[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 84 (Thursday, June 17, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6944-S6945]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




NOMINATION OF JANE J. BOYLE TO BE UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE FOR THE 
                       NORTHERN DISTRICT OF TEXAS

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the next nomination.
  The legislative clerk read the nomination of Jane J. Boyle, of Texas, 
to be United States District Judge for the Northern District of Texas.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Michigan.
  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I wonder if Senator Reid and Senator Warner 
are here. I want to clarify the length of time which the next amendment 
will take. My understanding is that Senator Reed's amendment might take 
as little as 10 minutes; in which case, it would make sense to stack 
his vote with the vote on the Biden amendment which would then be 2 
hours later. However, if there is objection to that, I think people 
should be informed there could be another vote after this final vote on 
judges in about 10 or 15 minutes.
  I am wondering if Senator Warner is here.
  Mr. WARNER. He is right here.
  Mr. LEVIN. Is Senator Reid here?
  Mr. REED. I am here.
  Mr. LEVIN. Senator Harry Reid, too.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, for the convenience of the Senate, 
stacking the two votes is quite acceptable.
  Mr. LEVIN. Should I make a unanimous consent request? I think Senator 
Hatch----
  Mr. WARNER. I discussed it with him, and it is fine.
  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that after this 
vote, there then be a period of time to debate the Senator Jack Reed 
amendment, which we expect would be short. We would immediately go to 
the Biden amendment.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, we were going to intersperse a Sessions 
amendment for 30 minutes.
  Mr. LEVIN. I will amend that to ask that immediately after Jack 
Reed's amendment, there be a Sessions amendment for 30 minutes equally 
divided, and that we then go to a Biden amendment for perhaps as much 
as 2 hours, and there be three votes stacked at that point.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
  Mr. LEVIN. Excuse me. Do we have a copy of the Sessions amendment? Is 
Senator Sessions here?
  Mr. WARNER. He is not here.
  Mr. LEVIN. So there will be no time agreement on the Sessions 
amendment until we know which amendment it is.
  Mr. WARNER. We must check with our Finance Committee regarding the 
time on the Biden amendment. We are trying to work toward putting the 
votes in one batch.
  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I revise that unanimous consent request to 
ask that immediately after the debate on Senator Reed's amendment, it 
be laid aside and we proceed to a debate on the Sessions amendment; 
that it then be laid aside and we then go to the Biden amendment, and 
we will hopefully have three votes at that time.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
  Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The Senator from Texas is recognized.
  Ms. HUTCHISON. Mr. President, the nominee we are going to vote on, 
Jane Boyle, has served our country in so many positions: U.S. 
magistrate, where she had an outstanding record, as our U.S. Attorney, 
where she had an equally outstanding record. She has shown fairness, a 
judicial temperament, and great leadership in every position she has 
held.
  Mr. President, I am proud to have recommended her nomination along 
with my colleague, Senator Cornyn, and before that, Senator Gramm. We 
have never been disappointed in Jane Boyle's performance, and know she 
will be an outstanding judge.
  I urge a vote for her nomination.
  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I also support the nomination of Jane J. 
Boyle.
  Mr. President, Ms. Boyle is currently the United States Attorney for 
this district. She comes to the Senate with extensive litigation and 
judicial experience. Before serving as the Northern District's U.S. 
Attorney, Ms. Boyle served for over a decade as a United States 
Magistrate and she served for years as a Federal and city prosecutor. I 
support Ms. Boyle's nomination.
  With the three judicial confirmation votes today, the Senate will now 
have confirmed 20 judicial nominees this year alone. Only 17 judges 
were confirmed under Republican leadership in the entire 1996 session 
and no circuit court nominees were confirmed that entire time. That was 
the last year in which a President was seeking reelection. The Senate 
has now exceeded the number of total judges confirmed and the number of 
circuit court judges confirmed.
  With these three confirmations today, the Senate will have confirmed 
a total of 89 judges this Congress and 189 of this President's judicial 
nominees overall. With 89 judicial confirmations in just a little more 
than 17 months, the Senate has confirmed more Federal judges than were 
confirmed during the two full years of 1995 and 1996, when Republicans 
first controlled the Senate and President Clinton was in the White 
House. It also exceeds the two-year total at the end of the Clinton 
administration, when Republicans held the Senate majority in 1999 and 
2000. It is not quite as many as the 100 judges nominated by President 
Bush that a Democratic-led Senate confirmed in our 17 months in the 
majority in 2001 and 2002.
  With 189 total confirmations for President Bush, the Senate has 
confirmed more lifetime appointees for this President than were allowed 
to be confirmed in the most recent four-year presidential term that of 
President Clinton from 1997 through 2000. It is more than a Republican 
majority confirmed in President Reagan's entire term from 1981 through 
1984. Of course, President Reagan is recognized as the all-time champ 
in terms of judicial appointments having appointed more than any other 
President in our history.
  I congratulate Ms. Boyle on her confirmation.
  Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, I rise in support of the confirmation of 
Jane J. Boyle to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of 
Texas. I have had the pleasure to review Ms. Boyle's distinguished 
career and I am confident that she will make a fine Federal judge.
  Jane J. Boyle is an extremely experienced attorney who has tried over 
180 cases to a verdict during her impressive career as an assistant 
district attorney, an assistant U.S. attorney, and as the U.S. attorney 
for the Northern District of Texas. She has also served with 
distinction as a magistrate judge in the same district. Ms. Boyle 
brings a wealth of experience to the Federal

