WHAT PEOPLE SHOULD BE SENT TO THE LEGISLATURE TO DO. RIGHT? I HATE TO BRING THIS UP, BUT SOME WHO SERVE IN THE LEGISLATURE AREN’T REALLY “TOO SWIFT” MENTALLY. THAT IS A SHAME. IN ADDITION TO ELECTIONS, WE NEED QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS BEYOND HAVING “THE GIFT OF GAB” AND GOOD OVERALL SHOWMANSHIP. SANDERS IS QUOTED IN A RECENT ARTICLE AS HAVING STATED THAT TRUMP IS A “GOOD SHOWMAN.” I AGREE WITH THAT. HE IS WOEFULLY LACKING IN SOME VERY IMPORTANT OTHER ATTRIBUTES, HOWEVER. NOT ONLY ARE THERE ARE TOO FEW QUALIFICATION POINTS FOR THE LEGISLATURE, THE SAME IS TRUE FOR THE PRESIDENCY. WHILE WE’RE REWRITING SECTIONS OF THE CONSTITUTION, THAT MATTER SHOULD BE ADDRESSED.

BACK TO THE SUBJECT OF WHAT RULES THE SENATE AND CONGRESS SHOULD OPERATE UNDER, THE ELOQUENT OLD PHRASE “THESE ARE THE TIMES THAT TRY MEN’S SOULS,” SEEMS APPLICABLE NOWADAYS. WE ARE NOW IN A TIME WHEN THE ALT-RIGHT HAS SUCCEEDED IN TAKING HOLD TO A FRIGHTENING DEGREE IN ALL BRANCHES OF GOVERNMENT IN THIS COUNTRY DUE TO THE TEA PARTY. WE ARE NOT ONLY PREDICTING AN ACTIVE MOVEMENT DIRECTLY AWAY FROM DEMOCRATIC PHILOSOPHY HERE IN THE USA, BUT ARE IN THE MIDST OF THAT KIND OF CHANGE OF OUR VERY GOVERNMENTAL STRUCTURE. IT ISN’T A THING OF THE FUTURE, AS I PERSISTENTLY WARNED BEFORE NOVEMBER OF LAST YEAR. IT’S NOW.

TWO OR THREE YEARS AGO, BEFORE ALL OF THE RACIAL STRIFE WE HAVE TODAY BROKE OUT INTO THE OPEN FROM ITS’ CLOSETS AND INTERNET WEBSITES, WE OBSERVED A MOVEMENT AWAY FROM BASIC HUMAN RIGHTS AND EQUAL CITIZENSHIP FOR ALL. MANY OF OUR FINANCIALLY COMFORTABLE WHITE AMERICANS DIDN’T SEE ANY REAL REASON TO GET INVOLVED IN THE DISCUSSION OF THOSE ISSUES, AND ENTERTAINED THEMSELVES BY HOW CLEVERLY THEY CAN MOCK TRUMP. HE WAS NOT SEEN AS A REAL THREAT ALMOST UP TO THE NIGHT OF THE ELECTION. REALLY THINKING ABOUT IT, EVALUATING THE POSSIBILITY OF IT, OR REALLY PAYING ATTENTION TO THE NEWS WAS TOO MUCH WORK. THAT WAS MOST OF THE PROBLEM, BUT ALSO IT WAS JUST TOO SHOCKING. I KNOW I HAD FELT BEFORE THAT OUR COUNTRY, THIS VAST BUREAUCRATIC STRUCTURE OF LIFE AS WE KNOW IT, WAS NOT LIKELY TO ACTUALLY ALLOW VILE HUMAN TRAITS LIKE GROUP HATRED TO TAKE OVER HERE AS IT DID IN EUROPE IN THE 1930S. I KNEW THERE WAS RACISM HERE, BUT I DIDN’T PERSONALLY SEE ANY VIOLENT BEHAVIOR WHEN I WAS GROWING UP, AND THEN AS A YOUNG WOMAN I WAS A STUDENT WITH ENOUGH MONEY TO HAVE ACCEPTABLE CLOTHING, SHELTER AND FOOD. I WENT TO MOVIES WITH FRIENDS. I DID GET INVOLVED TO SOME DEGREE WITH POLITICS IN THE VIETNAM, CIVIL RIGHTS AND WOMEN’S MOVEMENTS. I CARED, BUT I WASN’T HIGHLY ACTIVE OR COMMITTED. STILL IT DID SENSITIZE ME TO THOSE ISSUES.

