[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 135 (Saturday, November 20, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Pages S11824-S11832]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
EXECUTIVE SESSION
______
EXECUTIVE CALENDAR
Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate
immediately proceed to executive session to consider the following
nominations on today's Executive Calendar: Calendar Nos. 48, 49, 411,
488, 509, 594, 595, 611, 612, 613, 614, 615, 617, 623, 628, 629, 630,
631, 632, 633, 634, 635, 636, 640, 641, 642, 643, 658, 687, 689, 694,
696, 699, 701, 702, 703, 707, 708, 709, 710, 712, 725, 727, 729, 788,
795, 797, 800, 801, 802, 805, 806, 807, 808, 813, 814, 816, 817, 819,
820, 821, 822, 823, 824, 825, 826, 827, 828, 829, 830, 831, 832, 833,
834, 835, 836, 837, 838, 839, 840, 841, 842, 843, 844, 845, 846, 847,
848, 849, 850, 851, 852, 853, 854, 855, 856, 857, 858, 859, 860, 861,
862, 863, 864, 902, 903, 904, 905, 906, 907, 908, 909, 910, 911, 912,
914, 924, 925, 926, 927, 928, 929, 930, 931, 932, 933, 934, 935, 936,
937, 938, 939, 942, 943, 944, 945, 946, 947, 948, 949, 950, 951, 952,
953, 954, 955, 956, 957, 958, 959, 960, 961, 962, 963, all nominations
on the Secretary's desk.
Further, the following nominations be discharged from the respective
committees and the Senate proceed to their consideration en bloc: HELP
Committee, the list of nominations at the desk, and that they be
considered en bloc and PN2045, and 1508; the Agriculture Committee,
Michael Harrison (PN1969), Frederick Hatfield (PN2014), Sharon Brown-
Hruska (PN1837), Michael Dunn (2030), Dallas Tonsager (PN2029); from
the Judiciary Committee, PN2050.
I further ask unanimous consent that the nominations be confirmed en
bloc, the motions to reconsider be laid upon the table, the President
be immediately notified of the Senate's action, and the Senate then
return to legislative session.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. I don't suppose I should ask you to restate
the unanimous consent request.
Without objection, it is so ordered.
The nominations considered and confirmed are as follows:
NOMINATIONS
united states international trade commission
Daniel Pearson, of Minnesota, to be 2 Member of the United
States International Trade Commission for the term expiring
June 16, 2011.
Charlotte A. Lane, of West Virginia, to be a Member of the
United States International Trade Commission for a term
expiring December 16, 2009.
department of justice
Deborah Ann Spagnoli, of California, to be a Commissioner
of the United States Parole Commission for a term of six
years.
department of commerce
Michael D. Gallagher, of Washington, to be Assistant
Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information.
[[Page S11825]]
the judiciary
Alan G. Lance, Sr., of Idaho, to be a Judge of the United
States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims for the term
prescribed by law.
export-import bank of the united states
Linda Mysliwy Conlin, of New Jersey, to be a Member of the
Board of Directors of the Export-Import Bank of the United
States for a term expiring January 20, 2007.
department of the interior
Sue Ellen Wooldridge, of Virginia, to be Solicitor of the
Department of the Interior, vice William Gerry Myers III,
resigned.
chemical safety and hazard investigation board
Gary Lee Visscher, of Maryland, to be a Member of the
Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board for a term of
five years.
environmental protection agency
Stephen L. Johnson, of Maryland, to be Deputy Administrator
of the Environmental Protection Agency.
Charles Johnson, of Utah, to be chief Financial Officer,
Environmental Protection Agency.
Ann R. Klee, of Virginia, to be an Assistant Administrator
of the Environmental Protection Agency.
Benjamin Grumbles, of Virginia, to be an Assistant
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.
Department of Commerce
Theodore William Kassinger, of Maryland, to be Deputy
Secretary of Commerce.
Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation
Jack Edwin McGregor, of Connecticut, to be a Member of the
Advisory Board of the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development
Corporation.
Department of Labor
Lisa Kruska, of Virginia, to be an Assistant Secretary of
Labor, vice Kathleen M. Harrington.
Department of Education
Edward R. McPherson, of Texas, to be Under Secretary of
Education.
James Madison Memorial Fellowship Foundation
David Wesley Fleming, of California, to be a Member of the
Board of Trustees of the James Madison Memorial Fellowship
Foundation for a term expiring May 29, 2007.
Jay Phillip Greene, of Florida, to be a Member of the Board
of Trustees of the James Madison Memorial Fellowship
Foundation for a term expiring November 17, 2005.
John Richard Petrocik, of Missouri, to be a Member of the
Board of Trustees of the James Madison Memorial Fellowship
Foundation for a term expiring September 27, 2008.
Harry S Truman Scholarship Foundation
Patrick Lloyd McCrory, of North Carolina, to be a Member of
the Board of Trustees of the Harry S Truman Scholarship
Foundation for a term expiring December 10, 2005.
Juanita Alicia Vasquez-Gardner, of Texas, to be a Member of
the Board of Trustees of the Harry S Truman Scholarship
Foundation for a term expiring December 10, 2009.
Department of Education
Robert C. Granger, of New Jersey, to be a Member of the
Board of Directors of the National Board for Education
Sciences for a term of four years.
Gerald Lee, of Pennsylvania, to be a Member of the Board of
Directors of the National Board for Education Sciences for a
term of four years.
The Judiciary
Curtis V. Gomez, of Virgin Islands, to be Judge for the
District Court of the Virgin Islands for a term of ten years.
Department of Housing and Urban Development
Cathy M. MacFarlane, of Virginia, to be an Assistant
Secretary of Housing and Urban Development.
Dennis C. Shea, of Virginia, to be an Assistant Secretary
of Housing and Urban Development.
Romolo A. Bernardi, of New York, to be Deputy Secretary of
Housing and Urban Development.
African Development Foundation
Constance Berry Newman, Assistant Secretary of State
(African Affairs), to be a Member of the Board of Directors
of the African Development Foundation for a term expiring
September 27, 2009.
selective service system
William A. Chatfield, of Texas, to be Director of Selective
Service.
department of defense
Mark Falcoff, of California, to be a Member of the National
Security Education Board for a term of four years.
department of commerce
Jonathan W. Dudas, of Virginia, to be Under Secretary of
Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United
States Patent and Trademark Office.
department of veterans affairs
Pamela M. Iovino, of the District of Columbia, to be an
Assistant Secretary of Veterans Affairs (Congressional
Affairs).
executive office of the president
David Safavian, of Michigan, to be Administrator for
Federal Procurement Policy.
united states postal service
James C. Miller III, of Virginia, to be a Governor of the
United States Postal Service for the term expiring December
8, 2010.
postal rate commission
Dawn A. Tisdale, of Texas, to be a Commissioner of the
Postal Rate Commission for a term expiring November 22, 2006.
federal energy regulatory commission
Suedeen G. Kelly, of New Mexico, to be a Member of the
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission for the term expiring
June 30, 2009. (Reappointment)
united states agency for international development
James R. Kunder, of Virginia, to be an Assistant
Administrator of the United States Agency for International
Development.
african development foundation
Edward Brehm, of Minnesota, to be a Member of the Board of
Directors of the African Development Foundation for a term
expiring November 13, 2007.
executive office of the president
Adam Marc Lindemann, of New York, to be Member of the
Advisory Board for Cuba Broadcasting for a term expiring
October 27, 2005.
department of state
Ann M. Corkery, of Virginia, to be an Alternate
Representative of the United States of America to the Fifty-
eighth Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations.
