[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 153 (Monday, December 3, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7332-S7336]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
EXECUTIVE SESSION
______
NOMINATION OF PAUL WILLIAM GRIMM TO BE UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE FOR
THE DISTRICT OF MARYLAND
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the Senate will
proceed to executive session to consider the following nomination,
which the clerk will report.
The assistant legislative clerk read the nomination of Paul William
[[Page S7333]]
Grimm, of Maryland, to be United States District Judge for the District
of Maryland.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, there will be 30
minutes of debate, equally divided and controlled in the usual form.
The Senator from Vermont.
Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, after months of unjustifiable delays, the
Senate will finally be allowed to vote on one of President Obama's
qualified, consensus judicial nominees. The nomination of Paul William
Grimm to the United States District Court for the District of Maryland
was reported by the Judiciary Committee nearly-unanimously 6 months
ago. Judge Grimm and the people of Maryland have been forced to wait 6
months for this day for no good reason. He is one of the 19 judicial
nominees who should have been confirmed before the August recess.
Since 1997 Judge Grimm has served as a United States Magistrate Judge
and since 2007 as Chief Magistrate Judge on the United States District
Court for the District of Maryland. Prior to joining the bench, Judge
Grimm had wide legal experience as a lawyer in Maryland State
government, private practice, and as a Judge Advocate General. The ABA
Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary unanimously rated him
``well qualified'' to serve on the U.S. District Court, its highest
possible rating. He has the strong support of his home State Senators,
Senator Mikulski and Senator Cardin. There was no opposition on the
merits to his confirmation when he was considered by the Republican and
Democratic Senators on the Judiciary Committee.
This is another judicial nominee whose service has been stalled by
unnecessary, partisan obstruction. In her recent comments at Huffington
Post, Jen Bendery correctly noted:
The pattern throughout the president's tenure has been
uncontroversial judicial nominees clearing the Senate
Judiciary Committee but going nowhere [on] the Senate floor.
Then, after months of opposition, GOP leaders agree to clear
some of the backlog and long-stalled nominees sail through
virtually unopposed. . . . [W]hat has changed is the degree
to which obstruction has become standard operating procedure
since Obama took office. After four years, Obama has seen
about 75 percent of his nominees confirmed. By contrast, the
Senate confirmed . . . 88.7 percent of Bush's nominees by
this point in [his] presidency.
Two months ago, the Senate went into recess without taking
action on 19 judicial nominees, nearly all of whom have
support from both parties.
Regrettably, the Senate has not been allowed to make real progress
for the American people by reducing the number of judicial vacancies.
There were more than 80 vacancies when the year began. There were more
than 80 vacancies this past March when the Majority Leader was forced
to take the extraordinary step of filing cloture petitions on 17
district court nominations. There are now more than 80 vacancies once
again.
In stark contrast, there were only 29 vacancies at this point in
President George W. Bush's first term and we had lowered vacancies
during those four years to 28, not the 83 at which they stand today.
When George W. Bush was President, we routinely considered four to six
judges per week. In 2002, we confirmed 18 judges in 1 day. That is what
it takes to make real progress. The Senate should proceed to consider
and confirm all 19 judicial nominations ready for a final vote without
further delay.
There is no justification for holding up final Senate action on the
19 judicial nominations that have been approved by the Senate Judiciary
Committee and are pending on the Senate Executive Calendar. President
Obama has consistently reached across the aisle, consulted with home
State Senators from both parties and appointed moderate, well-qualified
judicial nominees. Seven of the 19 nominees currently waiting for final
Senate consideration are supported by Republican home State Senators.
Seventeen of these nominees received bipartisan support in the
Judiciary Committee. The Senate should be learning the lesson of the
recent elections and working in a bipartisan manner to consider and
vote on these nominees. It is time for the obstruction to end and for
the Senate to complete action on these nominees so that they may serve
the American people. Delay for delay's sake is wrong and should end.
Whatever justification Senate Republicans contended they had by
resort to their misapplication of the Thurmond Rule to stall judicial
nominations before the election is gone. The American people have voted
and chosen to reelect President Obama. The President is not a lame
duck. He is the President elected and reelected by the American people.
It is time for the Senate to vote on his judicial nominees.