WHEN I GOT INTO THE NEWS BLOG ACTIVITIES JUST A FEW YEARS AGO, I SAW MANY CASES OF DISTURBING TRENDS; BUT UNTIL FERGUSON BROKE LOOSE I WASN’T REALLY AFRAID. I WAS QUITE CONCERNED ABOUT THE “MILITIA” GROUPS, BUT CONSIDERED THEM A TRUE MINORITY WHO EXISTED MAINLY IN “THE BACKWOODS AREAS OF THE SOUTH AND WEST. I WAS WRONG. WITH FERGUSON, AND ESPECIALLY WHEN TRUMP’S WILD “POLITICKIN’” STYLE BEGAN TO EXCITE AND EMBOLDEN SUCH NEGATIVE PEOPLE. THE POLICE BRUTALITY PROBLEMS SEEMED SCATTERED UNTIL I SAW ON THE NEWS AT FERGUSON, DOZENS OF HEAVILY ARMED AND PROTECTED POLICE OFFICERS MARCHING DOWN THE STREET TOWARD A GROUP OF BLACK LIVES MATTER PROTESTORS. A HAZE OF TEAR GAS WAS FLOATING IN THE AIR, AND IT SEEMED UNREAL TO ME. IT LOOKED LIKE A SCENE FROM AN OLD WWII MOVIE, AND NOT LIKE THE USA. IT IS, HOWEVER, THE PREDICTED “CULTURE WAR” IN WHICH ALL KINDS OF WHITE SUPREMACISTS HAVE BECOME SO ACTIVE, AND SO ENTHUSIASTIC ABOUT IT. WHEN I BEGAN TO WATCH DONALD TRUMP AND HIS AUDIENCES, I SAW THE SHOCKING PATTERN THAT WE HAVE NOW.

ALL WHO BELIEVE IN THE FREEDOMS AND JUSTICE OF OUR FOREFATHERS VISION, REALLY DO NEED TO JOIN TOGETHER TO FIGHT OFF THIS WAVE OF HIGHLY NEGATIVE ATTITUDES AND VIEWPOINTS THAT WE ARE INVOLVED IN TODAY. YES, FIGHT FOR “GOD, TRUTH AND RIGHT,” BUT NOT BY USING TACTICS LIKE THIS HORRIFIC “BLACK BLOC” ANARCHISTIC STYLE OF PROTESTING. THAT IS AS DANGEROUS AS THE PEOPLE ON THE RIGHT. PEOPLE DO GET A TASTE FOR VIOLENCE AFTER AWHILE, SO BECOME “THE BAD GUYS.” WE DO HAVE TO FIGHT, BUT NOT WITH THE TOOLS OF EVIL. TALK, BLOG, FACEBOOK, HUMOR, GROUP POLITICAL ACTIVITIES AND PROTESTS, YES, BUT NOT BY PERSONALLY DEGENERATING INTO A KIND OF SUBHUMAN CREATURE. I DO AND WILL CONTINUE TO PRESENT NEWS ARTICLES THAT THE RIGHTISTS WON’T LIKE, BUT I DON’T/WON’T GO ON THEIR PERSONAL WEBSITES AND MAKE SNARKY COMMENTS ABOUT WHAT THEY HAVE SAID. THAT “TROLLING” IS VERY DAMAGING TO THE PEACEFULNESS OF OUR SOCIETY IN GENERAL.

