[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 139 (Thursday, October 27, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S11976-S11977]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           EXECUTIVE SESSION

                                 ______
                                 

NOMINATION OF JOHN RICHARD SMOAK TO BE UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE FOR 
                    THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the hour of 3 
o'clock having arrived, the Senate will go into executive session to 
consider the following nomination, which the clerk will report.
  The legislative clerk read the nomination of John Richard Smoak, of 
Florida, to be United States District Judge for the Northern District 
of Florida.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Who yields time?
  The Senator from Florida.
  Mr. MARTINEZ. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to be recognized 
for 2 minutes to speak on behalf of the nominee.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. MARTINEZ. Mr. President, I rise to speak on behalf of Richard 
Smoak,

[[Page S11977]]

who has been nominated by President Bush to fill a vacancy in the 
Northern District of Florida as a Federal district court judge.
  I would like to have the record reflect Mr. Smoak is a man of great 
integrity, a person who will distinguish himself on the bench, as he 
has in every other aspect of his life.
  He is from Panama City, FL, where he has practiced law in a very 
distinguished fashion for quite a number of years. He is one of those 
people who folks speak about in superlative terms. And one can 
understand why.
  Mr. Smoak graduated from the University of Florida in 1972, with a 
law degree; after having gone to the U.S. Military Academy at West 
Point, graduating in 1965. From 1965 to 1970, Mr. Smoak was an infantry 
officer, serving extensively in Vietnam, where he distinguished himself 
by receiving a Silver Star medal and a Bronze Star medal, among other 
military awards he received for his distinguished service to his 
Nation.
  Mr. President, better than I, I think I should quote from among those 
who have known him and have practiced law with him, and those who have 
been in the community with him.
  I will quote from Mr. Paul Anderson of Panama City, who speaks of Mr. 
Smoak in this fashion:

       Dick Smoak is simply one of the finest lawyers and finest 
     men I have ever had the privilege of knowing. Describing Dick 
     requires the use of words such as integrity, character and 
     professionalism. As a legal practitioner, Dick knows the law 
     and applies it logically to each case he handles.

  Mr. President, in addition to that, one of those things I believe I 
like about Mr. Smoak that speaks so highly of him is that Mr. Anderson 
speaks about the fact that he does not compromise his principles.
  With that, Mr. President, I urge my colleagues to vote favorably on 
this nomination of Mr. Richard Smoak to serve as a Federal district 
court judge for the Northern District of Florida.
  Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, I urge my colleagues to vote in 
favor of John Richard Smoak for appointment to the United States 
District Court for the Northern District of Florida. Mr. Smoak has long 
served his Nation, from his highly decorated service in Vietnam to his 
efforts to improve the judiciary system in Florida.
  He has resided and has practiced civil law for over the last 30 years 
in Panama City, FL. During that time, he represented a wide variety of 
clients from doctors to small business owners to truckdrivers to 
national corporations in many areas of the law. This broad experience 
will serve him well as a Federal judge.
  Mr. Smoak is a well-regarded and highly qualified attorney. I, along 
with Senator Martinez, believe he will make a great addition to the 
Federal bench and urge our colleagues to vote in support of his 
nomination.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Coleman). Is all time yielded back?
  Mr. MARTINEZ. Mr. President, I yield back the remainder of my time.
  Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask for the yeas and nays.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second?
  There appears to be a sufficient second.
  The question is, Will the Senate advise and consent to the nomination 
of John Richard Smoak, of Florida, to be United States District Judge 
for the Northern District of Florida? The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk called the roll.
  Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from New Jersey (Mr. 
Corzine), the Senator from Hawaii (Mr. Inouye), and the Senator from 
West Virginia (Mr. Rockefeller) are necessarily absent.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Are there any other Senators in the Chamber 
desiring to vote?
  The result was announced--yeas 97, nays 0, as follows:

                      [Rollcall Vote No. 276 Leg.]

                                YEAS--97

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

                             NOT VOTING--3

     Corzine
     Inouye
     Rockefeller
  The nomination was confirmed.

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