An obscure Senate rule was invoked by the Majority Leader to silence Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren.

What’s going on?

Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions is currently going through confirmation hearings to become the US Attorney General. This is actually Sessions’ second time in front of the Senate for confirmation hearings, as he was nominated to a district court in Alabama in 1986 by then-President Reagan. His nomination was killed by the Senate Judiciary Committee over his poor civil rights record.

In 1986, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s widow, Coretta Scott King, submitted a letter in opposition to Sessions’ appointment. It was from this leader that Senator Elizabeth Warren read on Tuesday, as part of Sessions’ current confirmation hearings.

Rather than allow her to do this, Republican Majority Leader Mitch McConnell invoked the little-used Rule 19, which is meant to prevent Senators from attacking one another. It must be noted that other Senators were allowed to read from the same letter unimpeded–as if the invocation of the rule was designed to silence Warren specifically, given her reputation as a liberal firebrand.

Why does it matter?

Rule 19 was created as the result of a 1902 fistfight on the Senate floor. Given that there was no danger of physical violence in this instance, using this particular rule seems petty and inappropriate. There also seems to be a lack of comprehension among Republicans who were present:

“I’m simply reading what she wrote about what the nomination of Sessions to be a federal court judge meant and what it would mean in history for her,” Warren said. The [letter](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/wp/2017/01/10/read-the-letter-coretta-scott-king-wrote-opposing-sessionss-1986-federal-nomination/?tid=a_inl&utm_term=.03ebb4eb7511) said Sessions “lacks the temperament, fairness and judgment to be a federal judge,” and accused him of pursuing a “shabby” voter fraud case against African American activists when he was a prosecutor. “You stated that a sitting senator is a disgrace to the Department of Justice,” responded Sen. Steve Daines (R-Mont.), who was presiding during the speech. About 25 minutes later, McConnell came in and said her quotes from King crossed the line. She was ordered to sit down. “Sen. Warren was giving a lengthy speech. She had appeared to violate the rule. She was warned. She was given an explanation,” McConnell said later. “Nevertheless, she persisted.”

Abuse of Senate rules is pretty small potatoes overall, but instances like these need to be documented as part of the body of evidence of Republican misconduct. Warren, as a result of this rule’s invocation, is now forbidden from participating in the rest of Sessions’ confirmation.

What can I do?

Senator Warren is up for reelection in 2018, so you could always donate to her campaign. Words of solidarity and encouragement are likely appreciated, too, and you can find her on Twitter, where she is quite active (and has gotten into verbal spats with Trump, too).

Photo by Tim Pierce