From the Office of Senator Kerry

Thursday, May 24, 2001

"I respect enormously what Jim Jeffords said today, and the reasons why he said it. Jim has always been an independent thinker, one of the most thoughtful and creative members of the United States Senate, from education and the environment to responsible defense policy and fiscal discipline. Hearing him speak from the heart today only enhanced my respect for him as a friend and colleague.

In the last days, there's been a lot of talk about something Ronald Reagan used to say: "I didn't leave my Party, my Party left me." Increasingly, and regrettably because it is neither good for the political system nor the health of the party system in which I believe, the intolerance of the Republican right is drowning out voices of moderation and chasing good people out of politics.

When I came to the Senate in 1985 it was a very different place. It was less partisan, in spite of the Reagan White House, the Republican leadership in the Senate was far less ideological, and far more inclusive. The Republican Party respected people like John Chaffee from Rhode Island -- a great environmentalist, Mark Hatfield from Oregon -- a leader on arms control, Warren Rudman, -- a crusader for fiscal discipline, William Cohen -- who supported a woman's right to choose.

The first months of the Bush Administration suggest these views are no longer welcome in the Republican Party: an assault on the environment and an abdication of global leadership on climate change; an abandonment of arms control and non-proliferation while unilaterally pursuing missile defense in a way that risks making us less safe; and a tax cut that the Concord Coalition Warren Rudman founded says is fiscally irresponsible. For all the talk of changing the tone, that's not a Republican Party moving towards the center, it's not in keeping with the lessons of Chafee, Hatfield, Cohen and Rudman – or much of what moderate Republicans strived to be. That is a loss for all of us who would choose thoughtful dialogue over partisan rancor.

There are lessons for all of us as we move forward, and as we Senate Democrats become the Majority. I'm tired of spending a political lifetime forced to say "no" to an agenda out of touch with the our citizens, when our constituents would be better served by good faith efforts to bridge philosophical differences and arrive at good policy for our country. We will talk about an agenda and an approach to governing the Senate which is respectful of all our colleagues, and in the common interests of our fellow citizens. I hope President bush will join us. I wouldn't think a Republican President would best prove his compassionate conservative credentials by appealing to the Gingrich hold-overs in the House to rescue a harsh conservative agenda. I hope he instead meets all of us - Democrats and Republicans alike -- in pursuing a responsible course for our country."

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