[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 41 (Friday, April 15, 1994)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: April 15, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
   STATEMENT IN SUPPORT OF U.S. DISTRICT COURT JUDGE JOSE CABRANES' 
                  NOMINATION TO THE U.S. SUPREME COURT

                                 ______


                        HON. NYDIA M. VELAZQUEZ

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, April 14, 1994

  Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Mr. Speaker, I take great pride in standing before you 
today, both as the first Puerto Rican woman elected to the U.S. House 
of Representatives and as a Latina. I say proud, because this Nation is 
on the brink of an historic step--proud because a Latino--this time a 
son of Borinquen--is a front-runner in the candidacy to one of this 
Nation's most important posts. I am referring to U.S. District Judge 
Jose Cabranes, a leading candidate in President Clinton's list of 
Supreme Court Justice nominees.
  I have known Judge Cabranes since 1976, when I met him during his 
tenure as director of the Office of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. 
Since then I have come to know him as both a man of reason and a 
brilliant jurist. He is truly an individual objective in his approach 
to the law, and unfaltering in his commitment to fairness. In fact, it 
is perhaps the L.A. Times that said it best when it referred to him as 
a pragmatic intellectual.
  Judge Cabranes' professional credentials speak for themselves, 
beginning with his involvement in numerous national organizations, a 
list that includes such distinctions as the Chairmanship on the Board 
of Directors for New York's Aspira, a key role as one of the Puerto 
Rican Legal Defense Fund's founding members, and the General 
Councilship at Yale University. As far as his work on the bench is 
concerned, Jose Cabranes' career can only be referred to as 
``exceptional''. He is the first Puerto Rican jurist appointed to a 
mainland Federal court, and is praised by his colleagues for the highly 
uncommon ability to approach a case as both a detached arbiter and a 
firm advocate of justice. His decisions are noted by all who know him, 
for their non-partisanship and unwavering objectivity.
  President Clinton has stated that he is looking for ``someone of 
genuine stature and a largeness of spirit'' to fill the large shoes of 
retiring Supreme Court Justice Blackmun--Jose Cabranes is that someone. 
He represents the very best that the law profession has to offer--
unbiased, kind in spirit and strong in resolve--in short, he is the 
individual the American people need on the Supreme Court.
  It is truly a pleasure to stand before you today and join my 
colleagues of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus in urging President 
Clinton to nominate U.S. District Judge Jose Cabranes to the United 
States Supreme Court. He is truly this country's best.

                          ____________________