Walid Maalouf, of Virginia, to be an Alternate
Representative of the United States of America to the Fifty-
eighth Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations.
John D. Rood, of Florida, to be Ambassador Extraordinary
and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the
Commonwealth of The Bahamas.
Charles Graves Untermeyer, of Texas, to be Ambassador
Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of
America to the State of Qatar.
Aldona Wos, of North Carolina, to be Ambassador
Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of
America to the Republic of Estonia.
united states parole commission
Isaac Fulwood, Jr., of the District of Columbia, to be a
Commissioner of the United States Parole Commission for a
term of six years.
department of the treasury
Timothy S. Bitsberger, of Massachusetts, to be an Assistant
Secretary of the Treasury.
Paul Jones, of Colorado, to be a Member of the Internal
Revenue Service Oversight Board for a term expiring September
14, 2008.
department of housing and urban development
Carin M. Barth, of Texas, to be Chief Financial Officer,
Department of Housing and Urban Development.
merit systems protection board
Neil McPhie, of Virginia, to be Chairman of the Merit
Systems Protection Board.
Barbara J. Sapin, of Maryland, to be a Member of the Merit
Systems Protection Board for the term of seven years expiring
March 1, 2007.
department of commerce
Benjamin H. Wu, of Maryland, to be Assistant Secretary of
Commerce for Technology Policy.
Brett T. Palmer, of New York, to be an Assistant Secretary
of Commerce.
Albert A. Frink, Jr., of California, to be an Assistant
Secretary of Commerce.
saint lawrence seaway development corporation
Scott Kevin Walker, of Wisconsin, to be a Member of the
Advisory Board of the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development
Corporation.
Social Security Administration
Patrick P. O'Carroll, Jr., of Maryland, to be Inspector
General, Social Security Administration.
Merit Systems Protection Board
Neil McPhie, of Virginia, to be a Member of the Merit
Systems Protection Board for the term of seven years expiring
March 1, 2009.
Federal Trade Commission
Jon D. Leibowitz, of Maryland, to be a Federal Trade
Commissioner for a term of seven years from September 26,
2003.
Deborah P. Majoras, of Virginia, to be a Federal Trade
Commissioner for the unexpired term of seven years from
September 26, 2001.
National Council on the Arts
Gerard Schwarz, of Washington, to be a Member of the
National Council on the Arts for the remainder of the term
expiring September 3, 2006.
National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities
James Ballinger, of Arizona, to be a Member of the National
Council on the Arts for a term expiring September 3, 2010.
Terrence Alan Teachout, of New York, to be a Member of the
National Council on the Arts for a term expiring September 3,
2010.
Department of Education
Jonathan Baron, of Maryland, to be a Member of the Board of
Directors of the National Board for Education Sciences for a
term of three years.
Elizabeth Ann Bryan, of Texas, to be a Member of the Board
of Directors of the National Board for Education Sciences for
a term of four years.
James R. Davis, of Mississippi, to be a Member of the Board
of Directors of the National Board for Education Sciences for
a term of two years. (New Position)
[[Page S11826]]
Frank Philip Handy, of Florida, to be a Member of the Board
of Directors of the National Board for Education Sciences for
a term of three years.
Eric Alan Hanushek, of California, to be a Member of the
Board of Directors of the National Board for Education
Sciences for a term of two years.
Caroline M. Hoxby, of Massachusetts, to be a Member of the
Board of Directors of the National Board for Education
Sciences for a term of four years.
Roberto Ibarra Lopez, of Texas, to be a Member of the Board
of Directors of the National Board for Education Sciences for
a term of two years.
Richard James Milgram, of New Mexico, to be a Member of the
Board of Directors of the National Board for Education
Sciences for a term of three years.
Sally Epstein Shaywitz, of Connecticut, to be a Member of
the Board of Directors of the National Board for Education
Sciences for a term of three years.
Joseph K. Torgesen, of Florida, to be a Member of the Board
of Directors of the National Board for Education Sciences for
a term of four years.
Herbert John Walberg, of Illinois, to be a Member of the
Board of Directors of the National Board for Education
Sciences for a term of three years.
national foundation on the arts and the humanities
Herman Belz, of Maryland, to be a Member of the National
Council on the Humanities for a term expiring January 26,
2010.
Tamar Jacoby, of New Jersey, to be a Member of the National
Council on the Humanities for a term expiring January 26,
2010.
Craig Haffner, of California, to be a Member of the
National Council on the Humanities for a term expiring
January 26, 2010.
James Davidson Hunter, of Virginia, to be a Member of the
National Council on the Humanities for a term expiring
January 26, 2010.
Harvey Klehr, of Georgia, to be a member of the National
Council on the Humanities for a term expiring January 26,
2010.
Thomas K. Lindsay, of Texas, to be a Member of the National
Council on the Humanities for a term expiring January 26,
2010.
Iris Love, of Vermont, to be a Member of the National
Council on the Humanities for a term expiring January 26,
2010.
Thomas Mallon, of Connecticut, to be a Member of the
National Council on the Humanities for a term expiring
January 26, 2010.
Ricardo Quinones, of California, to be a Member of the
National Council on the Humanities for a term expiring
January 26, 2010.
national museum and library services board
Beverly Allen, of Georgia, to be a Member of the National
Museum and Library Services Board for a term expiring
December 6, 2008.
Donald Leslie, of Wisconsin, to be a Member of the National
Museum and Library Services Board for a term expiring
December 6, 2006.
Amy Owen, of Utah, to be a Member of the National Museum
and Library Services Board for a term expiring December 6,
2008.
Sandra Pickett, of Texas, to be a Member of the National
Museum and Library Services Board for a term expiring
December 6, 2005.
Renee Swartz, of New Jersey, to be a Member of the National
Museum and Library Services Board for a term expiring
December 6, 2007.
Kim Wang, of California, to be a Member of the National
Museum and Library Services Board for a term expiring
December 6, 2004.
national institute for literacy
William T. Hiller, of Ohio, to be a Member of the National
Institute for Literacy Advisory Board for a term expiring
November 25, 2006.
Richard Kenneth Wagner, of Florida, to be a Member of the
National Institute for Literacy Advisory Board for a term
expiring November 25, 2006.
Juan R. Olivarez, of Michigan, to be a Member of the
National Institute for Literacy Advisory Board for a term
expiring November 25, 2006.
united states institute of peace
Maria Otero, of the District of Columbia, to be a Member of
the Board of Directors of the United States Institute of
Peace for a term expiring January 19, 2007.
National council on disability
Young Woo Kang, of Indiana, to be a Member of the National
Council On Disability for a term expiring September 17, 2006.
Department of Education
John H. Hager, of Virginia, to be Assistant Secretary for
Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, Department of
Education.
national science foundation
Arden Bement, Jr., of Indiana, to be Director of the
National Science Foundation for a term of six years.
the judiciary
Raymond L. Finch, of the Virgin Islands, to be Judge for
the District Court of the Virgin Islands for a term of ten
years. (Reappointment)
Micaela Alvarez, of Texas, to be United States District
Judge for the Southern District of Texas.
Keith Starrett, of Mississippi, to be United States
District Judge for the Southern District of Mississippi.
department of justice
Lisa Godbey Wood, of Georgia, to be United States Attorney
for the Southern District of Georgia for the term of four
years.
