[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 153 (Wednesday, October 30, 2013)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7663-S7666]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
NOMINATION OF JACOB J. LEW, OF NEW YORK, TO BE UNITED STATES GOVERNOR
OF THE INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND; UNITED STATES GOVERNOR OF THE
INTERNATIONAL BANK FOR RECONSTRUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT; UNITED STATES
GOVERNOR OF THE INTER-AMERICAN DEVELOPMENT BANK; UNITED STATES GOVERNOR
OF THE EUROPEAN BANK FOR RECONSTRUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT
Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that cloture on
Calendar No. 63 be withdrawn and that the Senate proceed to vote on
confirmation of the nomination; that the motion to reconsider be made
and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate; that no
further motions be in order; and that the President be immediately
notified of the Senate's action.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Under the previous order, the motion to invoke cloture on the Lew
nomination is withdrawn.
Is there any further debate? If not, the question is on agreeing to
the nomination of Jacob J. Lew, of New York, to be United States
Governor of the International Monetary Fund; United States Governor of
the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development; United
States Governor of the Inter-American Development Bank; United States
Governor of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
The nomination was confirmed.
Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the cloture vote
on the Watt nomination occur immediately following the swearing in of
Senator-elect Booker, of New Jersey, tomorrow, and the Senate proceed
to legislative session and a period of
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morning business for debate only, with Senators permitted to speak
therein for up to 10 minutes each.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Republican leader.
Tribute to Senator Chiesa
Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, as we all know, today is Senator
Chiesa's last day in the Senate.
And while the Senator has only been here four months, it has been an
interesting few months to say the least. He has found himself right in
the middle of everything from the farm bill to the immigration bill, to
the debate over Syria, to an October I am sure he will not soon forget.
He has had to work out of a temporary office, complete with vinyl
siding and plastic chairs. He was here for less than an hour before
having to take his first vote. He has had to deal with 99 Senators
pronouncing his name 99 different ways. And one of our colleagues from
Arizona threatened to quote ``waterboard'' the Senator if he didn't
support a particular bill. I haven't asked how that situation ended up
working out, but I see the Senator from New Jersey is still here.
Bottom line: Senator Chiesa is going to have quite a few stories for
his family--for his wife Jenny and his kids, Al and Hannah. I know he
is eager to get back home to see them--and catch up on some Notre Dame
football--too. Even though he tells us his rank is ``fourth'' out of
four in the family pecking order.
Well, that is at least better than 100th out of 100. But Senator
Chiesa has not let his lack of Senate seniority stand in the way of
pushing important issues.
Human trafficking was his focus as Attorney General, and it has been
his focus here too. He has helped convene committee hearings about it,
he has raised the issue with administration officials, he has embarked
on a series of school visits to educate young folks on the issue, and
he has worked with the Junior Senator from Ohio to advance awareness
through the Caucus to End Human Trafficking. His determination is
something we all admire. I know a lot of it comes from his strong
Catholic faith. Much of it must come from his upbringing too: this is a
Senator who lost his father and was forced to become the man of the
house when he was just 8 years old.
Last year, Senator Chiesa said this:
If someone had ever said 20 years from now you'd be the
attorney general of New Jersey, I would have laughed . . . I
didn't think I'd even have met the attorney general by the
age of 46.
Well, he has done more than that. He can add Senator to his resume
too--a Senator who has made the most of his time here, who has done
good work, who we have all enjoyed getting to know. So, Senator Chiesa
can be proud of his service. We thank him for it, and we look forward
to welcoming our newest colleague from New Jersey.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Illinois.
Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, before I make these remarks, let me join
in thanking the Senator from New Jersey. Although his tenure in the
Senate was brief, he was here during a very exciting and interesting
time in American political history. We thank him for his service on
behalf of New Jersey and wish him the very best in his future
endeavors.
Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, the President has nominated three
extraordinarily well-qualified Americans--appellate lawyer Patricia
Millett, Georgetown Law professor Nina Pillard and DC District Judge
Robert Wilkins--to serve on the DC Circuit, the second most important
court in the Nation. The DC Circuit currently has 8 active judges out
of 11 authorized judgeships.
These nominees should be given an up-or-down vote on the Senate
floor.
Patricia Millett is the first nominee up for consideration. Ms.
Millett, who is currently in private practice, is recognized as one of
the leading appellate lawyers in the country.
She has argued 32 cases before the Supreme Court and dozens more in
other appellate courts.
Ms. Millett served in the Solicitor General's office under both
Democratic and Republican presidents. Seven former Solicitors General--
including prominent Republicans Paul Clement, Ted Olson and Ken Starr--
sent a letter in support of Ms. Millett saying she ``has a brilliant
mind, a gift for clear, persuasive writing, and a genuine zeal for the
rule of law. Equally important, she is unfailingly fair-minded.''
At her hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, no Senator
questioned Ms. Millett's qualifications or fitness for the Federal
bench. She is simply an outstanding nominee.
Let me tell you why I have a personal interest in her nomination.
Ms. Millett is also a proud daughter of Illinois. She grew up in
Marine, a small town in the southern part of the State that I know
well. Her mother was a nurse and her father was a history professor at
Southern Illinois University--Edwardsville, one of my favorite
campuses.
Ms. Millett graduated summa cum laude from the University of Illinois
and magna cum laude from Harvard Law School. She clerked for two years
for Judge Thomas Tang on the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.
She is part of a military family. Her husband, Robert King, served in
the Navy and was deployed as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Ms. Millett also comes highly recommended by distinguished members of
the Illinois legal community.
I received a letter from Patrick Fitzgerald, the former U.S. Attorney
for the Northern District of Illinois, expressing ``strong support''
for Ms. Millett's nomination and urging ``prompt consideration of her
candidacy on the merits.''
I also received a letter from 28 prominent attorneys including former
Illinois Governor James Thompson, a Republican, and current Illinois
State Bar Association president Paula Holderman.
They expressed their strong support for Ms. Millett, saying that: she
embodies the evenhandedness, impartiality, and objectivity required for
the Federal judiciary, as evidenced by her more than 10 years of
service in the Solicitor General's office in both the Clinton and Bush
administrations.
The bottom line is that Ms. Millett is an outstanding nominee with
broad support from across the ideological spectrum. There is no
question that she is well-qualified to serve on the bench, and she will
serve with distinction.
I urge my colleagues to give her a chance with an up-or-down vote.
She does not deserve to have her nomination filibustered. If there is
anyone who can step forward and question this nominee's qualifications,
they should do so. They have not to date.
Some of my Republican colleagues have accused the President of trying
to ``pack'' the DC Circuit by making nominations to fill the
outstanding vacancies in that court. This argument is simply not
credible. Filling vacancies for existing judgeships is not court
packing. These judgeships are authorized by law, and it is incumbent
upon the President to nominate qualified candidates to fill them.
Others across the aisle have argued that the DC Circuit does not have
a high enough caseload--there are just not enough cases--to justify a
full complement of 11 judges. I note that these same Republican
Senators did not make that argument in 2005 when the Senate confirmed
Janice Rogers Brown and Thomas Griffith to the 10th and 11th judgeships
on the DC Circuit. When the Senate confirmed the 10th and 11th
judgeships in the DC Circuit in 2005, they were the choices of the
Republican side of the aisle, even though these confirmations, which we
approved, reduced the Court's workload to fewer cases per active judge
than what we would see if President Obama's nominees were confirmed.
On April 5, the Judicial Conference of the United States, which is
led by Chief Justice John Roberts, made its Federal judgeship
recommendations for the 113th Congress. The Judicial Conference is
nonpartisan, and according to its letter, its recommendations ``reflect
the judgeship needs of the Federal judiciary.'' The Judicial Conference
did not recommend stripping any judgeships from the DC Circuit. So this
argument on the other side of the aisle finds no support in the non-
partisan Judicial Conference's recommendations.
