[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 173 (Wednesday, December 22, 2010)]
[Senate]
[Pages S10986-S10987]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  NOMINATION OF MARY HELEN MURGUIA TO BE A U.S. CIRCUIT JUDGE FOR THE 
                             NINTH CIRCUIT

  The VICE PRESIDENT. Under the previous order, the question occurs on 
the following nomination, which the clerk will report.
  The assistant legislative clerk reported the nomination of Mary Helen 
Murguia, of Arizona, to be a U.S. Circuit Judge for the Ninth Circuit.
  The VICE PRESIDENT. The Senator from Arizona is recognized.
  Mr. KYL. Mr. President, I support the nomination of Judge Mary 
Murguia to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.
  Judge Murguia has served on the Federal district court in Arizona for 
a decade and has a distinguished record that has earned the respect of 
the legal community in Arizona.
  Perhaps most telling is the high regard in which Judge Murguia is 
held by her colleagues on the district court; they come from different 
backgrounds and were appointed by presidents of both parties, but they 
all speak very highly of her.
  Judge Murguia was approved by the Judiciary Committee by a vote of 19 
to 0. That unanimous vote is an indication of the strength of her 
record.
  Finally, as I mentioned at Judge Murguia's hearing, Judge Murguia's 
brother Carlos is the first Latino to serve as Federal district court 
judge in Kansas. Judge Murguia was the first Latina to be appointed to 
the Federal district court in Arizona and she and Carlos are the only 
brother and sister sitting as Federal judges in the United States.
  I am confident that Judge Murguia is a person of integrity who will 
do her best to be a fair and objective judge.
  Mr. President, I ask for the yeas and nays.
  The VICE PRESIDENT. Is there a sufficient second?
  There is a sufficient second.
  The Senator from Vermont is recognized.
  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, today, the Senate is finally being allowed 
to consider a judicial nomination that has been stalled since August--
the nomination of Judge Mary Murguia of Arizona to serve on the United 
States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. I would understand the 
resistance to considering the nomination if President Obama had 
selected someone opposed by her home state Senators. But both 
Republican home state Senators support this nomination. Unlike his 
predecessor, President Obama has worked with home state Senators, 
including Republican Senators. Despite all his efforts, this consensus 
nominee has been stalled for months and months while awaiting final 
Senate action.
  When the nomination was considered by the Judiciary Committee before 
the August recess, it was reported unanimously. Every Republican and 
every Democrat, all 19 members of the Judiciary Committee, voted in 
favor of her nomination. Still, she has been stalled for months and 
months. This is part of the dangerous pattern perpetrated the past two 
years as President Obama's highly-qualified judicial nominees have been 
stalled from final Senate action for extended periods. This is another 
example of the unnecessary delays that have led to a judicial vacancies 
crisis throughout the country. Judicial vacancies have skyrocketed to 
over 100 while nominations are forced to languish without final Senate 
action. In fact, President Obama's nominees have been forced to wait on 
average six times longer to be considered than President Bush's 
judicial nominees reported by the Judiciary Committee during the first 
2 years of his Presidency.
  When the Senate is finally allowed to take action, most of his 
nominations are confirmed by overwhelming bipartisan majorities or 
unanimously. Final Senate action on dozens of President Obama's 
judicial nominations has been delayed without explanation or good 
reason and then confirmed unanimously. The most outrageous examples

[[Page S10987]]