David E. Nahmias, of Georgia, to be United States Attorney
for the Northern District of Georgia for the term of four
years.
Richard B. Roper III, of Texas, to be United States
Attorney for the Northern District of Texas for the term of
four years.
United States Sentencing Commission
Ricardo H. Hinojosa, of Texas, to be Chair of the United
States Sentencing Commission.
Michael O'Neill, of Maryland, to be a Member of the United
States Sentencing Commission for a term expiring October 31,
2009. (Reappointment)
Ruben Castillo, of Illinois, to be a Member of the United
States Sentencing Commission for a term expiring October 31,
2009. (Reappointment)
Christopher A. Boyko, of Ohio, to be United States District
Judge for the Northern District of Ohio.
United States Sentencing Commission
Beryl A. Howell, of the District of Columbia, to be a
Member of the United States Sentencing Commission for the
remainder of the term expiring October 31, 2005.
Department of Veterans Affairs
Robert Allen Pittman, of Florida, to be an Assistant
Secretary of Veterans Affairs (Human Resources and
Administration).
The Judiciary
Robert N. Davis, of Florida, to be a Judge of the United
States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims for the term
prescribed by law.
Mary J. Schoelen, of the District of Columbia, to be a
Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans
Claims for the term of fifteen years.
William A. Moorman, of Virginia, to be a Judge of the
United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims for the
term of fifteen years.
Department of State
Catherine Todd Bailey, of Kentucky, to be Ambassador
Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of
America to the Republic of Latvia.
United States Agency for International Development
Douglas Menarchik, of Texas, to be an Assistant
Administrator of the United States Agency for International
Development.
inter-american development bank
Hector E. Morales, of Texas, to be United States Executive
Director of the Inter-American Development Bank for a term of
three years.
united states agency for international development
Lloyd O. Pierson, of Virginia, to be an Assistant
Administrator of the United States Agency for International
Development.
african development foundation
Lloyd O. Pierson, an Assistant Administrator of the United
States Agency for International Development, to be a Member
of the Board of Directors of the African Development
Foundation for a term expiring September 22, 2009.
department of justice
Robert Cramer Balfe III, of Arkansas, to be United States
Attorney for the Western District of Arkansas for the term of
four years.
department of the treasury
J. Russell George, of Virginia, to be Inspector General for
Tax Administration, Department of the Treasury.
national council on disability
Milton Aponte, of Florida, to be a Member of the National
Council On Disability for a term expiring September 17, 2006.
national science foundation
Dan Arvizu, of Colorado, to be a Member of the National
Science Board, National Science Foundation for a term
expiring May 10, 2010.
Steven C. Beering, of Indiana, to be a Member of the
National Science Board, National Science Foundation for a
term expiring May 10, 2010.
Gerald Wayne Clough, of Georgia, to be a Member of the
National Science Board, National Science Foundation for a
term expiring May 10, 2010.
Kelvin Kay Droegemeier, of Oklahoma, to be a Member of the
National Science Board, National Science Foundation for a
term expiring May 10, 2010.
Louis J. Lanzerotti, of New Jersey, to be a Member of the
National Science Board, National Science Foundation for a
term expiring May 10, 2010.
Alan I. Leshner, of Maryland, to be a Member of the
National Science Board, National Science Foundation for a
term expiring May 10, 2010.
Jon C. Strauss, of California, to be a Member of the
National Science Board, National Science Foundation for a
term expiring May 10, 2010.
Kathryn D. Sullivan, of Ohio, to be a Member of the
National Science Board, National Science Foundation for a
term expiring May 10, 2010.
department ot the treasury
Anna Escobedo Cabral, of Virginia, to be Treasurer of the
United States.
[[Page S11827]]
the judiciary
Gregory E. Jackson, of the District of Columbia, to be an
Associate Judge of the Superior Court of the District of
Columbia for the term of fifteen years.
department of defense
Vinicio E. Madrigal, of Louisiana, to be a Member of the
Board of Regents of the Uniformed Services University of the
Health Sciences for a term expiring June 20, 2009.
(Reappointment)
Otis Webb Brawley, Jr., of Georgia, to be a Member of the
Board of Regents of the Uniformed Services University of the
Health Sciences for a term expiring June 20, 2009.
(Reappointment)
defense nuclear facilities safety board
R. Bruce Matthews, of New Mexico, to be a Member of the
Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board for a term expiring
October 18, 2005.
Joseph F. Bader, of the District of Columbia, to be a
Member of the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board for a
term expiring October 18, 2007.
department of education
Eugene Hickok, of Pennsylvania, to be Deputy Secretary of
Education.
Edward R. McPherson, of Texas, to be Under Deputy Secretary
of Education.
national council on disability
Robert Davila, of New York, to be a Member of the National
Council On Disability for a term expiring September 17, 2006.
(Reappointment)
Linda Wetters, of Ohio, to be a Member of the National
Council On Disability for a term expiring September 17, 2006.
(Reappointment)
barry goldwater scholarship and excellence in education foundation
Julia L. Wu, of California, to be a Member of the Board of
Trustees of the Barry Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in
Education Foundation for a term expiring February 4, 2008,
vice James Roger Angel, term expired.
Laurie Stenberg Nichols, of South Dakota, to be a Member of
the Board of Trustees of the Barry Goldwater Scholarship and
Excellence in Education Foundation for a term expiring March
3, 2010, vice Donna Dearman Smith, term expired.
department of education
Carol D'Amico, of Indiana, to be a Member of the Board of
Directors of the National Board for Education Sciences for a
term of two years. (New Position)
department of state
Yousif B. Ghafari, of Michigan, to be an Alternate
Representative of the United States of America to the Fifty-
ninth Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations.
Jane Dee Hull, of Arizona, to be a Representative of the
United States of America to the Fifty-ninth Sessions of the
General Assembly of the United Nations.
Susan L. Moore, of Texas, to be an Alternate Representative
of the United States of America to the Fifty-ninth Session of
the General Assembly of the United Nations.
corporation for public broadcasting
Gay Hart Gaines, of Florida, to be a Member of the Board of
Directors of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting for a
term expiring January 31, 2010.
Claudia Puig, of Florida, to be a Member of the Board of
Directors of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting for a
term expiring January 31, 2008.
Ernest J. Wilson, III, of Maryland, to be a Member of the
Board of Directors of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting
for a term expiring January 31, 2010. (Reappointment)
Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation
James S. Simpson, of New York, to be a Member of the
Advisory Board of the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development
Corporation.
Federal Maritime Commission
Harold Jennings Creel, Jr., of South Carolina, to be a
Federal Maritime Commissioner for the term expiring June 30,
2009.
Federal Communications Commission
Jonathan Steven Adelstein, of South Dakota, to be a Member
of the Federal Communications Commission for a term expiring
June 30, 2008.
Air Force
The following named officer for appointment in the United
States Air Force to the grade indicated under title 10,
U.S.C., section 624:
To be brigadier general
Col. Guy K. Dahlbeck
The following Air National Guard of the United States
officer for appointment in the Reserve of the Air Force to
the grade indicated under title 10, U.S.C., section 12203:
To be brigadier general
Col. Brent E. Winget
Army
The following named officer for appointment in the United
States Army to the grade indicated while assigned to a
position of importance and responsibility under title 10,
U.S.C., section 601:
To be lieutenant general
Maj. Gen. Robert L. Van Antwerp, Jr.