From 1980 until this year, when a lame duck session followed a
presidential election, every single judicial nominee reported with
bipartisan Judiciary Committee support has been confirmed. According to
the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service, no consensus nominee
reported prior to the August recess has ever been denied a vote--before
now. That is something Senate Democrats have not done in any lame duck
session, whether after a presidential or midterm election.
Senate Democrats allowed votes on 20 of President George W. Bush's
judicial nominees, including one very controversial circuit court
nominee, in the lame duck session after the elections in 2002. I
remember, I was the Chairman of the Judiciary Committee who moved
forward with those votes. The Senate proceeded to confirm judicial
nominees in lame duck sessions after the elections in 2004 and 2006,
and proceeded to confirm 19 judicial nominees in the lame duck session
after the elections in 2010, as well. The reason that I am not listing
confirmations for the lame duck session at the end of 2008 is because
that year we had proceeded to confirm the last 10 judicial nominees
approved by the Judiciary Committee in September.
That is our history and recent precedent. Those across the aisle who
contend that judicial confirmations votes during lame duck sessions do
not take place are wrong. It is they with their obstruction who are
creating a wrongheaded precedent. The Senators from Kentucky,
Tennessee, Utah, Iowa, Arizona, Texas, Alabama, South Carolina and
Mississippi should all remember the judicial nominees from their home
States Democrats moved forward to confirm in lame duck sessions in
2002, 2004 and 2010.
If the Senate will be allowed to vote on these 19 judicial nominees,
we can help fill nearly one-quarter of our Nation's Federal judicial
vacancies. We can fill almost one-third of all judicial emergency
vacancies. Most importantly, we can help hardworking Americans to have
better access to justice.
I congratulate Judge Grimm and his family as well as the Senators
from Maryland who have continued to press for this day. There is no
reason the Senate should not be allowed to vote on the other 18 long-
pending judicial nominations. The American people deserve no less.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Iowa.
Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, today, for only the fourth time in over
70 years, we will confirm a Federal judge during a lame-duck session in
a Presidential election year. According to the Congressional Research
Service, the Senate has confirmed judicial nominees during a lame-duck
session in a Presidential election year on only three occasions since
1940. It occurred in 1944, 1980, and 2004. So for those who say we are
treating this President differently, I would say we have treated him
far better than most Presidents have been.
This year we have already confirmed 31 District Judges and five
circuit judges. That meets or exceeds the confirmations for
Presidential election years in recent memory.
That is more confirmations than we did in 2008; it exceeds the
district confirmations in 2004 and ties the circuit confirmations for
that year. It is the same number of district confirmations in 2000, and
it is considerably more than we confirmed in 1996. So for the past five
Presidential election years, this year stands near the top for judicial
confirmations.
Yet, despite that record, and despite the fact that we are about to
confirm yet another district court nominee, all we hear from the other
side are complaints. I must say, it makes it quite difficult to work
cooperatively with the other side when, no matter what you do, all you
hear are complaints.
Lately we have heard the other side argue that since the President
won reelection, we should not follow past
[[Page S7334]]
practice, but rather we should confirm a large number of nominations
during this lame duck session.
The last time a President was reelected--President Bush in 2004--we
heard a different tune from Democrats. That year the other side was in
no hurry to confirm President Bush's nominees. In fact, only 3 judicial
nominees were confirmed after the November 2004 election. That year,
following President Bush's reelection, 23 judicial nominations that
were pending either on the Senate Executive Calendar or in the
Judiciary Committee were returned to the President when the Congress
adjourned in December.
Recently one of my colleagues on the other side stated, ``From 1980
until this year, when a lame duck session followed a presidential
election, every single judicial nominee reported with bipartisan
Judiciary Committee support has been confirmed.''
I suppose this is meant to imply there is some long record of routine
confirmations following a Presidential election. But that is simply not
the case.
Let me tell my colleagues what that means: One Circuit confirmation
in 1980 and 3 District confirmations in 2004. That's it. From 1980
through 2008, those four nominations represent the entire list. There
were no such confirmations in 1984, 1988, 1992, 1996, 2000, or 2008.
Furthermore, limiting this list to ``reported with bipartisan
committee support'' fails to take into account that many judicial
nominees in the past administration were subjected to a ``pocket
filibuster.'' That means, of course, that they never had a hearing or
opportunity to be reported out of Committee. So it is somewhat
misleading to suggest the Senate routinely confirms nominees during
Presidential lame-duck sessions of Congress.