I’M PRETTY SURE THAT’S THE SAME DEEP BLACK POOL OF SLUDGE FROM WHICH NAZI GERMANY EMERGED. IT PRODUCES A KIND OF GROUP FRENZY THAT IS HALF FEAR AND HATRED, ALONG WITH A LARGE MEASURE OF WOEFUL IGNORANCE, LACK OF EMPATHY WITH OTHERS AND DEPRESSING POVERTY. WHEN HOPE DIES, CONSCIENCE CAN FOLLOW. WE HAVE A SIMILAR CONDITION IN THIS COUNTRY NOW, UNFORTUNATELY. IN TOO MANY CASES, OUR CLASS-CONSCIOUS SOCIETIES DON’T REALLY EDUCATE “THE MASSES” AS WE SHOULD. IT IS STILL BELIEVED BY SOME “CONSERVATIVES” IN THIS COUNTRY THAT PUBLIC EDUCATION SHOULD NOT BE “FREE,” BUT THE PRIVILEGE INSTEAD OF THOSE WITH THE MONEY TO PAY TUITION. THE OTHERS SHOULD GET WHATEVER WORK THEY CAN AND KEEP QUIET ABOUT THEIR PROBLEMS. ONE RIGHTWING POLITICIAN THIS YEAR WAS QUOTED AS SAYING THAT THE POOR SHOULD PERHAPS BE PUT INTO AN UNPAID OR BARELY PAID LABOR SITUATION IN EXCHANGE FOR FOOD, SHELTER, MEDICINE, ETC. UNTIL THEY CAN AFFORD TO CARE FOR THEMSELVES OR GET A BETTER JOB. THAT, IF I REMEMBER CORRECTLY, IS INDENTURED SERVITUDE, AND ASSOCIATED WITH DEBTOR’S PRISON. FOR A DISCUSSION OF SOMETHING WHICH IS UNPLEASANTLY CLOSE TO INDENTURED SERVITUDE TODAY, IT IS THE “GUEST WORKER” PROGRAM. FOR A CLOSEUP ON THAT, GO TO “http://www.salon.com/2013/01/30/immigration_yes_indentured_serfdom_no/. SUCH WORKERS ARE CLASSIFIED AS “H-1B” WORKERS. IT REFERS TO THE FARM WORKERS, CHICKEN CUTTERS, AND OTHER LESS THAN DESIRABLE JOBS, FOR WHICH SOME AMERICANS HAVE CALLED FOR “GUEST WORKERS.”

THERE IS A NEWLY POPULAR, IF DISGUSTING, TERM CALLED “SNOWFLAKE,” THAT IS BEING USED ON THE NET LATELY FOR PEOPLE WHO PROTEST FOR GUARANTEED RIGHTS AND BASIC HUMAN NEEDS. SINCE THE 1960S, PROTESTORS HAVE BEEN PRETTY MUCH HATED BY THE “LAW AND ORDER” CROWD, SO THIS IS NOTHING NEW – JUST A NOVEL AND KIND OF CUTE WORD. THERE IS A VIEWPOINT AMONG SOME CONSERVATIVE CHRISTIANS THAT GROUPS SUCH AS THE HOMELESS SHOULDN’T BE HELPED. IT “MAKES THEM DEPENDENT” ON THE GOVERNMENT – A TRUE FORM OF “SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST.” SOME ALT-RIGHTERS CALL PLEAS FOR HELP “WHINING,” JUST AS THE TERM “BLEEDING HEART LIBERAL” IS STILL BEING TOSSED AROUND BE THE RIGHT. I SEE TERMINOLOGY LIKE THAT ON THE NET ALL TOO OFTEN. THE HARDNESS, CRUDENESS, STUPIDITY OF IT NAUSEATES ME.

