Senator Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.,) who sponsored the Paycheck Fairness Act which was blocked by Republicans for a third time in the Senate Wednesday, delivered an epic rant airing her frustration at the political maneuvering that doomed her bill.
“Now I’ll tell you what I’m tired of hearing, that somehow or another we’re too emotional when we talk,” Mikulski said in a speech on the Senate floor. “You know, when we raise an issue, we’re too emotional. Well, I am emotional.”
“It brings tears to my eyes to know how women every single day are working so hard and are getting paid less,” she said. “It makes me emotional to hear that. And then when I hear all these phony reasons — some are mean and some are meaningless — I do get emotional. I get angry, I get outraged, I get volcanic.”
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Write to Charlotte Alter at charlotte.alter@time.com