Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Arizona) just announced he won't seek reelection in 2018

Flake just gave one of the most astonishing speeches I've ever heard on the floor of the Senate.

Here's a few quotes and a link to the whole speech:

Mr. President, I rise today to say: Enough. We must dedicate ourselves to making sure that the anomalous never becomes normal. With respect and humility, I must say that we have fooled ourselves for long enough that a pivot to governing is right around the corner, a return to civility and stability right behind it. We know better than that. By now, we all know better than that.

When a leader correctly identifies real hurt and insecurity in our country and instead of addressing it goes looking for somebody to blame, there is perhaps nothing more devastating to a pluralistic society. Leadership knows that most often a good place to start in assigning blame is to first look somewhat closer to home. Leadership knows where the buck stops. Humility helps. Character counts. Leadership does not knowingly encourage or feed ugly and debased appetites in us.

When the United States emerged from World War II we contributed about half of the world’s economic activity.  It would have been easy to secure our dominance, keeping the countries that had been defeated or greatly weakened during the war in their place.  We didn’t do that.  It would have been easy to focus inward.  We resisted those impulses.  Instead, we financed reconstruction of shattered countries and created international organizations and institutions that have helped provide security and foster prosperity around the world for more than 70 years.

We were not made great as a country by indulging or even exalting our worst impulses, turning against ourselves, glorying in the things which divide us, and calling fake things true and true things fake. And we did not become the beacon of freedom in the darkest corners of the world by flouting our institutions and failing to understand just how hard-won and vulnerable they are.

Here's the link to the full text:
http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/politics/arizona/2017/10/24/sen-jeff-flake-senate-speech-full-text/794958001/

Wow, just WOW!

I just wish they would vote and kill any Trump legislation. He plays hardball and those who he attacks should play hardball. He has gotten nothing through the legislation process, and for these folks who he has attacked to go along with anything Trump is cowardice. There should be consequences to the act of bullying. You want my vote.....oh.....KMA

Powerful stuff. The downside is that when he steps down they might replace him with some lunatic, like Roy Moore, or Chris McDaniel who's about to run in Mississippi. If the government's going to have Republicans at all, they need to be the kind that don't make white nationalists like Steve Bannon happy. Principled, decent Republicans are becoming a rare breed.

Then again, the lunatics are scaring people enough that maybe they'll vote in Democrats instead. So far Roy Moore's polling badly enough that Alabama may actually elect a Dem.

I listened on Thom Hartman radio show to an Alabama democratic leader who said the Alabama seat is in play. The candidate is the prosecutor of the klan members who bombed the four little girls in a Birmingham Church. I have some far right relatives in Alabama, but even they know a goof when they see him. Moore is not as popular as people think. Also, in Arizona Flake realized he would have a tough primary, and a good candidate from the democrats.....Arizona is in play. I still think Flake should along with other moderates give Trump a big FU and vote against his legislation for no other reason than to take on a bully.

zsomething wrote:Powerful stuff.  The downside is that when he steps down they might replace him with some lunatic, like Roy Moore, or Chris McDaniel who's about to run in Mississippi.  If the government's going to have Republicans at all, they need to be the kind that don't make white nationalists like Steve Bannon happy.  Principled, decent Republicans are becoming a rare breed.

Then again, the lunatics are scaring people enough that maybe they'll vote in Democrats instead.  So far Roy Moore's polling badly enough that Alabama may actually elect a Dem.

Real Americans who care about America and it's future are seeing how dangerous it can be to vote in republicans. Real Americans should be sick and tired of republicans infesting our White House after their opponents receive the majority of our votes.

Sal wrote:If this is what passes for profiles in courage today, we are truly and completely fucked.

Please elaborate.