IF WE WANT GOOD CITIZENS WHO WILL PEACEFULLY GO ABOUT THEIR LIVES, WE NEED TO INVEST TIME, MONEY, AND OUR PERSONAL TALENTS INTO THE HEART OF OUR SOCIETY, ESPECIALLY THE CHILDREN. I HOPE WE AS A PEOPLE WILL WALK THROUGH THIS DANGEROUS TIME PERIOD WITH MORE AWARENESS NOW THAN WE DID IN WWII, AND KEEP OUR SOCIETY FROM BREAKING DOWN IN SUCH A SHOCKING WAY AS EUROPE DID THEN. A VERY INTERESTING NOVEL AND MOVIE OF THE TIME CALLED “THE GROUP” INCLUDED TWO CONTROVERSIAL SUBJECTS, LESBIANS AND THE NAZI DEATH CAMPS BEFORE THE US ENTERED THE WAR. AN ARTICLE ON ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITES IN LARGE AND SMALL TOWNS ACROSS EUROPE HAVE PROVEN TO INCLUDE THEIR VERY OWN LOCAL MASS GRAVES. AT LEAST SOME REGULAR EUROPEAN CITIZENS WERE INVOLVED IN THOSE THINGS AS WELL AS THE STORM TROOPERS. IT WAS, IN MY VIEW “MASS INSANITY.” MAY WE KEEP OUR NATION SAFE FROM SUCH DISRUPTION. PERIODS LIKE THIS ARE ALMOST ALWAYS TEMPORARY, BUT TEMPORARY CAN LAST A LONG ENOUGH TIME TO BE EXTREMELY UNCOMFORTABLE FOR EVERYONE.



ELIZABETH WARREN UNDER ASSAULT FOR STANDING UP FOR WHAT IS GOOD

http://www.cnn.com/2017/02/08/politics/elizabeth-warren-nevertheless-she-persisted-trnd/index.html

#LetLizSpeak: 'She persisted' becomes rallying cry for Warren supporters
By Madison Park, CNN
Updated 6:52 AM ET, Wed February 8, 2017

Video -- Warren cut off during Sessions debate
Story highlights --
Warren is barred from participating in debate over nomination of Jeff Sessions
For Warren supporters, McConnell's line was a textbook case of mansplaining


(CNN)"She was warned. She was given an explanation. Nevertheless, she persisted."

That line, delivered by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to bar Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren from speaking, has become an instant classic and a powerful rallying cry for her supporters.

On Tuesday night, Warren had attempted to read a letter that Coretta Scott King, the widow of Martin Luther King Jr., had written 30 years ago opposing the nomination of Jeff Sessions for a federal judgeship. But Republicans accused Warren of violating Senate rules against impugning another senator and voted down party line to bar her from participating any further.

For Warren's supporters, it was a textbook case of mansplaining followed by males silencing a woman.

Follow
Melissa McEwan ✔ @Shakestweetz
"Nevertheless she persisted" is the contemptible lament of every old white man who has tried and failed to silence an indomitable woman.
11:44 PM - 7 Feb 2017
2,090 2,090 Retweets 4,332 4,332 likes

On Twitter, McConnell's line took off along with the hashtag #LetLizSpeak, which was trending Wednesday morning.

One woman tweeted that the line is "every woman's epitaph."

Follow
Jill Belasco @jillbelasco
"She was warned. She was given an explanation. Still, she persisted" Every woman's epitaph. #letLizspeak #theresistance @elizabethforma
10:33 PM - 7 Feb 2017
429 429 Retweets 875 875 likes

Another posted that the line was "providing a history of feminism."
Follow
Jamil Smith ✔ @JamilSmith
“[Warren] was warned. She was given an explanation. Nevertheless, she persisted,” said @SenateMajLdr, providing a history of feminism.
10:43 PM - 7 Feb 2017 · New York, NY
6,058 6,058 Retweets 9,088 9,088 likes

Others invoked imagery of protesters from the Women's March in January, in which Warren had been a prominent participant.

View image on Twitter
Follow
Sarah Lerner @SarahLerner
"Nevertheless, she persisted."
1:23 AM - 8 Feb 2017
4,176 4,176 Retweets 8,267 8,267 likes

Some posted photos of other famous women who refused to back down and persisted in their causes like Malala, Harriet Tubman and the fictional Princess Leia.

