[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 137 (Thursday, September 15, 2011)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5692-S5693]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                           EXECUTIVE CALENDAR

  Mr. BENNET. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to executive session to consider the following nomination: 
Calendar No. 358; that the nomination be confirmed; the motion to 
reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, with no 
intervening action or debate; that no further motions be in order to 
the nomination; that any related statements be printed in the Record; 
that the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action and 
the Senate then resume legislative session.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The nomination considered and confirmed is as follows:


                          department of state

       Wendy Ruth Sherman, of Maryland, to be an Under Secretary 
     of State (Political Affairs).
  Mr. INHOFE. Mr. President, I would like to inform the Chamber that I 
support the nomination of Wendy Sherman to be Under Secretary of State 
for Political Affairs. I had previously voted against her nomination 
earlier this week when it was brought before the Senate Foreign 
Relations Committee, but I have received information since that leads 
me to change my vote.
  My good friend Senator Isakson of Georgia spoke to me about his 30-
plus-year relationship with the Sherman family. Ms. Sherman's mother, 
Miriam ``Mimi'' Sherman, started working for Northside Realty, Senator 
Isakson's business based in Marietta, GA, in the late seventies and 
eighties. Mimi Sherman, who passed away in 2005, was a terrific person, 
and Senator Isakson was very happy to call her a close friend and 
fellow coworker. He also has known Wendy during this entire time and 
knows that she embodies the same qualities that her mother did. He is 
confident that she is qualified for the position and will do a great 
job at the State Department as Under Secretary of State for Political 
Affairs.
  I have great respect for the wisdom and good judgment of my friend 
from Georgia. We both serve on the Africa Subcommittee, and as its 
ranking member, Senator Isakson always ensures that the views of his 
fellow Republican members are fully represented, even to the point of 
sharing his own speaking time at hearings with members like me who are 
passionate about bringing relief to the people on the African 
Continent. And when he expresses confidence in a particular person like 
Wendy Sherman, whom he has known personally for over three decades, 
that is good enough for me.
  I support Ms. Sherman's nomination to be Under Secretary of State for 
Political Affairs.

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