Republicans Silence Opposition to Patriot Act in Committee Hearing

REPUBLICANS SILENCE OPPOSITION TO PATRIOT ACT IN COMMITTEE HEARING -- (House of Representatives - June 16, 2005)

(Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)

Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Speaker, while we are on the subject of arrogance, as a new Member of the House Committee on the Judiciary, the Republican majority, I noticed, has become so arrogant that they are now attempting to silence even the opposition from the minority party, preventing us from giving any opposing testimony.

The latest abuse comes from the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Sensenbrenner), the chairman of the Committee on the Judiciary. As the committee prepares to vote on the reauthorization of the PATRIOT Act, Chairman Sensenbrenner has conducted 12 hearings on the issue, but has refused to allow almost any testimony from those who oppose the PATRIOT Act or its provisions.

Opposing testimony was allowed only after the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Conyers) used the rules of the committee to force the chairman to hold a hearing that included Democratic panelists. Clearly miffed by this action, the gentleman from Wisconsin (Chairman Sensenbrenner) scheduled the hearing for just 18 hours later on a Friday morning when the House was not even in session. And that is not the worst of it.

During the actual hearing, the gentleman from Wisconsin (Chairman Sensenbrenner) rudely cut opposition voices off, and then abruptly and unilaterally concluded the hearing without a vote of the committee. After Democrats called a point of order, he gaveled the hearing to a close and left the room. When Democrats continued to voice their opposition, he turned the microphones off. When that did not stop them, he turned the lights off in the room.

Mr. Speaker, when are Republicans going to realize that the minority voice is an important one?

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