My Republican colleagues like to argue about workload statistics when
it comes to the DC Circuit, but according to the Washington Post fact
checker Glenn Kessler, who I have come to
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know, ``The voluminous and detailed statistics on the appeals courts
allows each side to pick and choose the stats that support their
position.''
Republicans may claim the DC Circuit's workload is too light, but in
the Washington Post Mr. Kessler points out that by some metrics, the DC
Circuit ``could be very well in first place'' when it comes to
workload.
I also note that one of my Republican colleagues came to the floor
today and explained his opposition to Ms. Millett's nomination. In
doing so he cited a letter that the Senate Judiciary Committee
Democrats sent in 2006 seeking a hearing postponement on Peter Keisler,
who was nominated to fill the 11th seat on the DC Circuit. I would like
to point out that this letter dealt with filling the 11th seat on the
DC Circuit. Ms. Millett is seeking the 9th seat. I also wish to point
out that the Senate had already voted to confirm a nominee to be the
11th judge on the DC Circuit, Thomas Griffith, just 1 year before this
2006 letter. I voted for Mr. Griffith on the floor.
The bottom line is that these judicial vacancies currently exist, it
is the President's job to nominate qualified men and women to fill
them, and there is no question that the President's nominee for this
position, Patricia Millett, is one of the most well-qualified persons
he could have found to fill this important position. No one comes
forward to criticize her background and her resume because, frankly, it
is hard to find a nominee with any stronger credentials for the Federal
bench.
Let's not play political games with this important nomination, nor
with people such as Patricia Millett, who have put their names forward,
have gone through this process, and have waited for us politicians to
work our will on the floor. She deserves an up-or-down vote.
I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record the letter from
Illinois lawyers supporting Patricia Millett for the U.S. Circuit Court
of Appeals for the DC Circuit as well as the letter, dated October 24,
from former U.S. attorney for the Northern District Patrick Fitzgerald
of Chicago.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
Patrick J. Fitzgerald,
Chicago, IL, October 24, 2013.
Re Patricia Millett.
Hon. Dick Durbin,
U.S. Senate, Hart Office Building,
Washington, DC.
Hon. Mark Kirk,
U.S. Senate, Hart Office Building,
Washington, DC.
Dear Senators Durbin and Kirk: I write in strong support of
the President's nomination of Patricia Millett to the United
States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, and
urge the Senate to promptly confirm her to this position.
I support the nomination of Patricia Millett because I
believe our system of justice will be positively impacted
with her as a member of our judiciary. Her career
accomplishments as a lawyer are extraordinary. Over the past
20 years, Patricia has argued 32 cases before the United
States Supreme Court and even more in the federal appeals
courts, including the D.C. Circuit. Her cases have spanned
the spectrum of legal issues that the D.C. Circuit confronts,
including constitutional law, administrative law, civil and
criminal procedure, commercial disputes, national security,
and civil rights. Importantly, she has represented parties on
both sides of those many issues, handling cases for the
government at every level (federal, state, and local),
private individuals, businesses, employers, employees, civil
rights plaintiffs, prosecutors and criminal defendants.
Patricia is a lawyer's lawyer who is committed to the rule of
law and stare decisis. She embodies the evenhandedness,
impartiality and objectivity required for the federal
judiciary, as evidenced by her more than 10 years of service
in the Solicitor General's office in both the Clinton and
Bush Administrations.
Patricia grew up downstate in the small farm town of
Marine. Her father was a history professor at Southern
Illinois University--Edwardsville and her mother was a
registered nurse and hospice practitioner. Patricia graduated
summa cum laude from the Univeristy of Illinois with Highest
Distriction in political science, before going on to the
Harvard Law School. The country would be well served to have
someone with her tremendous qualifications--and deep ties to
our state--hold such an important judicial appointment.
I would urge a prompt consideration of her candidacy on the
merits.
