[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 12 (Tuesday, January 30, 2001)]
[Senate]
[Pages S691-S692]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      NOMINATION OF JOHN ASHCROFT

  Mr. REED. Mr. President, after listening to the testimony given 
before the United States Senate Judiciary Committee and after much 
reflection, I decided to oppose the nomination of John Ashcroft as 
Attorney General of the United States.
  This has been a difficult decision; one that I take very seriously. 
Just as the Constitution gives the President the unfettered right to 
submit nominees to the Senate, the Constitution requires the Senate to 
give ``Advice and Consent'' on such nominations.
  The Senate does not name a President's Cabinet, but it also does not 
merely rubber stamp his choices. Senatorial consent must rest on a 
careful review of a nominee's record and a thoughtful analysis of a 
nominee's

[[Page S692]]

ability to serve not just the President, but the American people.
  Unlike other cabinet positions, the Attorney General has a very 
special role--decisively poised at the juncture between the executive 
branch and the judicial branch. In addition to being a member of the 
President's Cabinet, the Attorney General is also an officer of the 
federal courts and the chief enforcer of laws enacted by Congress.
  He is in effect the people's lawyer, responsible for fully, fairly 
and vigorously enforcing our nation's laws and Constitution for the 
good of all.
  In addition to being intellectually gifted, legally skilled and of 
strong moral character, I believe that the position of Attorney General 
requires an outlook and temperament that will allow the American people 
to believe that he will champion their individual rights more than any 
particular and potentially divisive dogma.
  During the past several weeks, I have listened to John Ashcroft's 
words in the context of his lifetime of public conduct. As a state 
attorney general, a governor and a United States Senator, he has 
established a pattern of activism that challenges important civil and 
individual rights.
  Instead of being a positive force for reconciling the races, as 
Missouri's Attorney General John Ashcroft conducted a futile struggle 
to frustrate the voluntary integration of public schools.
  He fought a voluntary desegregation plan for the city of St. Louis, 
showed defiance of the courts in those proceedings and used that highly 
charged issue for political advantage instead of for constructive 
action.
  Instead of accepting commonsense approaches to limiting the damage 
done by guns in our society, he has rigidly worked against such 
solutions--such simple solutions as asking that guns be sold with 
safety locks
  He also has aggressively worked to dismantle some of our country's 
most basic legal tenets, such as the separation between church and 
state.
  On the nomination of Judge Ronnie White to the United States Federal 
court, he appears to have mischaracterized Judge White's record 
unfairly, and at the end of the process, raising issues that really did 
not go to the merits of Judge White's nomination. This raises serious 
concerns and questions about both his sense of fair play and his 
respect for judicial independence.
  In sum, although he claims he will enforce the letter of the law, I 
fear he will not recognize the true spirit of the law.
  I believe he will use the considerable power of the Attorney General 
in directing resources, initiating lawsuits, and interpreting the law 
to clearly and consciously impose his views as he has done in the past.
  His views are not the views of a vast majority of Americans, 
regardless of political affiliation.
  Given the extremely divisive nature of the last election, and the 
nature of some of the voting irregularities, our nation needs an 
Attorney General who can lead us on critical civil rights issues, unite 
us in the pursuit of justice, and help heal some of these wounds.
  I believe that John Ashcroft lacks the temperament needed to serve as 
Attorney General of the United States and I cannot support his 
nomination as our next Attorney General.
  I yield the floor. I note the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the 
order for the quorum call be dispensed with and that I may proceed for 
5 minutes.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Florida is recognized without 
objection.

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