Again, the last time a President was reelected, only three of his
nominees were confirmed following the election. Today we will add to
that exclusive list, and the Senate has a time agreement for a vote on
a second District nominee before we adjourn.
This afternoon, we are considering the nomination of Paul William
Grimm to be United States District Judge for the District of Maryland.
With his confirmation, the Senate will have confirmed 159 of President
Obama's nominees to the District and Circuit Courts.
During the last Presidential election year, 2008, the Senate
confirmed a total of 28 judges, 24 district and four circuit. This
Presidential election year we have exceeded those numbers. We have
confirmed five circuit nominees, and Judge Grimm will be the 32nd
district judge confirmed. That is a total of 37 judges this year versus
28 in the last Presidential election year.
So once again, I want to set the record straight, and I hope I have
done so. Republicans have been more than fair to this President and his
judicial nominees.
Judge Grimm received his J.D. degree in 1976, graduating magna cum
laude from the University of New Mexico School of Law. He began his
legal career serving in the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General, JAG,
Corps. After resigning his active duty commission in 1979, he
established a general practice law partnership of Daniels and Grimm. In
1980, Grimm left the firm to serve as a prosecutor in the Baltimore
County state's attorney's office. In this position, he handled both
misdemeanor and felony cases. From 1981 to 1984, Judge Grimm served in
the Maryland attorney general's office as the chief of litigation and
administration for the Department of Licensing Regulation.
Judge Grimm had his first prolonged stint in private practice serving
as an attorney for the firm of Niles, Barton and Wilmer from 1984-1987.
He was initially hired as an associate, but was promoted to partner in
1985. At Niles, Barton and Wilmer, he handled products liability cases,
fidelity and surety cases, general tort cases, professional malpractice
cases, and construction cases. In 1987, he joined Jordan, Coyne, Savits
and Lopata as the managing partner of the Baltimore Branch. In 1991, he
returned to Niles, Barton and Wilmer when Jordan, Coyne closed its
Baltimore office.
Throughout his time in private practice, his typical clients included
government agencies, insurance companies, private corporations,
partnerships, law firms, accounting firms, and individuals.
In 1997, the U.S. District Judges for the District of Maryland
appointed Judge Grimm to be a United States Magistrate Judge. In 2006,
he was elevated to Chief United States Magistrate Judge.
Judge Grimm has served as an Adjunct Professor of law at the
University of Maryland, Francis King Carey School of Law, 1990-present,
and at the University of Baltimore School of Law, 1997-present. The
American Bar Association's Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary
has rated him unanimous well qualified.
I support this nomination and congratulate Judge Grimm.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Maryland.
Mr. CARDIN. Mr. President, I am pleased to join with Senator Mikulski
in recommending to the Senate the confirmation of Judge Paul William
Grimm of Maryland to be a U.S. district judge for the District of
Maryland.
I am very proud of the process Senator Mikulski has instituted for
making recommendations to the President to fill judicial appointments.
I believe that under this process, we are able to get the very best to
recommend to the President and then to our colleagues for confirmation.
Judge Grimm clearly falls within this line.
The Senate Judiciary Committee favorably reported Judge Grimm's
nomination by a voice vote on June 7 of this year. Judge Grimm was
nominated to fill the vacancy that was created in Maryland when U.S.
District Judge Benson E. Legg took senior status in June.
Judge Grimm brings a wealth of experience to this position. Early in
his career he served in the military in the Judge Advocate General's
Corps, handled commercial litigation in private practice, and served as
an assistant attorney general in Maryland. He also sat as a Federal
magistrate judge in Maryland for 15 years.
Judge Grimm was born in Japan and received his undergraduate degree
from the University of California in 1973, and graduated from the
University of New Mexico School of Law in 1976. Judge Grimm was
admitted to the Maryland bar in 1977.
He has strong roots, legal experience, and community involvement in
the State of Maryland. Judge Grimm lives with his family in Towson, MD.
After graduating law school, Judge Grimm began his legal career in
Maryland as a captain in the United States Army Judge Advocate
General's Corps at Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD. He then worked in the
Pentagon before heading back to the Baltimore region, alternating
between working in private practice and working in the State attorney
general's office, while continuing to serve as a U.S. Army JAG Corps
officer with occasional stints in the Pentagon.
