Most remarkable is that so much has been accomplished despite the obstructionists, otherwise known as Republicans. Senator Kerry pointed out that the Republicans have insisted on filibustering everything, which has made it harder to pass anything. He spoke of how bills such as the funding for the intelligence committee, ethics reform and negotiating lower prescription drug prices for Medicare recipients have been blocked by Republicans after they passed both houses of Congress, and how the President vetoed legislation that had passed in spite of the filibusters, such as the call for a new strategy in Iraq and the funding for stem cell research.

Listening to Senator Kerry’s description of the obstinacy with which the Republicans have tried to stop legislation from being enacted, I was impressed that anything has been passed and it was very clear who the obstructionists are. I only hope other Democrats will make the same case for the accomplishments the Democrats have really had and turn the obstructionism charge back on the Republicans as forcefully as Senator Kerry did, even quoting Trent Lott on the Republican intentions.

"And if you don’t believe me? Just ask Republican leadership. In April, Trent Lott, the Minority Whip, told a reporter, 'the strategy of being obstructionist can work or fail… and so far it’s working for us.'"

Even if the speech had ended there, it would have stood as a great rebuttal to the Republicans, but as in many speeches Senator Kerry has given, he then reached far beyond the merely partisan into the realm of genuine statesmanship. He spoke of how both parties had to work for the American people, not the Democratic or Republican Party. Of obstructionism, he said,

"Obstruction for obstruction’s sake is not in the best traditions of the Senate--it’s the worst kind of cynical political calculation. So let me repeat: I support the right to filibuster. We Democrats don’t want to use the 'nuclear option'--we just want to pass bills, supported by a majority in the Senate, that benefit the American people. I would say to my Republican colleagues; there really is a better way. We can work together and do real good for the American people."

There is a huge difference between a politician and a statesman. Even giving a speech defending the Democratic leadership, Senator Kerry is a true statesman, reaching out to the other side with a plea that they work with the Democrats to deal with the problems facing the nation.