[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 49 (Tuesday, March 21, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Page S1858]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       NOMINATION OF DANNY REEVES

  Mr. McCONNELL. As to another well-qualified judge whose nomination is 
currently being considered by the Senate, today, we will consider the 
nomination of U.S. District Court Judge Danny Reeves to serve on the 
U.S. Sentencing Commission. He is a great choice to serve on the 
Commission, and I look forward to the Senate confirming him.
  Among its responsibilities, the Commission is tasked with setting 
sentencing policy in our Federal judicial system. While I don't always 
agree with the policy outcomes, I appreciate the important role it 
plays in trying to ensure fairness in our Federal courts. Judge Reeves 
is well prepared for the task ahead. I am confident he will do great 
work on the Commission.
  His legal career began in Northern Kentucky University's Salmon P. 
Chase College of Law, where he graduated with honors in 1981. After 
graduation, he clerked with Judge Eugene Siler, then a district court 
judge in the Eastern and Western Districts of Kentucky. Upon finishing 
his clerkship, Judge Reeves entered private practice at what was then 
known as Greenebaum Doll & McDonald. He became a partner there in 1988.
  In 2001, I had the first of many indepth discussions with Judge 
Reeves. I was so impressed by him that I recommended him to then-
President George W. Bush and that he appoint Judge Reeves as a Federal 
district court judge in Kentucky. The Senate confirmed him without a 
dissenting vote, and he served with distinction on the Federal bench.
  Judge Reeves has been lauded for his steady devotion to the rule of 
law, for his commitment to fair rulings predicated on the facts and 
law--rather than his own political beliefs--and for his evenhanded 
approach to all who enter his courtroom. Because of his demonstrated 
appreciation for these precepts, Judge Reeves will be a significant 
asset to the Commission and an advocate for sound and sober 
decisionmaking.
  As many of you know, the Commission has been operating, to the extent 
it can, without a quorum. Not only does Judge Reeves' appointment stand 
as validation of his distinguished career as a respected jurist, but, 
along with the reappointment of U.S. District Court Judge Charles 
Breyer, it represents a return to an operational agency. Now the 
Commission can get back to the business for which it was designed, 
establishing uniform sentencing practices and policies that will be 
utilized in Federal courts all across the country.
  So I look forward to supporting and congratulating Judge Danny 
Reeves, as well as his wife Cindy and their sons Adam and Joe and their 
families, on his confirmation to the U.S. Sentencing Commission.

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