View image on Twitter
Follow
Shannon Coulter ✔ @shannoncoulter
"She was warned. She was given an explanation. Nevertheless, #ShePersisted."
1:38 AM - 8 Feb 2017
490 490 Retweets 898 898 likes

View image on Twitter
Follow
Heather Matarazzo ✔ @HeatherMatarazz
"She was warned. She was given an explanation. Nevertheless, she persisted."#ShePersisted #HarrietTubman #BlackHistoryMonth
1:48 AM - 8 Feb 2017
437 437 Retweets 657 657 likes

Follow
Janna Zagari @jannazagari
She was warned. She was given an explanation. Nevertheless, she persisted.
2:09 AM - 8 Feb 2017
506 506 Retweets 785 785 likes

Did GOP just hand Warren a gift?

Unable to finish speaking on the Senate floor, Warren took to Facebook Live to read the letter, which had more than 3 million views by early Wednesday.

"They can shut me up, but they can't change the truth," she told CNN's Don Lemon on "CNN Tonight."

Bernice King, daughter of the Kings, wrote on Twitter: "Thank you @SenWarren for being the soul of the Senate during the #Sessions hearing. #LetCorettaSpeak #LetLizSpeak"

View image on Twitter
Follow
Be A King ✔ @BerniceKing
Thank you @SenWarren for being the soul of the Senate during the #Sessions hearing. #LetCorettaSpeak #LetLizSpeak
10:21 PM - 7 Feb 2017
6,290 6,290 Retweets 11,537 11,537 likes

Senate GOP's effort to shut Warren up backfires
Silencing Elizabeth Warren backfires on Senate GOP

Warren is now forbidden from participating in the floor debate over Sessions' nomination ahead of a confirmation vote expected Wednesday. The debate is expected to wrap up about 7 p.m. ET Wednesday when a final confirmation vote is planned.

The incident seemed to elevate President Donald Trump's fiercest and most prominent critic in the Senate and turning her into a Democratic hero. What could have been an ordinary late-night partisan floor speech turned into a national story.

David Simon tweeted that McConnell's line would be a great title for her autobiography, if not a line of T-shirts.

Follow
David Simon ✔ @AoDespair
"Nevertheless, she persisted." Mitch McConnell just gave Elizabeth Warren the title of her autobiography, if not a line of T-shirts.
10:53 PM - 7 Feb 2017
6,296 6,296 Retweets 18,442 18,442 likes

Hours later, the Internet already had that covered. Merchandise including T-shirts, and iPhone covers popped up for sale with the slogan, "Nevertheless she persisted."

CNN's Eric Bradner and Ted Barrett contributed to this report.



WARREN READING THE LETTER ON VIDEO

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/elizabeth-warren-mitch-mcconnell-jeff-sessions_us_589a7661e4b0c1284f294a27
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/elizabeth-warren-silenced-reciting-coretta-scott-king-letter-article-1.2966807?cid=bitly

Video -- Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) was stopped from speaking on the Senate floor about Attorney General nominee Jeff Sessions on Feb. 7. "I am surprised that the words of Coretta Scott King are not suitable for debate in the United States Senate," Warren said. (Reuters)

Senate Republicans passed a party-line rebuke Tuesday night of Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) for a speech opposing attorney general nominee Jeff Sessions, striking down her words for impugning the Alabama senator’s character.

In an extraordinarily rare move, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) interrupted Warren’s speech in a near-empty chamber, as debate on Sessions’s nomination heads toward a Wednesday evening vote, and said that she had breached Senate rules by reading past statements against Sessions from figures such as the late senator Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.) and the late Coretta Scott King.

“The senator has impugned the motives and conduct of our colleague from Alabama,” McConnell said, then setting up a series of roll-call votes on Warren’s conduct.

[Read the letter Coretta Scott King wrote opposing Sessions’s 1986 federal nomination]

It was the latest clash in the increasingly hostile debate over confirming President Trump’s Cabinet, during which Democrats have accused Republicans of trying to force through nominees without proper vetting. Democrats, unable to stop the confirmations that require simple majorities, have countered by using extreme delay tactics that have dragged out the process longer than any in history for a new president’s Cabinet.

