[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 14]
[Senate]
[Pages 19310-19311]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                    RHETORIC OF THE REPUBLICAN PARTY

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, when Americans elect leaders, they do so in 
good faith. Our constituents want us to govern responsibly and work to 
embody American values. Both elected officials and candidates must 
realize that our words have deep meaning and can influence people far 
and wide. That is why I am very disappointed that instead of talking 
about issues important to the middle class, the Republicans have turned 
to the politics of hatred and division.
  It seems no one is safe from this Republican vitriol. Republicans 
demagogue women seeking health care through Planned Parenthood. 
Republican candidates use women, infants, and children seeking refuge 
from terrorism to fearmonger. Muslim Americans, immigrants, and even 
Americans exercising their constitutional rights in support of the 
Black Lives Matter movement are all subject to Republican insults and 
slander.
  Over and over again, Republican candidates have resorted to hatred 
instead of appealing to the highest sensibilities of the American 
people. We all know that on race and other controversial issues, 
Republicans have long practiced subtle bigotry, but Republicans now 
simply say out loud the many things at which they used to merely hint.
  Words have power, and when spoken by influential leaders, they 
infiltrate every corner of our society.
  In the wake of last week's murderous attack at a Planned Parenthood 
health center in Colorado, a leading conservative activist said:

       It really is surprising more Planned Parenthood facilities 
     and abortionists are not being targeted.
       Given the public light shed on the atrocities committed by 
     Planned Parenthood and both the government and media's 
     turning a blind eye to it . . . it really should be 
     surprising that Americans convicted of the need to stop the 
     murder of children have not taken the law into their own 
     hands.

  That is what the quote says.
  We know how exaggerated, untruthful, and unfair the film was that was 
put together as some B-grade movie and that has so maligned Planned 
Parenthood. One out of every five American women will go to Planned 
Parenthood during her lifetime. It is the only health care that women 
have in many parts of America. Is that the kind of language you want to 
encourage in the United States of America, that there should be more 
violence in these health clinics? Certainly not, but it is all too 
common in the Republican Party of today.
  Instead of recognizing the concerns of communities riddled by decades 
of police brutality and racial injustice, Republicans have vilified the 
Black Lives Matter movement, which has been drawing attention to these 
disturbing inequities. Rush Limbaugh has gone so far as labeling 
protesters a ``hate group'' for trying to bring equality to our 
criminal justice system.
  Just a few weeks ago, supporters of the Republican Presidential 
hopeful Donald Trump attacked a Black Lives Matter protester on video 
at a rally. Instead of condemning the violence displayed by his 
supporters, Donald Trump encouraged it. When asked about the incident, 
Trump said, referring to the protester, ``Maybe he should have been 
roughed up.'' That is stunning. A Republican candidate for President of 
the United States urged violence to silence his critics.
  Last week, four masked men with apparent White supremacist ties 
opened fire on Black Lives Matter protestors in Minneapolis.
  I am amazed that the junior Senator from Texas had the audacity to 
say earlier this week that ``the overwhelming majority of violent 
criminals are Democrats.'' And the article he quoted has been said to 
have been quoted improperly. That is really quite stunning, that 
someone with the academic background of the junior Senator from Texas 
cannot read a simple report. ``The overwhelming majority of violent 
criminals are Democrats.'' Think about that. Fanning the flames of 
intolerance is un-American. We are better than this.
  I am disappointed that Republicans who should know better are not 
speaking out against this vile rhetoric. According to the New York 
Times, ``Some

[[Page 19311]]

of the highest-ranking Republicans in Congress and some of the party's 
wealthiest and most generous donors have balked at trying to take down 
Mr. Trump because they fear a public feud with the insult-spewing media 
figure.'' That is a sad reflection on one of America's major political 
parties.
  The Republican Party once claimed to stand for American leadership in 
the world, but as millions of Syrians have fled their country, seeking 
refuge from death and destruction, Republicans have instead used the 
humanitarian crisis as an opportunity to spread fear and animosity. 
Republican Presidential candidate Ben Carson described the Syrian 
refugees as ``rabid dogs.'' Mike Huckabee referred to the Syrian 
refugees as a bag of poisonous peanuts. Even more disturbing is the 
junior Senator from Texas, who went so far as to suggest a religious 
test for accepting refugees fleeing violence and oppression. He only 
wants to accept Christians.
  The Republican Party used to claim to stand for religious freedom, 
but they are now just pretending. Ben Carson doesn't think Muslims 
should be allowed to become President. The junior Senator from Florida, 
also a Republican Presidential candidate, speaks of a ``clash of 
civilizations.'' Those are buzz words meaning a crusade against Islam. 
He is saying that ISIS extremists are representative of an entire 
religion.
  It doesn't stop there. Republicans have targeted immigrants also--not 
just people who are seeking refuge, not just refugees, but also 
immigrants. The Republican Party wants to paint all immigrants as 
murderers and rapists. Congressman Steve King says all immigrants are 
drug traffickers. Republicans only talk about deporting families. 
Senator Rubio, the Republican establishment favorite, walked away from 
his single positive legislative accomplishment--comprehensive 
immigration reform--to please the party's extreme anti-immigrant base. 
He has gone from supporting citizenship for undocumented immigrants to 
wanting to deport DREAMers. And even Jeb Bush speaks of ``anchor 
babies.''
  With the way our democracy is structured, there will always be 
disagreement about the best way elected officials can serve our Nation, 
but as we debate and disagree, we must do so responsibly.
  President Bill Clinton once said that those of us with influence must 
be mindful of our words because they fall ``on the serious and 
delirious alike.'' The venom Republicans continue to spew has 
consequences. History will judge those who stand idle as fear and 
animosity become the platform of an American political party.
  The simple fact is that Republicans are running on a platform of 
hate, and every Republican who fails to speak out against the hateful, 
dangerous rhetoric being spewed by their party is complicit.
  For the moral character of our Nation, we must demand that the 
Republicans return to the values on which our country was founded.
  Mr. President, Senator McConnell and I have finished our remarks. 
Would the Chair announce the business of the day.

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