Sincerely,
Patrick J. Fitzgerald.
____
Illinois Lawyers Supporting Patricia Millett for the United States
Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit
September 27, 2013.
Hon. Dick Durbin,
U.S. Senate Hart Office Building,
Washington, DC.
Hon. Mark Kirk,
U.S. Senate Hart Office Building,
Washington, DC.
Dear Senators Durbin and Kirk: We write in strong support
of the President's nomination of Patricia Millett to the
United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia,
and urge the Senate to promptly confirm her to this position.
As lawyers here in Illinois, we care deeply about the rule of
law and the quality of our system of justice. We strongly
believe that stellar nominees with broad bipartisan support,
like Patricia, should be quickly confirmed to ensure our
justice system works effectively and efficiently. We feel
even more strongly about that knowing that Patricia is an
lllinois native.
We support the nomination of Patricia Millett because we
believe our system of justice will be positively impacted
with her as a member of our judiciary. Her career
accomplishments as a lawyer are extraordinary. Over the past
20 years, Patricia has argued 32 cases before the United
States Supreme Court and even more in the federal appeals
courts, including the D.C. Circuit. Her cases have spanned
the spectrum of legal issues that the D.C. Circuit confronts,
including constitutional law, administrative law, civil and
criminal procedure, commercial disputes, national security,
and civil rights. Importantly, she has represented parties on
both sides of those many issues, handling cases for the
government at every level (federal, state, and local),
private individuals, businesses, employers, employees, civil
rights plaintiffs, prosecutors, and criminal defendants.
Patricia is a lawyer's lawyer who is committed to the rule of
law and stare decisis. She embodies the evenhandedness,
impartiality, and objectivity required for the federal
judiciary, as evidenced by her more than 10 years of service
in the Solicitor General's office in both the Clinton and
Bush Administrations.
Patricia grew up downstate in the small farm town of
Marine. Her father was a history professor at Southern
Illinois University--Edwardsville and her mother was a
registered nurse and hospice practitioner. Patricia graduated
summa cum laude from the Univiery of Illinois with Highest
Distinction in political science, before going on to Harvard
Law School. We would be extremely proud to have someone with
tremendous qualifications--and deep ties to our state--hold
such an important judicial appointment.
We believe it is critically important that the country rise
above partisan politics when it comes to judicial
appointments. Such unwarranted politicization can become a
threat to the citizens' trust in the integrity of our great
judicial process. We, and the citizens of Illinois, are
counting on you and the U.S. Senate to do the right thing by
putting aside partisan politics and supporting Patricia's
nomination.
Sincerely,
Sergio Acosta, Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP; Sean M.
Berkowitz, Latham & Watkins; Robert L. Byman, Jenner &
Block; Vincent J. Connelly, Mayer Brown; Tyrone C.
Fahner, Mayer Brown; John N. Gallo, Sidley Austin LLP;
Paula H. Holderman, Winston & Strawn LLP; Donald G.
Kempf, Jr., Donald G. Kempf, Jr., P.C.; Steven F. Molo,
MoloLamken LLP; C. Barry Montgomery, Williams
Montgomery & John; Manuel Sanchez, Sanchez Daniels &
Hoffman LLP; Jeffrey Stone, McDermott Will & Emery LLP;
James R. Thompson, Winston & Strawn LLP; Christopher B.
Wilson, Perkins Coie.
Julie A. Bauer, Winston & Strawn LLP; Joel D. Bertocchi,
Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP; Linda T. Coberly, Winston &
Strawn LLP; J. Timothy Eaton, Shefsky & Froelich; James
R. Figliulo, Figliulo & Silverman, P.C.; Rodger A.
Heaton, Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP; James I. Kaplan,
Quarles & Brady LLP; Michael H. King, Edwards Wildman;
James S. Montana, Jr., Vedder Price; Lynn H. Murray,
Grippo & Elden; Suzanne Saxman, Seyfarth Shaw LLP;
Thomas P. Sullivan, Jenner & Block; Ann C. Tighe,
Cotsirilos Tighe & Streicker; Alison Siegler,
University of Chicago Law School.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from New Hampshire.
