Sometimes party loyalty asks too much.

The line expresses a tension central to democratic politics: allegiance to a party can conflict with conscience, constitutional duty, or the national interest. Read in Kennedy’s register, it suggests that political identity should not become a substitute for independent judgment—especially when party demands encourage silence, conformity, or support for measures one believes are wrong. The aphoristic “sometimes” is important: it does not reject parties outright, but warns against treating loyalty as an absolute virtue. The quote is often invoked to justify bipartisan cooperation or principled dissent, framing integrity as the higher obligation when partisan expectations become excessive.