[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.
____________________