Mrs. SHAHEEN. Mr. President, I rise to join my colleague Senator
Durbin from Illinois in support of Patricia Millett's nomination to the
DC Circuit Court of Appeals. As he said so eloquently, Ms. Millett has
broad bipartisan support, extensive public and private sector
litigation experience, and she would make an outstanding addition to
the DC Circuit Court of Appeals. After graduating with honors from the
University of Illinois and Harvard Law School, Ms. Millett clerked at
the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. She then spent 15 years at the
Department of Justice, including 11 years as assistant to the Solicitor
General in
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both Republican and Democratic administrations. Again, I think it is
important to point out she has support on both sides of the aisle.
Ms. Millett has argued 32 cases before the Supreme Court as well as
dozens of others at the circuit court level, and she currently manages
her law firm's Supreme Court and national appellate practice.
She was unanimously rated ``well qualified'' by the American Bar
Association's Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary, and that is
their highest rating.
In addition to her professional work, Ms. Millett is very active in
her community. She has been a literacy tutor for over 20 years, and
through her church she volunteers at homeless shelters.
Ms. Millett has strong support across the political spectrum. Again,
as Senator Durbin pointed out, she has been endorsed by seven former
Solicitors General of the United States, three former Republican
attorneys general, law enforcement groups, and civil rights groups. She
also has tremendous support from retired members of the military and
groups representing military families.
In addition to being a highly qualified nominee, Ms. Millett will
fill one of three current vacancies on the 11-member DC Circuit Court.
Again, as Senator Durbin pointed out, the DC Circuit is considered the
second-most important court in our Nation. It is critical that it be
fully staffed with qualified judges. The court handles important
terrorism and detention cases, it hears a large volume of complex
issues involving administrative actions of the Federal Government. The
DC Circuit is also considered the most important civilian court for
members of the Armed Services and veterans.
Former DC Circuit Chief Judge Patricia Wald noted ``the DC Circuit
hears the most complex, time-consuming, labyrinthine disputes over
regulations with the greatest impact on ordinary Americans' lives:
clean air and water regulations, nuclear plant safety, health care
reform issues, insider trading and more.''
The Senate should have the opportunity to vote up or down on all of
President Obama's nominees to this important court. It is way past time
we took action on this nomination.
I urge my colleagues to support the Millett nomination.
I yield the floor.
Mr. KING. Mr. President, I wish to discuss the nomination of Patricia
Millett to be a judge on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. Pattie, as
she is known, is clearly well qualified. She has received support from
Attorneys General appointed by Republican Presidents, and from
conservative Solicitors General such as Ken Starr, Theodore Olson, and
Paul Clement. Her resume is stellar, her qualifications unquestioned,
and her support broad.
Although Senator Dick Durbin claims she is an ``Illinois native'' in
a letter of support to President Obama--and Senator Tim Kaine, in his
own letter of support to the President claims her as living in
Virginia--she is actually a daughter of the State of Maine. Her mother
grew up in the small town of Dexter, where Pattie went to school
through high school. She also attended school in Bangor, and for a
time, even worked at Eastern Maine General Hospital as it was then
known. She truly comes from good Maine stock.
Millett also juggles an extremely full life while excelling at most
everything she tries. The wife of a veteran, Pattie herself holds a
black belt in taekwondo--a pastime that she took up in order to spend
more time with her kids. She is also very engaged with her community
and volunteers at local homeless shelters. And when her husband was
deployed to Iraq, she singlehandedly took care of their kids and
managed to continue with her incredible career. She does all of these
things while preparing for and arguing cases before the United States
Supreme Court. In fact, she has argued more cases than any other
woman--over 30 cases to date.
I am pleased to fully support the confirmation of Patricia Millett, a
true daughter of Maine, to serve on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals.
____________________