On November 3rd, 2015, a freshman rose on the Senate floor to address his colleagues… He gave his maiden speech as a U.S. Senator… It was a full year since he was elected.

I rise to speak from the floor for the first time. I have never been in politics before, and I intentionally waited to speak here. I want to talk today about the historic purposes and uses of the Senate, about the decades-long decline of the legislature relative to the executive branch, and about what baby steps toward institutional recovery might look like. Before doing so, let me explain briefly why I chose to wait a year since election day before beginning to fully engage in floor debate. 

That was Nebraska Republican Ben Sasse …

Why did Senator Sasse wait a year before giving his first floor speech?

In the latest episode of C-SPAN's podcast "Extreme Mortman" – find out!

 

We're featuring Senator Sasse because he recently announced he has stage-four pancreatic cancer.

 

So, we wanted to know: Which were his favorite and most notable speeches as a U.S. Senator.

 

And he told us.

Which moments did Ben Sasse pick?

What was a common theme when Ben Sasse questioned Supreme Court justice nominees?

Whose desk did Ben Sasse choose to occupy on the Senate floor — and why?

And what happened that one time with Senator Sasse, Senator Cruz — and Dr. Pepper?

Find out in the latest episode of C-SPAN's podcast "Extreme Mortman" – as we hear Ben Sasse's own picks for his most memorable moments speaking as a U.S. Senator.

 Find "Extreme Mortman" wherever you get podcasts.

 

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