The following named officer for appointment in the United
States Army to the grade indicated under title 10, U.S.C.,
section 624:
To be major general
Brig. Gen. Jason K. Kamiya
The following named officers for appointment in the Reserve
of the Army to the grades indicated under title 10, U.S.C.,
section 12203:
To be brigadier general
Col. Keith L. Thurgood
The following named officers for appointment in the United
States Army to the grade indicated under title 10, U.S.C.,
section 624:
To be brigadier general
Colonel Michael J. Lally, III
Nominations Placed on the Secretary's Desk
Coast Guard
PN2001 COAST GUARD nominations (154) beginning Gerard P.
Achenbach, and ending Elizabeth D. Young, which nominations
were received by the Senate and appeared in the Congressional
Record of September 23, 2004.
PN2051 COAST GUARD nominations (257) beginning Joel A.
Amundson, and ending Joseph M. Zwack, which nominations were
received by the Senate and appeared in the Congressional
Record of November 16, 2004.
Foreign Service
PN2019 FOREIGN SERVICE nominations (148) beginning Ralph L.
Boyce Jr., and ending Robert J. Whigham, which nominations
were received by the Senate and appeared in the Congressional
Record of October 7, 2004.
PN2020 FOREIGN SERVICE nominations (206) beginning Robert
M. Clay, and ending Marcia L. Norman, which nominations were
received by the Senate and appeared in the Congressional
Record of October 7, 2004.
Patricia Cushwa, of Maryland, to be a Commissioner of the
United States Parole Commission for a term of six years.
Sharon Tucker, of Georgia, to be a Member of the Board of
Trustees of the Harry S Truman Scholarship Foundation for a
term expiring December 10, 2005.
Kathleen Martinez, of California, to be a Member of the
National Council on Disability for a term expiring September
17, 2006.
William A. Schambra, of Virginia, to be a Member of the
Board of Directors of the Corporation for National and
Community Service for a term expiring September 14, 2006.
Donna N. Williams, of Texas, to be a Member of the Board of
Directors of the Corporation for National and Community
Service for a term expiring October 6, 2006.
Leona White Hat, of South Dakota, to be a Member of the
Board of Directors of the Corporation for National and
Community Service for a term expiring October 6, 2008.
Henry Lozano, of California, to be a Member of the Board of
Directors of the Corporation for National and Community
Service for a term expiring October 6, 2008.
Mimi Mager, of the District of Columbia, to be a Member of
the Board of Directors of the Corporation for National and
Community Service for a term expiring December 27, 2007.
Jacob Joseph Lew, of New York, to be a Member of the Board
of Directors of the Corporation for National and Community
Service for a term expiring October 6, 2008.
Mark D. Gearan, of New York, to be a Member of the Board of
Directors of the Corporation for National and Community
Services for a term of one year.
Dorothy A. Johnson, of Michigan, to be a Member of the
Board of Directors of the Corporation for National and
Community Service for a term expiring October 6, 2007.
Cynthia Boich, of California, to be a Member of the Board
of Directors of the Corporation for National and Community
Service for a term expiring October 6, 2007.
Edward Alton Parrish, of Virginia, to be a Member of the
Board of Trustees of the Barry Goldwater Scholarship and
Excellence in Education Foundation for a term expiring April
17, 2008.
Raquel Egusquiza, of Michigan, to be a Member of the Board
of Trustees of the Barry Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence
in Education Foundation for a term expiring October 13, 2005.
Michael J. Harrison, of Connecticut, to be an Assistant
Secretary of Agriculture.
Fredrick William Hatfield, of California, to be a
Commissioner of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission for
a term expiring April 13, 2008.
Sharon Brown-Hruska, of Virginia, to be a Commissioner of
the Commodity Futures Trading Commission for the term
expiring April 13, 2009.
Michael V. Dunn, of Iowa, to be a Commissioner of the
Commodity Futures Trading Commission for the remainder of the
term expiring June 19, 2006, vice James E. Newsome, resigned.
Dallas Tonsager, of South Dakota, to be a Member of the
Farm Credit Administration Board, Farm Credit Administration,
for a term expiring May 21, 2010.
nomination of keith starrett
Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, the nomination of Keith Starrett of
Mississippi is strongly supported by Senator Lott and Senator Cochran.
Judge Starrett is nominated to a vacancy on the Southern District of
Mississippi created when the President ignored the Senate's withholding
of its consent and unilaterally appointed Judge Charles Pickering to
the Fifth Circuit.
With this nomination, President Bush forfeited another opportunity to
[[Page S11828]]
be a uniter and to draw the country together. I understand the concerns
of so many African-American organizations and lawyers who continue to
ask the President to begin to achieve some diversity on that bench by
the nomination and appointment of a qualified African American. The
Magnolia Bar Association, a primarily African-American bar association
in Mississippi, has written the Senate in connection with this
nomination. The Magnolia Bar's president, Crystal Wise Martin,
expresses the group's strong opposition to proceeding with Judge
Starrett's nomination, not only because it is so late in the session
but also because, as she writes: ``[I]t fails to remedy the egregious
problem concerning the lack of diversity on Mississippi's federal
bench.'' She points out that Mississippi has the highest percentage of
African Americans of any State, but that Mississippi has had only one
African-American Federal judge. She explains that the Magnolia Bar and
the National Bar Association have both made direct requests to the
President that he appoint an African American to fill this important
vacancy.
During the consideration of Charles Pickering's nomination, reports
were that Republicans were indicating that they would advocate for an
African-American nominee if some African Americans would support Judge
Pickering's elevation to a higher court. The administration has chosen
not to fulfill those hopes by proceeding with a qualified African-
American nominee for this important judgeship.
This President has shown where his priorities are by nominating more
lawyers affiliated with the Federalist Society than qualified African
Americans, Hispanics and Asian Americans combined.
I ask unanimous consent that a copy of the letter from the Magnolia
Bar Association be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
Magnolia Bar
Association, Inc.,
Jackson, MS, September 6, 2004.
Senator Orrin Hatch,
Chair, Senate Judiciary Committee, Senate Dirksen Office
Building, Washington, DC.
Senator Patrick Leahy,
Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, Senate Dirksen
Office Building, Washington, DC.
Dear Senators Hatch and Leahy: Founded in 1955 by less than
ten black lawyers with several purposes including advancing
the science of jurisprudence and promoting reform in the law,
the Magnolia Bar Association can now boast that it has more
than four hundred African-American and white members who
practice across Mississippi and many states throughout
America. Our members are engaged in every form of practice
just as other members of the Mississippi Bar. We are
prosecutors, criminal defense attorneys, plaintiff attorneys,
defense attorneys, and we are administrative lawyers. Our
ranks also include attorneys who specialize in domestic
relations and commercial litigation. Simply put, we do it
all. We practice in state, federal and tribal courts. The
Magnolia Bar is represented on every court in Mississippi
except the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. We are proud of
what we do, and we are committed to our profession. I,
Crystal Wise Martin, am indeed honored to serve as its
president.
We are strongly opposed to the Senate's consideration of
the nomination of Keith Starrett to the Southern District of
Mississippi so late in this Administration's term. We
understand there is a longstanding and well-respected
practice of the Senate Judiciary Committee to withhold
consideration of controversial federal judicial nominations
by the fall of an election year. We see no reason to deviate
from this tradition in the case of the Starrett nomination.