The Democratic moves, including boycotting committee room votes on nominees last week and a round-the-clock debate Monday night before Tuesday’s confirmation of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, reached a boiling point during the debate over Sessions — which Democrats continued overnight.

In setting up the votes to rebuke Warren, McConnell specifically cited portions of a letter that King, the widow of slain civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., wrote to the Senate Judiciary Committee in opposition to Sessions’s 1986 nomination to be a federal judge.

[‘Nevertheless, she persisted’ becomes new battle cry after McConnell silences Elizabeth Warren]

“Mr. Sessions has used the awesome power of his office to chill the free exercise of the vote by black citizens,” King wrote, referencing controversial prosecutions at the time that Sessions served as the U.S. attorney for Alabama. Earlier, Warren read from the 1986 statement of Kennedy, a senior member of the Judiciary Committee who led the opposition then against Sessions, including the Massachusetts Democrat’s concluding line: “He is, I believe, a disgrace to the Justice Department and he should withdraw his nomination and resign his position.”

The Senate voted, 49 to 43, strictly on party lines, to uphold the ruling that Warren violated Rule 19 of the Senate that says senators are not allowed to “directly or indirectly, by any form of words impute to another Senator or to other Senators any conduct or motive unworthy or unbecoming a Senator.” Pursuant to that rule, Warren was ordered to sit down and forbidden from speaking during the remainder of the debate on the nomination of Sessions.

“I am surprised that the words of Coretta Scott King are not suitable for debate in the United States Senate,” Warren said after McConnell’s motion.

Sen. Steve Daines (R-Mont.), a freshman who was presiding over the Senate at the time, issued a warning to Warren at that point, singling out Kennedy’s “disgrace” comment, and 25 minutes later McConnell came to the floor and set in motion the battle, citing the comments in the King letter as crossing the line.

Warren’s speech ended with a simple admonition from Daines: “The senator will take her seat.”

McConnell later defended his decision.

“Sen. Warren was giving a lengthy speech. She had appeared to violate the rule. She was warned. She was given an explanation,” he said. “Nevertheless, she persisted.”

[The silencing of Elizabeth Warren and an old Senate rule prompted by a fistfight]

Overnight into early Wednesday, other Democratic senators continued speaking out against Sessions on the Senate floor and Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) read parts of King’s 10-page letter — but not the excerpts Warren had read aloud.

Other Democrats, including Kamala Harris (Calif.) and Sheldon Whitehouse (R.I.), had come to Warren’s defense by trying to have King’s entire letter placed into the Senate record or to allow Warren to continue participating. But Republican senators objected.

Warren, a liberal firebrand with a devoted national following whom some activists want to run for president in 2020, quickly took to social media and the airwaves to attack McConnell and Republicans for shutting down her speech.

Follow
Elizabeth Warren ✔ @SenWarren
I will not be silent about a nominee for AG who has made derogatory & racist comments that have no place in our justice system.
8:29 PM - 7 Feb 2017
49,492 49,492 Retweets 129,522 129,522 likes

Banned from reading King’s letter on the Senate floor, Warren instead went to a nearby room and read it aloud on Facebook Live.

Sen. Warren reads Coretta Scott King's letter about Jeff Sessions outside the Senate Play Video15:29
After Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) struck down Sen. Elizabeth Warren's (D-Mass.) attempt to read a letter from Coretta Scott King on the floor of the Senate during the debate on attorney general nominee Jeff Sessions, Warren read the letter outside the doors of the Senate and streamed it live. (Facebook/Sen. Elizabeth Warren)

In a brief telephone interview with MSNBC’s “The Rachel Maddow Show,” a program watched loyally by many Warren devotees, she explained that “I’ve been red-carded on Sen. Sessions, I’m out of the game of the Senate floor. I don’t get to speak at all.”

Public reaction intensified online. RedBubble.com, an online clothing website for independent designers, began selling a “She Persisted” T-shirt or sweatshirt — seizing on McConnell’s admonition of Warren. Democrats began using #LetLizSpeak on Twitter and posted copies of King’s letter on Facebook to draw more attention to Warren’s speech.