In 1997 Judge Grimm was selected as a magistrate judge by the judges
of the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland. In 2006, Judge
Grimm became the chief U.S. magistrate judge in Baltimore.
In 2009, Chief Justice John Roberts appointed Judge Grimm to serve as
a member of the Advisory Committee for the Federal Rules of Civil
Procedure. In 2010 he was designated as chair of the Civil Rules
Committee's Discovery Subcommittee.
I mention that because it is evident from the Chief Judge's
appointment that Judge Grimm is a nationally recognized expert on
cutting-edge issues of law and technology. He has written numerous
authoritative opinions, books, and articles on the subject of evidence,
civil procedure, and trial advocacy. He also continues to inspire the
next generation of lawyers by teaching classes at both of our law
schools. On several occasions Professor Grimm has been awarded the
title of outstanding adjunct faculty member. As a magistrate judge,
Judge Grimm has found time not only to teach but to be an outstanding
professor. He has shown his commitment in so many ways to public
service.
As a magistrate judge, Judge Grimm is responsible for handling
criminal matters such as issuing search warrants, conducting
preliminary criminal proceedings, and presiding over misdemeanor
criminal cases.
Judge Grimm is also responsible for handling civil cases and has
presided
[[Page S7335]]
over bench and jury trials with the consent of the parties. Judge Grimm
has conducted settlement conferences, resolved discovery disputes, and
handled other nondispositive matters at the referral of the U.S.
district judges.
Judge Grimm has estimated that in his 15 years as a magistrate judge
he presided over approximately 50 civil trials, 150 criminal
misdemeanor trials, including jury and bench trials. He is well
qualified and has the experience necessary to serve on our district
court. He received a unanimous rating of well qualified, the highest
possible rating for a judicial nominee from the American Bar
Association's Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary. As I
previously mentioned, he received a voice vote of confidence from the
Judiciary Committee.
I am absolutely confident that Judge Grimm possesses the
qualifications, temperament, and passion for justice to make him an
outstanding United States District Court judge for the District of
Maryland.
I urge my colleagues to vote for his confirmation here on the Senate
floor.
I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Maryland.
Ms. MIKULSKI. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order
for the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Ms. MIKULSKI. Mr. President, I rise to speak on the pending
nomination of Judge Paul Grimm on which we will vote shortly.
I am so proud to be here to support the nomination of Judge Paul
Grimm. He is a stellar Marylander, he has an outstanding legal mind,
and he has been nominated to serve on the District Court of Maryland.
Senator Cardin and I recommended Judge Grimm to President Obama with
the utmost confidence in his abilities, talent, and competence for the
job. The ABA agreed with us and gave him the highest rating of
``unanimously well qualified.'' I wish to thank Senators Reid and
McConnell for breaking the logjam so that we could bring this to
everyone's attention, and I commend Senator Leahy for the swift
movement through the committee process.
I have had an opportunity to recommend several judicial nominees and
I take my advise-and-consent responsibility very seriously. I have four
criteria. My nominee must have absolute integrity, judicial competence
and temperament, a commitment to core constitutional principles, and a
history of civic engagement in Maryland, so the nominee is familiar
with the life and times of the people they will adjudicate over. I
mention these standards often because I mean it.
Judge Grimm does exactly that. He brings the right hard-working
values to the bench, and the necessary experience, having sharpened his
legal skills for many years as a litigator, a Judge Advocate General, a
lawyer, a JAG officer, an indispensable asset to the District Court of
Maryland, and as a chief magistrate judge.
Judge Grimm knows what it means to be of service to the legal
profession, to Maryland, and to the country. He is a public servant
first and foremost. His father was in the military. Judge Grimm started
very early prosecuting courts martial while attending law school on an
ROTC scholarship. He then served in the JAG Corps for 3 years beginning
at Aberdeen Proving Ground and later at the Pentagon. But it didn't end
there. He went on to serve as a Reserve JAG officer for 22 years,
ultimately retiring as a decorated lieutenant colonel.
His life and resume are a display of civic engagement, from his
service on numerous bar associations in Maryland, professional
organizations, and, at the same time, he was a Boy Scout leader. He
also helped young students in high school learn how to do a mock court.
Let's go, though, to his being a good lawyer. Judge Grimm is known as
a trailblazer in the Maryland community. He is well respected not only
for his extensive writing and teaching but his commitment to the
improvement of the practice of law and the administration of justice.