The Starrett nomination is particularly untimely. President
Bush only nominated Keith Starrett on July 7 of this year, to
fill the seat vacated by Charles Pickering upon his recess
appointment to the Fifth Circuit. Consideration of the
nomination at this point in an election year is simply
inappropriate. In Mississippi, absentee voting in the
Presidential election begins on September 20. Holding a
hearing on the nomination just twelve days before
Mississippians can cast their Presidential votes is simply
too late. Moreover, it is doubtful that Mr. Starrett could
even proceed through the Judiciary Committee before the
voting begins.
We know of no federal judicial nomination in recent history
in which the nomination was made so late in a Presidential
term and yet still received a hearing before the Judiciary
Committee in the fall of an election year. In the last
presidential election year of 2000, there were no hearings
whatsoever held in the fall. For example, when President
Clinton nominated Ricardo Morado to the district court in
Texas on May 11, 2000, Senators objected to the nomination as
occurring too late in an election year. Mr. Morado never
received a hearing.
Additionally, we strongly object to the Starrett nomination
because it fails to remedy the egregious problem concerning
the lack of diversity on Mississippi's federal bench.
Mississippi has the highest percentage of African Americans
of any state in the country. Yet Mississippi has had only one
African American federal judge--ever. Judge Henry Wingate,
who holds this distinction, was appointed nearly twenty years
ago.
Earlier this year, the Magnolia Bar Association made a
direct plea to President Bush to rectify this lack of
diversity. In a letter dated February 2, we urge President
Bush to appoint an African American to the Southern District
of Mississippi. We wrote that the ``appointment of an African
American . . . is long overdue.'' We set forth the history of
the lack of appointments, and concluded there was a
``compelling case'' for the appointment. We noted the
existence of hundreds of African American lawyers in the
State and the representation we have been able to achieve on
our State and local bench. We offered to consult with the
President about the numerous candidates who exist for a
federal court position. The National Bar Association, the
nationwide organization of African American lawyers, made a
similar request this year, directed specifically to the
vacancy in the Southern District of Mississippi.
Moreover many members of the African American community in
Mississippi were led to believe that an African American
would receive the nomination to fill Judge Charles
Pickering's district court seat. Judge Pickering's
supporters, including but not limited to his son,
Representative Chip Pickering, were express about their
intentions to bring about the nomination of an African
American should Judge Pickering be elevated. These
representations are well documented in the press. The
Washington Post reported that ``Chip Pickering confirmed that
he has also been telling prominent African Americans in the
state that if his father is promoted to the appeals court,
his replacement on the district court will likely be an
[African American nominee].'' (``Judge's Fate Could Turn on
1994 Case,'' Washington Post, May 27, 1993). The Clarion-
Ledger from Jackson, Mississippi referred to Congressman
Pickering's representations in an article entitled,
``Pickering Vows to Push Diversity.'' (Clarion-Ledger, May
28, 2003).
President Bush has refused to heed our requests. Despite
having four opportunities, he has not nominated one African
American to the federal bench in Mississippi. During his
term, President Bush has nominated three persons to the
federal district court in Mississippi and one person from
Mississippi to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. None are
African American. We deplore this Administration's record on
diversity in judicial appointments in Mississippi.
The failure to diversify Mississippi's federal bench is
just one example of the lack of diversity in this
Administration's judicial appointments generally. In four
years, President Bush has appointed only 11 African Americans
to district court seats anywhere in the country. These 11
appointments constitute only less than seven percent of the
total of 162 district court appointments. This stands in
stark contrast to the record of President Bush's predecessor.
In his first term, President Clinton appointed 33 African
Americans out of 170 district court appointments, or almost
twenty percent. In his second term, President Clinton
appointed 20 African Americans out of 137 district court
appointments, or fourteen percent. The Magnolia Bar
Association strongly believes we should be advancing in
African American representation on the federal bench, not
retreating.
For all of these reasons, we urge you to refrain from
considering the Starett nomination at this late date. Thank
you.
Respectfully yours,
Crystal Wise Martin,
President.
Nomination of David Nahmias
Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, after months of stonewalling by this
administration, we are still trying to uncover the truth about the
abuse of prisoners in U.S. custody overseas. I have long said that
somewhere in the upper reaches of the executive branch a process was
set in motion that rolled forward until it produced this scandal. To
date, senior administration officials have avoided any accountability
for these atrocities.
The Senate is today including the nomination of David Nahmias to
serve as a U.S. Attorney in Georgia in a final package of confirmations
for this Congress. Mr. Nahmias has held senior positions at the
Department of Justice where he worked on the legal underpinnings of the
President's war against terror. The overbroad assertions of executive
power have been rejected by the Supreme Court and other Federal courts.
In speeches, he has unequivocally supported the President's authority
as Commander in Chief to designate and detain suspected terrorists,
including
[[Page S11829]]
American citizens, as enemy combatants without judicial review by an
article III court. In the case of the American citizens detained as
enemy combatants, argued that there was no reason for judicial review
of their detentions because they, ``received the absolute ultimate
executive branch process,'' because the ``President of the United
States, operating as the Commander-in-Chief, personally reviewed their
cases, and personally designated them as enemy combatants.'' The
Supreme Court strongly rejected this position this year and held that
the detainees in Guantanamo Bay and U.S. citizens being held as enemy
combatants have the right to challenge their detentions in Federal
courts.
I asked Mr. Nahmias questions about his views on the rights of enemy
combatants, his role in investigating, approving, or otherwise
reviewing rules, procedures, or guidelines involving the interrogation
of individuals held in the custody of the U.S. Government or an agent
of the U.S. Government, and his role in the prosecution of domestic
terrorism cases. His original answers were largely non-responsive. I
sent him further questions to clarify his record and views.
I remain troubled by Mr. Nahmias' answers and uncertain of the extent
of his involvement in these matters. During Mr. Nahmias' tenure at the
Department, it produced a legal memorandum redefining torture to allow
all sorts of brutal treatment--such as mock burial alive, simulated
drowning, electrocution, tearing off of fingernails, and other such
barbaric treatment--so long as the pain caused is not akin to organ
failure, and concluding that, as commander in chief in the war against
terror, the President and federal agents are not constrained by anti-
terror laws. Since they came to light, these positions have been
abandoned by the White House counsel and the administration.
The American people deserve public officials who are fair and will
uphold the law. No one is entitled to a high-ranking presidential
appointment entrusted with making decisions that affect the lives and
futures of millions of Americans. Our freedoms are the fruit of too
much sacrifice to give appointments to people who will not fairly
interpret the Constitution, enforce Federal protections, and follow
previous court rulings on which Americans rely in their daily lives. If
there were a separate vote on this nomination, I would oppose it.
nomination of christopher boyko
Mr. President, today the Senate voted on the nomination of Judge
Christopher Boyko for a lifetime seat on the U.S. District Court for
the Northern District of Ohio. He is strongly supported by both of his
home-State Senators.
The Senate has already confirmed four of President Bush's district
court nominees and two of his circuit court nominees from Ohio,
including some who were problematic. Deborah Cook, now on the Sixth
Circuit, is a staunch Republican and Federalist Society member who was
one of the Ohio Supreme Court's most prolific and activist dissenters
in favor of corporate interests. She was promoted by the Senators from
Ohio and was confirmed last year. Another Sixth Circuit confirmation,
Jeffrey Sutton, is an active Federalist Society member and one of the
most controversial of President Bush's nominees confirmed. Prior to his
confirmation to a lifetime appointment on the Nation's second highest
court, Judge Sutton sought out opportunities to attack Federal civil
rights laws and limit Congress' ability to protect individual rights.