[[Page S6945]]

bench and she will make an excellent addition to the Northern District 
of Texas.
  I am not alone in believing that Ms. Boyle will make an outstanding 
Federal district judge. The Texas Employment Lawyers Association, TELA, 
calls Ms. Boyle ``considerate, concerned, and well-read,'' in addition 
to possessing ``a great deal of knowledge about employment law'' and an 
excellent judicial demeanor that is reflected in her ``even-handed and 
fair'' approach to adjudication. Ms. Boyle also has strong bipartisan 
support. The current chair of the Dallas County Democratic Party has 
written a letter expressing her ``enthusiastic support of the 
nomination of Jane J. Boyle,'' and a former chair of the same 
organization wrote a letter stating that ``in the case of this nominee, 
partisan considerations are unwise and should evaporate.''
  Ms. Boyle's experience both as a U.S. attorney and as a Federal 
magistrate judge will serve her well on the Federal district court. I 
urge my colleagues to join me in strong support of Ms. Boyle's 
nomination.
  Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, I am proud today to cast my vote in the 
affirmative for Jane J. Boyle who has been nominated to the U.S. 
District Court for the Northern District of Texas. She presently serves 
as United States Attorney for the Northern District of Texas. Judge 
Boyle has a long and distinguished career of public service and is well 
qualified to return to the bench having served as United States 
Magistrate Judge for the Northern District of Texas from 1990 to 2002.
  In addition, she served a previous term as United States Attorney, 
Northern District of Texas from 1987 to 1990, and was an Assistant 
District Attorney in the Dallas County District Attorney's Office from 
1981 to 1987.
  Judge Boyle is imminently well qualified, as the ABA has rated her. 
More importantly, there is bipartisan consensus of those who know her 
and work with her. Moreover, she has garnered the respect of her 
colleagues and those who work for her. Most notably, she has gained the 
respect of the Dallas community, including folks from the entire 
political spectrum.
  I ask unanimous consent to have a related article printed in the 
Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                 (For immediate release, June 17, 2004)