He has spent his entire legal career in Maryland, and he is absolutely
prepared for service on the court and for the court. He has already
served 16 years as a magistrate judge in the District Court of
Maryland, and for 6 of those years he has been the chief magistrate.
Prior to taking the bench, Judge Grimm served 13 years as a litigator
in private practice and handled primarily civil cases. He was an
assistant attorney general for Maryland and a prosecutor in Baltimore
County. Also, as my colleagues can see, his experience and service are
unparalleled. Most recently, he served on the advisory committee for
the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure since 2009 and was later
designated as the chair of the Discovery Subcommittee.
He has been honored by the ABA, the Maryland Daily Record, which is a
kind of legal paper in Maryland, and he has been twice recognized by
the University of Maryland Law School. By every index of what makes a
great judge--absolute integrity, judicial temperament, legal
experience, well regarded by peers and all who appear before him--I
think this is a nominee we want to maintain a constitutional imperative
of an independent judiciary, where judges come from the best background
and have the best values. It is critical that we have judges who are
able to do that, and I hope my colleagues join me in voting for Judge
Paul Grimm.
I also hope with the other 19 nominees on the calendar, many of whom
have been voice-voted through the committee, we also confirm those
during this lameduck session.
Mr. President, I have completed my presentation on the outstanding
qualifications of Judge Paul Grimm. I now yield the floor and note the
absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. LIEBERMAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order
for the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. LIEBERMAN. Mr. President, I yield back all time on this side.
Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, I yield back all time on this side.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. All time has expired.
The question is, Will the Senate advise and consent to the nomination
of Paul William Grimm, of Maryland, to be United States District Judge
for the District of Maryland?
Mr. LIEBERMAN. 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 clerk will call the roll.
The assistant legislative clerk called the roll.
Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from Minnesota (Mr. Franken),
the Senator from Oregon (Mr. Merkley), the Senator from West Virginia
(Mr. Rockefeller), the Senator from Vermont (Mr. Sanders), and the
Senator from Oregon (Mr. Wyden) are necessarily absent.
Mr. KYL. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator
from Illinois (Mr. Kirk) and the Senator from Louisiana (Mr. Vitter).
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Are there any other Senators in the Chamber
desiring to vote?
The result was announced--yeas 92, nays 1, as follows:
[Rollcall Vote No. 217 Ex.]
YEAS--92
Akaka
Alexander
Ayotte
Barrasso
Baucus
Begich
Bennet
Bingaman
Blumenthal
Boozman
Boxer
Brown (MA)
Brown (OH)
Burr
Cantwell
Cardin
Carper
Casey
Chambliss
Coats
Coburn
Cochran
Collins
Conrad
Coons
Corker
Cornyn
Crapo
DeMint
Durbin
Enzi
Feinstein
Gillibrand
Graham
Grassley
Hagan
Harkin
Hatch
Heller
Hoeven
Hutchison
Inhofe
Inouye
Isakson
Johanns
Johnson (SD)
Johnson (WI)
Kerry
Klobuchar
Kohl
Kyl
Landrieu
Lautenberg
Leahy
Lee
Levin
Lieberman
Lugar
Manchin
McCain
McCaskill
McConnell
Menendez
Mikulski
Moran
Murkowski
Murray
Nelson (NE)
Nelson (FL)
Paul
Portman
Pryor
Reed
Reid
Risch
Roberts
Rubio
Schumer
Sessions
Shaheen
Shelby
[[Page S7336]]
Snowe
Stabenow
Tester
Thune
Toomey
Udall (CO)
Udall (NM)
Warner
Webb
Whitehouse
Wicker
NAYS--1
Blunt
NOT VOTING--7
Franken
Kirk
Merkley
Rockefeller
Sanders
Vitter
Wyden
The nomination was confirmed.
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that notwithstanding
the previous order with respect to treaty document 112-7, the vote on
ratification will occur at 2:15 Tuesday, tomorrow, December 4, with all
the provisions of the previous orders remaining in effect. What this
does is rather than having the vote at noon on the disability treaty,
we would have it after our caucus.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
Mr. DeMINT. Mr. President, I object.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Objection is heard.
Under the previous order, the motion to reconsider is considered made
and laid on the table.
____________________