My Time in the Senate: An Interview with Saxby Chambliss

“Any bill that’s passed by 100% Republicans and no Democrats or 100% Democrats and no Republicans is not the best piece of legislation that could have been forged.”

From 2003 to 2015, Saxby Chambliss represented Georgia in the United States Senate. During this time, he was known, in particular, for his work on behalf of national defense, a timely issue in the years following 9/11. He spent time as the Chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee and as the ranking member on the Select Committee on Intelligence. Prior to his service in the Senate, Mr. Chambliss served in the U.S. House of Representatives, entering in 1994 during the “Republican Revolution.” Here, he joins Merion West‘s Erich Prince to discuss his reflections on his career, the role of bipartisanship in effective governance, John McCain, and what advice he would most want to give new politicians beginning their careers.

Senator, good afternoon. Thank you for joining us. I’d like to begin by drawing attention to your recent appearance speaking at the University of Georgia. The Red and Black, the school newspaper there, discussed the portion of your remarks where you alluded to similarities between the political environment in the mid-1990’s and the divisions of today. Are some lessons from then particularly applicable today?

I was asked to speak to the College Republicans in Athens a couple of weeks ago. My comments about the divisiveness in the mid-90’s relative to today had more to do with the progression of the divisiveness between members of the House and members of the Senate, which is a reflection of the divisiveness of the country. In 1994—when I was elected—we were a group of very conservative members of the House. We were elected from all around the country, and the country had made a very conscious decision that smaller government and lower taxes were hot-button issues. That was the direction which America wanted to take itself. So we took control of the House for the first time in 40 years.