are Judge Barbara Keenan of Virginia, who was confirmed unanimously to 
the Fourth Circuit, and Judge Denny Chin of New York, who was confirmed 
unanimously to the Second Circuit. Both required cloture petitions to 
end the filibusters against their confirmations and then they were each 
confirmed unanimously.
  Others confirmed unanimously after months of delay are Judge James A. 
Wynn, Jr. of North Carolina, who was finally confirmed to the Fourth 
Circuit after almost 6 months of delay; Judge Albert Diaz of North 
Carolina, who was finally confirmed to the Fourth Circuit after almost 
11 month's delay; Judge Ray Lohier of New York, who was finally 
confirmed to the Second Circuit after almost 8 months of delay; Judge 
Beverly Martin of Tennessee, who was finally confirmed to the Eleventh 
Circuit after more than 4 months of delay; and James Greenaway of New 
Jersey, who was finally confirmed to the Third Circuit after almost 4 
months of delay. I expect Scott Matheson of Utah to be confirmed 
unanimously to the Tenth Circuit, but not until there have been 6 
months of unnecessary delay. I will not be surprised if Judge Murguia 
is confirmed unanimously, or nearly unanimously, after 4 unnecessary 
months of delay.
  Examples of district court nominees who have been delayed for between 
3 and 7 months before being confirmed unanimously are: Judge Kimberly 
J. Mueller of the Eastern District of California, Judge Catherine 
Eagles of the Middle District of North Carolina, Judge John A. Gibney, 
Jr. of the Eastern District of Virginia, Judge Ellen Hollander of the 
District of Maryland, Judge Susan R. Nelson of the District of 
Minnesota, Judge James Bredar of the District of Maryland, Judge 
Carlton Reeves of the Southern District of Mississippi, Judge Edmond 
Chang of the Northern District of Illinois, Judge Leslie E. Kobayashi 
of the District of Hawaii, and Judge Denise Casper of the District of 
Massachusetts.
  Ten years ago, Mary Murguia became the first Latina to serve as a 
Federal Judge in Arizona when she was nominated by President Clinton to 
serve on the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona. She will 
now become the first Hispanic--and only the second woman--from Arizona 
to serve on the Ninth Circuit. I congratulate Judge Murguia and her 
family on her confirmation by the Senate today.
  The VICE PRESIDENT. The yeas and nays have been ordered.
  The question is, shall the Senate advise and consent to the 
nomination of Mary Helen Murguia, of Arizona, to be a U.S. Circuit 
Judge for the 9th Circuit.
  The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk called the roll.
  Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from Wisconsin (Mr. 
Feingold), the Senator from Iowa (Mr. Harkin), the Senator from 
Missouri (Mrs. McCaskill), the Senator from Michigan (Ms. Stabenow), 
and the Senator from Oregon (Mr. Wyden) are necessarily absent.
  Mr. KYL. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator 
from Kentucky (Mr. Bunning), the Senator from Kansas (Mr. Brownback), 
the Senator from Missouri (Mr. Bond), the Senator from Tennessee (Mr. 
Alexander), the Senator from Kansas (Mr. Roberts), and the Senator from 
Louisiana (Mr. Vitter).
  Further, if present and voting, the Senator from Kentucky (Mr. 
Bunning) would have voted ``yea'' and the Senator from Tennessee (Mr. 
Alexander) would have voted ``yea.''
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Merkley). Are there any other Senators in 
the Chamber desiring to vote?
  The result was announced--yeas 89, nays 0, as follows:

                      [Rollcall Vote No. 299 Ex.]

                                YEAS--89

     Akaka
     Barrasso
     Baucus
     Bayh
     Begich
     Bennet
     Bennett
     Bingaman
     Boxer
     Brown (MA)
     Brown (OH)
     Burr
     Cantwell
     Cardin
     Carper
     Casey
     Chambliss
     Coburn
     Cochran
     Collins
     Conrad
     Coons
     Corker
     Cornyn
     Crapo
     DeMint
     Dodd
     Dorgan
     Durbin
     Ensign
     Enzi
     Feinstein
     Franken
     Gillibrand
     Graham
     Grassley
     Gregg
     Hagan
     Hatch
     Hutchison
     Inhofe
     Inouye
     Isakson
     Johanns
     Johnson
     Kerry
     Kirk
     Klobuchar
     Kohl
     Kyl
     Landrieu
     Lautenberg
     Leahy
     LeMieux
     Levin
     Lieberman
     Lincoln
     Lugar
     Manchin
     McCain
     McConnell
     Menendez
     Merkley
     Mikulski
     Murkowski
     Murray
     Nelson (NE)
     Nelson (FL)
     Pryor
     Reed
     Reid
     Risch
     Rockefeller
     Sanders
     Schumer
     Sessions
     Shaheen
     Shelby
     Snowe
     Specter
     Tester
     Thune
     Udall (CO)
     Udall (NM)
     Voinovich
     Warner
     Webb
     Whitehouse
     Wicker

                             NOT VOTING--11

     Alexander
     Bond
     Brownback
     Bunning
     Feingold
     Harkin
     McCaskill
     Roberts
     Stabenow
     Vitter
     Wyden
  The nomination was confirmed.

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