[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 76 (Monday, May 18, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Page S2949]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              NOMINATIONS

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, it seems as if every day the majority leader 
keeps telling us how great the Senate is working--better than ever, he 
says. Let's take a look at a couple of things today.
  The growing backlog on nominations is another story. There are more 
than 100 nominations pending in committees. This is an interesting way 
the Republicans do this. They say we do not have anything on the 
calendar. We cannot have anything on the calendar if they do not report 
them out of the committees.
  There are 48 nominations currently pending in the Foreign Relations 
Committee, including Ambassadors of really important countries, such as 
Pakistan, Finland, Sweden, Kosovo, and many other countries. The 
Environment and Public Works Committee has 11 pending nominations, and 
9 nominations are waiting in the HELP Committee. At the Homeland 
Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, there is a score--many of 
them there. There are eight nominations awaiting consideration in the 
banking committee. Seven are pending in commerce, and six await Senate 
Finance Committee action.
  In the Judiciary Committee--I spoke here a little while ago, a week 
ago, about Judge Felipe Restrepo. He is a Federal district court judge 
in Pennsylvania. It is being delayed, even though both Senators--a 
Democrat and Republican--from Pennsylvania want this nomination to go 
forward. So they say. He is one of 20 pending nominations awaiting in 
the Judiciary Committee. That is unbelievable. Committee consideration 
is not the only obstacle to confirmation, the Republican leader also 
slows down the consideration once they get here on the floor.
  The Republicans' refusal to consider the President's judicial 
nominations is especially pronounced, especially when you consider that 
the assistant Republican leader came to the floor here and said we are 
going to move these expeditiously. He is from Texas. We had one judge, 
George Hanks, who was confirmed by a vote of 91 to 0. He was only the 
second judicial nomination we have considered in this Republican 
Congress in some 5 months.
  Imagine that. We know there are judicial emergencies and vacancies 
throughout the country, but we have only considered two judges in this 
entire Congress.
  When this year started, we had 12 emergencies. Now there are 25, more 
than double from the beginning of this year alone. In Texas alone, 
there are seven judicial emergencies, the most of any State in the 
Nation.
  Judge Olvera has been nominated to fill a judicial emergency in the 
Southern District of Texas. His nomination certainly was not 
controversial. It was reported out of the Judiciary Committee by voice 
vote in February.
  At his hearing, as I indicated earlier, the assistant majority leader 
said he wanted to move these judges expeditiously. If this is 
expeditiously, I do not know what the term means. Why is this 
noncontroversial nomination being delayed for months? Is this the type 
of swift type of confirmation that Texans can expect from their 
leaders?
  If our Republican colleagues would make good on their public 
statements and confirm these qualified executive and judicial 
nominations before the Memorial Day holiday, that would be great. But 
they are not going to. Is the Senate working better than ever? I do not 
think so.

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