Others gathered on Capitol Hill.

Heidi Feldman, 51, arrived at home last night, checked social media, and saw news of what had happened to Warren. Instantly, she decided to head to the Capitol and read King’s letter out loud, to whoever might want to listen.

“I’ve been an increasingly political active person since 2008,” said Feldman, a Georgetown Law professor. “I marched in the Women’s March, and I’ve organized law students. I just felt that I had to do this.”

Feldman tweeted her plans and location, and arrived on the lawn south of the Senate at 10:15 p.m. Not long after, a dozen protesters joined her, taking turns reading from the letter.

David Weigel contributed to this report.

Read more:
ACLU: Delay Sessions confirmation vote until ‘Muslim ban’ is stopped
Fact Checker: Does Sen. Jeff Sessions have a ‘strong record’ on civil rights enforcement?
Trump’s hard-line actions have an intellectual godfather: Jeff Sessions

Paul Kane is The Post's senior congressional correspondent and columnist. His column about the 115th Congress, @PKCapitol, appears throughout the week and on Sundays. Follow @pkcapitol
Ed O’Keefe is a congressional reporter who has covered congressional and presidential politics since 2008. He previously covered federal agencies, the federal workforce and spent a brief time covering the war in Iraq. Follow @edatpost. Follow @edatpost



https://twitter.com/mattmfm/status/829184877253779460

Matt McDermottVerified account
‏@mattmfm

After being silenced on senate floor, @SenWarren took to Facebook to read King's letter instead.

It's already been watched a million times.



WARREN READING THE CORETTA SCOTT KING LETTER OUTSIDE THE SENATE LIVE

SEE VIDEO: https://fidelitosblog.com/2017/02/08/senator-elizabeth...

Feb 07, 2017 · ... //www.facebook.com/senatorelizabethwarren/videos/724337794395383/ In a stunning moment on the Senate floor, Sen. Elizabeth Warren ... Facebook (Opens ...


THE KING LETTER SESSIONS CONFIRMATION VOTE
2/8/17 9:58 LIVE VIDEO

WATCH: Senate votes to confirm Jeff Sessions as attorney ...
www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/...vote...nominee-jeff-sessions
BY Andrew Taylor and Alan Fram, Associated Press
February 8, 2017 at 6:47 PM EST

WATCH: In hearing, Sessions says he’ll put law above his own views
WATCH: Warren forbidden from speaking on Sessions’ nomination after breaking Senate rule


The Senate will hold its final confirmation vote Wednesday night for Attorney General nominee Jeff Sessions. Watch the vote live in the player above.

Sessions faced a firestorm of Democratic criticism over his record on civil rights and other issues throughout the confirmation process. Wednesday’s confirmation vote comes amid rising tension between Republicans controlling the chamber over what they call delaying tactics by minority Democratic members that have left fewer of Trump’s picks in place than President Barack Obama had eight years ago.

Democrats contended Sessions is too close to Trump, too harsh on immigrants, and weak on civil rights. They asserted he wouldn’t do enough to protect voting rights of minorities, protections for gay people, the right of women to procure abortions, and immigrants in the country illegally to receive due process.

Republicans say Sessions has demonstrated over a long career in public service — and two decades in the Senate — that he possesses integrity, honesty, and is committed to justice and the rule of law.

“He’s honest. He’s fair. He’s been a friend to many of us, on both sides of the aisle,” Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said on Wednesday. “It’s been tough to watch all this good man has been put through in recent weeks. This is a well-qualified colleague with a deep reverence for the law. He believes strongly in the equal application of it to everyone.”

The Alabama Republican was expected to prevail on a near party-line evening vote over nearly unanimous Democratic opposition.

“There is simply nothing in Senator Sessions’ testimony before the Judiciary Committee that gives me confidence that he would be willing to stand up to the president,” said Sen. Pat Leahy, D-Vt. “He has instead demonstrated only blind allegiance.”

Sessions enjoys unanimous backing from fellow Republicans and cleared a procedural vote Tuesday afternoon by a 52-47 margin.