Hatch: Senate has ‘emasculated’ itself

Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) called on the Senate to restore regular order and fight “encroachments” from the executive branch.

“The Senate has emasculated itself,” Hatch said on the Senate floor Tuesday. “It is past time to restore the Senate’s rightful place in the constitutional order.”

{mosads}Hatch has been critical of the way Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has run the Senate, saying he has taken away senators’ ability to vote on amendments.

“This is a great body but it has gone down hill in the last couple of years,” Hatch said. “It’s time for us to start acting like the Senate. It’s time for us to have full and fair debates. [And] It’s time for us to start having amendments.”

Hatch cited examples from the past when he worked with Democratic icons, such as Sens. Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.) and Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.). He said the legislation they worked on together was possible because of the open floor process.

Hatch has also criticized President Obama for issuing executive order and bypassing Congress altogether.