                Senate Confirms Jane Boyle for Judgeship


      will fill vacant seat in Northern District, based in Dallas

       Washington.--The U.S. Senate on Thursday unanimously 
     approved the federal judicial nomination of current U.S. 
     Attorney Jane Boyle to be the U.S. District Judge for the 
     Northern District of Texas. Boyle, 49, will be based in 
     Dallas, and replaces retired Judge Jerry L. Buchmeyer. The 
     Northern District's jurisdiction includes 100 counties.
       ``Jane Boyle has remarkable experience and knowledge of the 
     law. She has done an outstanding job as U.S. Attorney in 
     Dallas, and I'm confident that she will continue to serve 
     Texas and the nation with excellence,'' Cornyn said. ``She 
     has garnered the respect of her colleagues, those who work 
     for her, and most notably, she has gained the respect of 
     folks from across the political spectrum.''
       U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, a member of the Judiciary Committee, 
     along with Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, recommended Boyle to 
     President Bush on September 9, 2003. The President nominated 
     Boyle on November 24, 2003, and she was confirmed by the 
     Judiciary Committee on April 1, 2004.
       Boyle was appointed by President George W. Bush in 2002 to 
     be U.S. Attorney for the Northern District after a long and 
     distinguished legal career in Texas. Prior to that selection, 
     she served as U.S. Magistrate Judge for the Northern District 
     for twelve years, earning significant judicial experience in 
     the region.
       Boyle also worked for a number of years as an Assistant 
     U.S. Attorney and an Assistant District Attorney for Dallas 
     County. She earned a J.D. degree from Southern Methodist 
     University School of Law in 1981 and graduated with honors 
     from The University of Texas at Austin in 1977. She has been 
     published in numerous legal periodicals, including the Texas 
     Bar Journal.
       Sen. Cornyn chairs the subcommittee on the Constitution, 
     Civil Rights & Property Rights, and is the only former judge 
     on the committee. He also serves on the Armed Services, 
     Environment and Public Works, and Budget Committees. He 
     served previously as Texas Attorney General, Texas Supreme 
     Court Justice, and Bexar County District Judge.
  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I ask for the yeas and nays on the 
nomination.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second?
  There is a sufficient second.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Texas, Mr. Cornyn, is 
recognized.
  Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, in the interest of time, I will not 
belabor the point. I wanted to add my voice to that of Senator 
Hutchison commending this fine nominee, Jane Boyle, to the U.S. Senate.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is, Shall the Senate advise and 
consent to the nomination of Jane J. Boyle, of Texas, to be United 
States District Judge for the Northern District of Texas?
  The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk called the roll.
  Mr. REID. I announce that the Senator from Massachusetts (Mr. Kerry) 
is necessarily absent.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Smith). Are there any other Senators in 
the Chamber desiring to vote?
  The result was announced--yeas 99, nays 0, as follows:

                      [Rollcall Vote No. 128 Ex.]

                                YEAS--99

     Akaka
     Alexander
     Allard
     Allen
     Baucus
     Bayh
     Bennett
     Biden
     Bingaman
     Bond
     Boxer
     Breaux
     Brownback
     Bunning
     Burns
     Byrd
     Campbell
     Cantwell
     Carper
     Chafee
     Chambliss
     Clinton
     Cochran
     Coleman
     Collins
     Conrad
     Cornyn
     Corzine
     Craig
     Crapo
     Daschle
     Dayton
     DeWine
     Dodd
     Dole
     Domenici
     Dorgan
     Durbin
     Edwards
     Ensign
     Enzi
     Feingold
     Feinstein
     Fitzgerald
     Frist
     Graham (FL)
     Graham (SC)
     Grassley
     Gregg
     Hagel
     Harkin
     Hatch
     Hollings
     Hutchison
     Inhofe
     Inouye
     Jeffords
     Johnson
     Kennedy
     Kohl
     Kyl
     Landrieu
     Lautenberg
     Leahy
     Levin
     Lieberman
     Lincoln
     Lott
     Lugar
     McCain
     McConnell
     Mikulski
     Miller
     Murkowski
     Murray
     Nelson (FL)
     Nelson (NE)
     Nickles
     Pryor
     Reed
     Reid
     Roberts
     Rockefeller
     Santorum
     Sarbanes
     Schumer
     Sessions
     Shelby
     Smith
     Snowe
     Specter
     Stabenow
     Stevens
     Sununu
     Talent
     Thomas
     Voinovich
     Warner
     Wyden

                             NOT VOTING--1

       
     Kerry
       
  The nomination was confirmed.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The President will be immediately notified of 
the Senate's action on this nomination.

                          ____________________