[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 176 (Monday, December 7, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Page S8443]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                        Embracing All Religions

  Mr. MERKLEY. Mr. President, earlier today Donald Trump called for the 
United States to ban all Muslims from entering our Nation. This is the 
single worst idea I have heard from any Presidential candidate, ever. 
It is inconsistent with our American values. It is inconsistent with 
our national history.
  The Nation has looked back on events in our past--for example, the 
Chinese Exclusion Act or the internment of Japanese American citizens--
and realized it was a huge mistake to make one significant group our 
enemy. It is inconsistent with the vision of our Constitution, in which 
all came to the United States seeking to escape persecution and to be 
able to practice whichever religion they chose. The Founders of the 
United States did not seek to make our Nation one in which only a 
single religion could be practiced. They did not seek to establish one 
religion as a preeminent religion. They instead wanted a safe haven 
where people could worship as they pleased, which is the heart of our 
First Amendment.
  This idea is wrong and wrongheaded. It is wrong in the context that 
we are not at war with Islam. In fact, we are working in partnership 
with Islamic nations to take on a terrorist group known as ISIS. It is 
wrong in that all patriotic Americans of every religion are working 
together to take on this terrorist group known as ISIS. In addition to 
being wrong, it is wrongheaded in that making Islam the enemy is 
playing straight out of ISIS's playbook, which wants to create a war 
between America and Islam. In that sense, this type of irresponsible 
statement endangers our national security rather than strengthens it.
  So let others stand up and embrace our citizens of every religion and 
recognize the partnership we are in together to take on terrorist 
forces, that we are working in partnership with a variety of nations 
that have a whole variety of religions, including Islam, to take on the 
terrorist force known as ISIS.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Tennessee.
  Mr. ALEXANDER. Mr. President, in a few minutes we will be voting on 
the President's nominee to fill a vacancy in the Eastern District of 
Tennessee. Mr. McDonough is well known to me and is well known to my 
colleague, Senator Corker.
  Mr. McDonough received his undergraduate degree from Sewanee before 
going on to law school at Vanderbilt. He was a member of a prominent 
Chattanooga law firm, Miller & Martin. He was chief of staff to 
Chattanooga's mayor. He is a well-qualified man. We are fortunate that 
he is willing to serve, and we are fortunate the President nominated 
him. I urge my colleagues to vote for him.
  I yield the floor.
  Mr. President, I yield back all time.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
  Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The question is, Will the Senate advise and consent to the McDonough 
nomination?
  Mr. ALEXANDER. 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 legislative clerk called the roll.
  Mr. CORNYN. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the 
Senator from Missouri (Mr. Blunt), the Senator from Indiana (Mr. 
Coats), the Senator from Texas (Mr. Cruz), the Senator from South 
Carolina (Mr. Graham), the Senator from Georgia (Mr. Isakson), the 
Senator from Illinois (Mr. Kirk), the Senator from Kansas (Mr. Moran), 
the Senator from Kansas (Mr. Roberts), the Senator from Florida (Mr. 
Rubio), and the Senator from Pennsylvania (Mr. Toomey).
  Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from Vermont (Mr. Sanders) is 
necessarily absent.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Lankford). Are there any other Senators in 
the Chamber desiring to vote?
  The result was announced--yeas 89, nays 0, as follows:

                      [Rollcall Vote No. 332 Ex.]

                                YEAS--89

     Alexander
     Ayotte
     Baldwin
     Barrasso
     Bennet
     Blumenthal
     Booker
     Boozman
     Boxer
     Brown
     Burr
     Cantwell
     Capito
     Cardin
     Carper
     Casey
     Cassidy
     Cochran
     Collins
     Coons
     Corker
     Cornyn
     Cotton
     Crapo
     Daines
     Donnelly
     Durbin
     Enzi
     Ernst
     Feinstein
     Fischer
     Flake
     Franken
     Gardner
     Gillibrand
     Grassley
     Hatch
     Heinrich
     Heitkamp
     Heller
     Hirono
     Hoeven
     Inhofe
     Johnson
     Kaine
     King
     Klobuchar
     Lankford
     Leahy
     Lee
     Manchin
     Markey
     McCain
     McCaskill
     McConnell
     Menendez
     Merkley
     Mikulski
     Murkowski
     Murphy
     Murray
     Nelson
     Paul
     Perdue
     Peters
     Portman
     Reed
     Reid
     Risch
     Rounds
     Sasse
     Schatz
     Schumer
     Scott
     Sessions
     Shaheen
     Shelby
     Stabenow
     Sullivan
     Tester
     Thune
     Tillis
     Udall
     Vitter
     Warner
     Warren
     Whitehouse
     Wicker
     Wyden

                             NOT VOTING--11

     Blunt
     Coats
     Cruz
     Graham
     Isakson
     Kirk
     Moran
     Roberts
     Rubio
     Sanders
     Toomey
  The nomination was confirmed.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the Senate will 
proceed to the consideration of the following nominations, which the 
clerk will report.
  The legislative clerk read the nominations of Kenneth Damian Ward, of 
Virginia, a Career Member of the Senior Executive Service, for the rank 
of Ambassador during his tenure of service as United States 
Representative to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical 
Weapons; and Linda I. Etim, of Wisconsin, to be an Assistant 
Administrator of the United States Agency for International 
Development.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the question is, 
Will the Senate advise and consent to the Ward and Etim nominations en 
bloc?
  The nominations were confirmed en bloc.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the motions to 
reconsider are considered made and laid upon the table and the 
President will be immediately notified of the Senate's action.

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