He received enough ``negative'' votes for a potential filibuster, but
he was not blocked on the floor. The Senate also confirmed four Ohio
district court nominees for President Bush, many of whom were active
members of the Republican party in Ohio and whose records were somewhat
troubling.
We moved forward with those nominations even though two of President
Clinton's nominees to Ohio, Kent Markus and Steve Bell, were blocked by
Republicans. Neither received a hearing or a vote. Mr. Markus was
nominated to the Sixth Circuit in February 2000, but was told it was
just too late. Steven Bell was nominated in August 1999 to the district
court in Ohio and waited for more than a year without receiving a
hearing. The double standards that the Republican majority has adopted
obviously depend upon the occupant of the White House.
In 1996, when a Democratic President was seeking re-election, the
Republican-controlled Senate held only one hearing to consider one
district court nominee after the August recess, and then never allowed
that nominee to have a Committee or Senate vote. Indeed, that nominee,
Judge Ann Aiken of Oregon, was obstructed so severely by the Republican
majority that she was not confirmed to her position until nearly a year
and a half later.
In September 2000, when the vacancy rate on the Federal courts was
around 7 percent, Republicans refused to proceed with hearings on
nominees so late in the presidential election year. After the August
recess work on judicial nominations came to a halt. Although there were
over 30 nominees pending, after July 25, 2000, no more judicial
nominees were scheduled for hearings or considered by the committee.
This year, with the vacancy rate at around 3 percent, less than half
what it was in 2000, we expedited consideration of nominees by a
Republican President.
In both 1996 and 2000, not a single individual nominated after July
21 was confirmed to the Federal courts--even for seats that were
already vacant. When Kent Markus of Ohio was nominated in February 2000
to the Sixth Circuit, he was told by Republicans that it was just too
late. Judge Boyko was nominated on July 22, 2004 to fill a district
court seat that will not even be vacant until December 31, 2004.
That said, I note that since 1996, Judge Boyko has served on the
Court of Common Pleas for Cuyahoga County. Unlike many of this
President's nominees, Judge Boyko has a reputation for fairness. He is
being confirmed today for a future vacancy. I congratulate him and his
family on his confirmation.
nomination of keith starrett
Mr LOTT. Mr. President, I am delighted that the Senate has approved
Judge Keith Starrett's nomination today to be a U.S. District Court
Judge for the Southern District of Mississippi. I was pleased when the
President nominated Judge Starrett to be a U.S. District Court Judge
because he is one of the most experienced and respected trial court
judges in the Mississippi State court system. I know that his lovely
wife Barbara and his entire family are very proud of Judge Starrett as
he marks this important milestone in his career and prepares to serve
our state and nation in this new role.
Judge Starrett is a bright light in the Mississippi legal community.
He holds an undergraduate degree from Mississippi State University and
a J.D. degree from the University of Mississippi School of Law.
Additionally, as a sitting trial court judge he has completed a number
of courses at the National Judicial College which have added to the
knowledge base which he will bring to the federal bench.
Judge Starrett engaged in the general practice of law for 17 years in
Pike County and also served as an Assistant District Attorney, gaining
broad experience in the law that such practice areas provide. He was
appointed to a vacant State circuit court judgeship in 1992, and he was
elected to continue in this position in 1994, 1998, and 2002. During
his 12 years on the bench, Judge Starrett has earned a strong
reputation as a fair and outstanding trial judge presiding over both
civil and criminal cases.
One of Judge Starrett's most important accomplishments in his
judicial career is the leadership he provided in establishing the first
felony level drug court in Mississippi in his State judicial district.
This court was used as a model for the creation of other drug courts in
the State. Judge Starrett's expertise and involvement in this area has
been a key driving force as Mississippi works to implement a drug court
system for the entire State, and he has written and spoken extensively
on this topic. These special courts are better able to address the
issues of justice and rehabilitation for those charged with crimes
involving drugs, and I commend Judge Starrett for the groundbreaking
work he has done in this area.
Judge Starrett has also found time to serve his community and
profession in many other ways. He helped to found
[[Page S11830]]
Mission Pike County, a racial and denominational reconciliation
organization and Southwest Mississippi Child Protection, a child
advocacy group in Lincoln and Pike Counties. He is a leader in his
church and the legal community in Mississippi, and he has been
recognized with awards such as the 2003 Judicial Excellence Award given
by the Mississippi Bar Association.
It is no surprise that the American Bar Association's Standing
Committee on the Federal Judiciary has unanimously found Judge Keith
Starrett to be Well-Qualified to serve as a U.S. District Court Judge.
The vacant seat which Judge Starrett has been confirmed to fill has
been designated a judicial emergency, and I am pleased that the Senate
has acted to prevent justice from being delayed any further for the
parties whose cases are pending in the Southern District of
Mississippi. I congratulate Judge Starrett on his confirmation, and I
look forward to his serving as a federal judge for many years to come.
Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, during the past 4 years, the Senate has
confirmed more than 200 of President Bush's choices for the only
lifetime jobs in our system of government. Including the judicial
nominees scheduled to be confirmed today, Democrats and Republicans in
the Senate have confirmed 204 circuit, district and trade court
nominees in the past four years. That is more Federal judges than were
confirmed for President Reagan during his first term, more than in
President George H.W. Bush's presidency, and more than in either of
President Clinton's terms. The first 100 were confirmed in the 17
months of Democratic Senate leadership. In the other 31 months,
Republicans have led the Senate to confirm another 104.
With this historic number of confirmations, we are at the lowest
number of vacant seats on the Federal courts in 16 years. There are
more Federal judges serving today than at any time in American history.
With today's confirmations, there will be only 26 empty seats on the
Federal courts. If retirements and confirmations were to continue at
the current pace, President Bush would be poised to name more than 400
lifetime judges on the Federal bench, which contains 879 judges. That
would mean he would have appointed more judges than any President in
our history.
Democrats in the Senate have taken as bipartisan approach as possible
while still preserving the Senate's independence to act as a check
against extreme or unfit appointments to these lifetime positions. Some
of the nominees this President nominated to appellate courts have been
among the most controversial ever proposed. A handful of them, those
with records that do not demonstrate that they will be fair judges who
will fully enforce our constitutional rights have been denied the
consent of the Senate. The Federal courts should not become the arm of
the Republican Party or the Democratic Party. To preserve the
independence of the judiciary, the Senate has served its time honored
roll as a check on the presidential appointment power. The Constitution
says advice and consent, not rubber stamp.
Ours has been a good record of both cooperation and independence by
the Senate. Even with this historic level of bipartisan cooperation and
despite the high number of divisive nominees this President has sent to
the Senate, partisans continue to claim that nothing short of 100
percent approval is acceptable. No President has seen 100 percent of
his judicial nominees approved. Not even George Washington got all of
his appointments confirmed. Shortly after the Judiciary Committee was
created, nominees of President James Madison were defeated in the
Committee. More recently Republicans defeated the nominations of more
than 60 of President Clinton's judicial nominees and more than 200 of
his executive branch nominees in Senate committees.
President Bush refused to address the unfair way President Clinton's
nominees were treated by Senate Republicans through anonymous holds and
other tactics. Objection from even one Republican Senator was allowed
to defeat President Clinton's judicial nominees. Republicans worked to
preserve vacancies in the Clinton years, especially vacancies on the
circuit courts like the 6th Circuit and the D.C. Circuit. Two dozen
circuit court nominees and more than 40 district court nominees were
denied Senate votes of any kind. They are now exploiting their success.
Unfortunately, President Bush decided in his first term to seek
confrontation and politicization of the process rather than consensus.
There were opportunities to find common ground that were squandered.
During the Clinton administration, leading Republicans claimed that
as many as 100 vacant seats in the Federal courts did not create any
crisis. Some even boasted that they allowed too many judges to be
confirmed. There was a dramatic shift when a Republican moved into the
White House when suddenly any number of vacancies became a crisis to
them. The rules and Senate procedures Republicans used to stall
President Clinton's nominees were no longer acceptable to them and were
jettisoned with a Republican in the White House.
When I became chairman of the Judiciary Committee and the Committee
was reorganized back in July 2001, we inherited 110 vacant seats in the
federal courts. During my 17 months as chairman, we evaluated the
President's nominees, and confirmed 100 judges. That represented a
tremendous effort in that short time, especially amid the dramatic
crises facing our nation in the wake of the September I 1 attacks and
the anthrax attacks directed at Senate Democrats. Rather than adopt
Republican methods by which they blocked scores of mainstream nominees
by President Clinton, we made the process fairer and more open while
preserving the longstanding rules and precedents of the Judiciary
Committee and the Senate.
Over 17 months, we proceeded to give hearings to 103 of President
Bush's judicial nominees, some of whom proved to be quite controversial
and divisive, even though the President had promised the American
people that he was a ``uniter not a divider.'' The President's
controversial nominations divided us by politicizing the federal
courts. They included nominees with records of extremism and in an
effort to stack the courts unfairly.
In this the 108th Congress, Republicans assumed Senate leadership and
proceeded to bend, break or reinterpret the rules and precedents in
their efforts to ram through the Senate every nominee and turn the
Senate into a rubber stamp for lifetime appointments.
It was in the face of these partisan actions that the only option
left to the Senate to protect the independence and fairness of the
courts was extended debate. Democrats acted sparingly to withhold
consent from the most extreme choices of this President and the most
egregious partisan acts of Senate Republicans. I will not restate the
specific concerns with each of those nominees. Those reasons are stated
publicly in the Record during debate by many Senators. Unlike
Republican obstruction which took place most often in secret and
without open and honest debate, when we oppose a nominee we said so and
explained why in public.
Republicans have held hearings for 120 judicial nominees in the past
2 years, including hearings for 33 circuit court nominees. Republicans
doubled the pace they were willing to maintain from 1997 through 2000
when it took them 4 years to hold hearings for 33 of President
Clinton's circuit court nominees, despite the fact that President
Bush's nominees have been much more controversial.
Two weeks after the session began in January 2003, Republicans
insisted on holding a hearing for three controversial circuit court
nominees on a single panel. This hearing was noticed in less than the
time required under the rules and in spite of a bipartisan written
agreement that had been adhered to since 1987 that only one
controversial judicial nominee would be scheduled at a time. Over the
objections of several Members of the Judiciary Committee, that hearing
proceeded on the nominations of Jeffrey Sutton, Deborah Cook, and John
Roberts to three circuit courts that had been held hostage by
Republicans during President Clinton's second term.
The day after that unprecedented hearing in violation of the
Thurmond-Biden guideline, Republicans forced a vote on the nomination
of Miguel Estrada, even though he had failed to answer the questions of
many members of the Committee and the White House
[[Page S11831]]
had refused to honor past precedent for information sharing. Republican
partisans then took to calling Senate Democrats anti-Hispanic. Such
false claims marked a new low. Despite the efforts of some, like
Senator Bennett of Utah, to reach a compromise to allow the Senate to
review the work of the nominee, the White House refused. No reasonable
employer would hire someone who refused to answer basic questions or
provide needed documents. Republicans demanded the Senate proceed with
regard to a lifetime appointment without such information.
Republicans began to list judicial nominees for committee
consideration even before they had answered the written questions of
Senators, let alone answered them responsively. With President Clinton,
Republicans refused to list a judicial nominee for a committee vote for
weeks and often months and sometimes forever. Suddenly, with a
Republican in the White House, Republicans decided that Senators did
not really need their questions answered before scheduling a vote.
Republican effort to limit the time and quality of the review of these
lifetime appointees was disappointing and wrong. Editorial cartoons
noted that the Committee was becoming nothing more than a rubber stamp
at a conveyor belt factory for judges. This approach undermined advice
and consent.
In the final Judiciary Committee meeting in February, Republicans
broke another longstanding rule of the Judiciary Committee, rule IV,
which had been respected for nearly a quarter of a century. Rule IV
requires a member of the minority of the Judiciary Committee to consent
to end debate in order to force a vote on a nomination or any other
matter. Without consent, Republicans called debate at an end. The claim
that the Senate Parliamentarian approved this reading of the rule was
undercut when the Parliamentarian advised that his position was that he
had no authority to enforce committee rules. The committee that should
respect the rule of law chose instead to do away with any rule or
precedent Republicans found inconvenient.
In March, Republicans began claiming that filibusters of nominees
were ``unprecedented'' and argued that it was unconstitutional to deny
a nominee a vote. These claims were another reversal from the party
that had blocked votes on more than 60 of President Clinton's judicial
nominees and more than 200 of his executive nominees through a variety
of procedures. Republicans not only ignored their own recent history in
which they unsuccessfully filibustered the nominations of Judge
Rosemary Barkett and Judge H. Lee Sarokin, and successfully
filibustered the nominations of Dr. Henry Foster and Sam Brown, they
sought to rewrite the history of the filibuster of the nomination of
Abe Fortas to be Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. The Senate's
cloture rule is a departure not from majority rule but from the
unanimous consent that has been essential to the character of the
Senate. Now that they are in the majority, Republicans have no use for
rules protecting the minority or for the historic role of the Senate.
Republicans turned their practices upside down when the very people
who insisted on recognition of their prerogatives as home State
Senators with regard to judicial nominees chose with a Republican in
the White House to disregard the lack of home State Senator support and
proceed with hearings and Committee consideration of the nominations of
Carolyn Kuhl, Janice Rogers Brown, Henry Saad, Richard Griffin, David
McKeague, and Susan Nielson.
Requiring home State Senator support can and often has led to
consultation and cooperation between the Senate and the White House.
This White House and Senate Republicans who insisted on it without
exception during the Clinton years, dispensed with it when it became
inconvenient to their goal of stacking the courts and moving them
sharply in one direction. To do so, they proceeded in the face of
opposition from both home State Senators.
When Republicans were being asked to considering the, nominations of
a Democratic President, one negative blue slip from just one home State
Senator was enough to doom a nomination and prevent a hearing on that
nomination. This included all nominations, including those to the
circuit courts. How else to explain the failure to schedule hearings
for such qualified and noncontroversial nominees such as James Beatty
and James Wynn, African American nominees from North Carolina? What
other reason could plausibly be found for what happened to the
nominations of Enrique Moreno and Jorge Rangel--both Latino, both
Harvard graduates, both highly rated by the ABA, both denied hearings
in the Judiciary Committee? Republicans used to excuse their refusal to
proceed on President Clinton's nominees because of the absence of home
State Senator support. Indeed, in those days, so long as a Republican
Senator had an objection, it appeared to be honored, whether that was
Senator Helms objecting to an African American nominee from Virginia or
Senator Gorton objecting to nominees from California.
Republicans continued to hold hearings on controversial judicial
nominees following the party nominating conventions and with the
Presidential election just weeks away. Whether they acknowledge it as
the Thurmond Rule, or something else, it is a well established practice
that in Presidential election years there comes a point when judicial
confirmation hearings are not continued without agreement. Republicans
used to insist that absent the consent of the minority, we await the
results of the election and the inauguration of a new President before
moving additional nominees. Republicans lived by this precedent when
they ran this Committee in 1996 and later, in 2000. In 1996, when a
Democratic President was seeking re-election, the Republican-controlled
committee held only one hearing to consider one district court nominee
after the August recess, and then never allowed that nominee to have a
committee vote. In 2000, the Republican-controlled committee followed
the Thurmond Rule to the letter. After the August recess work on
judicial nominations came to a halt. Although there were over 30
nominees pending, after July 25 2000, no more judicial nominees were
scheduled for hearings or considered by the committee.
Republicans have gone so far as to reverse their practice with
President Clinton by holding hearings for nominees for positions in the
courts that would not even become vacancies until after the
Presidential election. As with everything else, there appears to be one
rule for Democrats and no rules or precedents for Republicans.
Little did we know that through most of the time, Republican staff
had been stealing Democratic computer files and using them for partisan
purposes. When The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Times wrote
that they were furnished internal documents, the investigation began.
The Capitol Police seized the Judiciary computer hard drives and
servers and the Senate Sergeant at Arms began an internal
investigation. Staff of the Republican leader and the chairman of the
Judiciary Committee resigned and confirmed their involvement. This
year, the Sergeant at Arms reported that thousands of files had been
stolen over a period of years and found that this partisan spying and
stealing may have violated numerous criminal laws. It is a shameful
chapter in the history of the Judiciary Committee and the Senate. A
Federal criminal investigation is ongoing into this matter, and I look
forward to the Justice Department completing that inquiry in the coming
year.
The President took the unprecedented steps of renominating
controversial nominees on whom the Judiciary Committee had withheld
consent and then recess appointed controversial nominees on whom the
Senate had withheld its consent. This President has utilized the
constitutional recess appointment power as an end-run around the
Constitution's advice and consent requirement. This undermines the
Senate's institutional role as a check on unfit or unfair nominees to
our independent court system. Just as Senate Republicans viewed
longstanding rules and precedent as inconvenient, the President treated
the Constitution's requirement of Senate consent as an inconvenience
and an opportunity for partisan political gain. The President went so
far as to try to steal a circuit seat from one State and over objection
to award it to another by
[[Page S11832]]
nominating a Virginian to fill a traditional Maryland vacancy on the
Fourth Circuit.
Most regrettably as well, the White House fanned the flames and
refused to tamp down hateful and unfounded claims that amounted to
religious McCarthyism. Senate Democrats refused to be cowed by
Republican's false charges that they were anti-Hispanic, anti-African
American, anti-Christian, antiwoman or antiman. We were none of these
things. The fact of the matter is that Democrats were antijudicial
zealot, period. Democrats stood up for the independence of the Federal
courts and fair, nonpartisan judges for the American people.
These past 2 years we have witnessed the Senate Judiciary Committee
and the Senate break with longstanding precedent and Senate tradition.
With the Senate and the White House under control of the same political
party we have witnessed rule after rule broken or misinterpreted away.
The Framer's of the Constitution warned against the dangers of such
factionalism, undermining the structural separations of power.
Republicans in the Senate have failed to defend the institutional role
of this branch as a check on the President in the area of nominations.
It weakens our Constitution to have such collusion and forfeits the
strength and protections of our separation of powers that was designed
to protect all Americans.
From the way that home State Senators are treated to the way hearings
are scheduled, to the way the Committee questionnaire was altered
unilaterally, to the way our Committee's historic protection of the
minority by Committee Rule IV has been violated, to the theft of
computer files, Republicans destroyed virtually every rule, precedent,
custom and courtesy that used to help create and enforce cooperation
and civility in the confirmation process. Their approach to our rules
and precedents follows their own partisan version of the golden rule,
which is that ``he with the gold, rules.'' It is as if those currently
in power believe that they are above our constitutional checks and
balances and that they can reinterpret any treaty, law, rule, custom or
practice they do not like or they find inconvenient.
Some of these interpretations are so contrary to well-established
understandings that it is like we have fallen down the rabbit hole in
Alice in Wonderland. I am reminded that the imperious Queen of Hearts
rebuked Alice for having insufficient imagination to believe
contradictory things, saying that some days she had believed six
impossible things before breakfast. I have seen things I thought
impossible on the Judiciary Committee and in the Senate, things
impossible to square with the past practices of Committee and the
history of the Senate.
Under our Constitution, the Senate has a vital role in the selection
of our judiciary. The brilliant design of our Founders established that
the first two branches of government would work together to equip the
third branch to serve as an independent arbiter of justice. The
structure of our Constitution and our own Senate rules of self-
governance are designed to protect minority rights and to encourage
consensus. Despite the razor-thin margin of recent elections,
Republicans are not acting in a measured way but in complete disregard
for the traditions of bipartisanship that are the hallmark of the
Senate. Theirs is a practice of might makes right is wrong. One of the
great strengths of the Senate is its role as a continuing body with
continuing rules that have, until the 108th Congress, been respected
and followed under either Democratic leadership or Republican control.
Our rules must not change to give whoever is in the majority the power
to jerry rig whatever result is desired.
As the Rev. Martin Luther King wrote in his famous Letter from a
Birmingham Jail, ``Let us consider a more concrete example of just and
unjust laws. An unjust law is a code that a numerical or power majority
group compels a minority group to obey but does not make binding on
itself. This is difference made legal. By the same token, a just law is
a code that a majority compels a minority to follow and that it is
willing to follow itself. This is sameness made legal.''
Fair process is a fundamental component of the American system of
law. If we cannot have a fair process in these halls or in our courts,
how will the resulting decisions be viewed? If the rule of law is to
mean anything it must mean that it applies to all equally.
No man and no party should be above the law. That has been one of the
strengths of our democracy. Our country was born in reaction to the
autocracy and corruption of King George, and we must not forget our
roots as a nation of both law and liberty. The best guarantee of
liberty is the rule of law, meaning that the decisions of government
are not arbitrary and that rules are not discretionary or enforced to
help one side and then ignored to aid another. James Madison, one of
the Framers of our Constitution, warned in Federalist No. 47 of the
very danger that has threatened our great nation during the 108th
Congress, a threat to our freedoms from within: ``[The] accumulation of
all powers legislative, executive and judiciary in the same hands . . .
may justly be pronounced the very definition of tyranny.''
The American people deserve better governance than we have seen with
the destruction of rule after rule by a majority willing to sacrifice
the power and precedents of the Senate. Our freedoms as Americans are
the fruit of too much sacrifice to have the rules ignored in the United
States Senate by partisans colluding with the White House to try to
appoint unfit loyalists to courts who have been chosen with the hope
that they will re-interpret our great precedents and overturn the very
laws that have protected our most fundamental rights as Americans.
____________________