[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 159 (Wednesday, September 26, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6314-S6315]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                     Nomination of Brett Kavanaugh

  Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I come to the floor to join my colleagues 
in lifting up the voices of women across the country who, right now, 
are being ignored, swept aside, and attacked, and in calling on our 
Republican colleagues to join us and do everything we can to make sure 
women are heard, listened to, and respected as we debate and deliberate 
over Judge Kavanaugh's nomination to the Supreme Court.
  Recently, I was back home in Washington State to talk to my 
constituents about the Supreme Court nomination, and I met a woman 
named Caitlin, who bravely told me and others about her experience of 
being sexually assaulted.

[[Page S6315]]

  She shared her story. It was July 2016. She had gone to a concert 
that evening, and she was sexually assaulted that night, but it was how 
she explained what happened after that I want to share today.
  She said:

       As a sexual assault survivor, I know firsthand that these 
     experiences have a lasting impact and the pain can't be 
     overstated. In the aftermath of sexual violence, it's common 
     to feel humiliated and to blame ourselves; to just want to 
     forget it ever happened. I didn't want to admit that I'd 
     ``allowed'' this to happen to me, so I tried to convince 
     myself that the attack had never occurred. For these reasons 
     and so many others, it's common to wait months or . . . years 
     before confiding in anyone, even those closest to us.

  Those were Caitlin's words to me. She went on, and she said:

       Going public with our stories, opens us up to criticism 
     ranging from victim blaming to accusations that we're liars 
     and attention-seekers, in addition to far uglier insults that 
     I won't repeat right now. I know that coming forward and 
     forever tying our names to one of the most terrifying, 
     degrading experiences of our lives isn't a decision to be 
     taken lightly.

  Sadly, Caitlin is not alone--far from it. She shared her story with 
me so her story can help others and so I can lift it up, make sure it 
is being heard, and help her make a difference.
  So this brings me to the question I want to ask today: What is this 
really about, right now, in this moment, in the U.S. Senate? There is a 
whole lot of confusion, a whole lot of mud being kicked up, and a whole 
lot of distractions, but what is this moment, right now, really about?
  It is not the question of this confirmation, although that is clearly 
important. It is not whether we think Judge Kavanaugh would make a good 
Supreme Court Justice or whether we can trust him, despite the lies we 
have already heard on issue after issue. Those are, of course, critical 
questions too. It is not even whether my colleagues will believe the 
allegations brought against him are true once all the evidence is 
weighed and all investigations are complete--although, of course, for 
many of us, that question must be dug into--but to me and millions of 
people across the country, this moment right now is about the answer to 
a few simple questions.
  Is the Senate a place where women are listened to, heard, and 
respected or is it still just one more place where women's voices are 
swept under the rug, where our voices are ignored, attacked, and 
undermined, right now, in this moment, in the U.S. Senate, while the 
President of the United States is saying a woman can't be trusted 
because ``she was drunk''; while he was tweeting that Dr. Ford can't be 
trusted because if it were really as bad as she said, she would have 
reported it back when she was 15 when it happened; while Republican 
leaders are saying they will ``plow right through'' this; while they 
are desperately trying to distract people by pointing to the process 
and the timing--anything but the substance; while they hire a woman 
they are calling their ``female assistant''--the lawyer they found to 
ask Dr. Ford the questions they can't trust the Republican men on the 
Judiciary Committee to ask; while they are already sweeping past this 
hearing and scrambling to line up a committee vote right away; while 
they are planning to stay through the weekend to rush to a vote on the 
Senate floor that their leader says is ``confident'' they ``will 
win''--before Dr. Ford has even had a chance to be heard and a vote 
that doesn't need to be rushed for any good reason?
  Right now, in this moment, in the U.S. Senate, these are the 
questions: Will women be heard or will women be ignored? Will women who 
are bravely coming forward to share the most horrific experience of 
their lives be trusted or will they be treated like liars? Will women, 
such as Caitlin, Dr. Ford, and Ms. Ramirez be respected, listened to, 
and heard or will they be pushed aside, put in their places, and told 
to remain quiet?
  Right now, in this moment, in the U.S. Senate, what kind of message 
will we send to women and girls across the country who are watching, 
who are looking to see how Dr. Ford is being treated; whether Ms. 
Ramirez, who is reportedly willing to testify to the committee under 
oath--whether her story will be taken seriously or even be 
investigated. They are grappling with what may be one of the toughest 
decisions of their lives: Should they report a sexual assault? Should 
they try to bring a perpetrator to justice and make sure he faces the 
consequences he deserves or should they keep it to themselves, worried 
about the ways they may be attacked or ignored or disbelieved, 
interrogated about what they drank or wore, whom they told and when?
  Right now, in this moment, in the U.S. Senate, what kind of message 
will we send to men and boys across the country who are watching right 
now, who will see whether women are empowered to share their 
experience, men facing the consequences of their actions, and a message 
sent that this is not acceptable behavior in high school, in college, 
or anywhere else, or who will, once again, hear that women can be 
attacked and abused and disrespected and used and then ignored and 
attacked all over again when they share their stories?
  I decided to run for the U.S. Senate after I saw Senators get those 
questions wrong in the Anita Hill hearings in 1991. I ran to be a voice 
for the women and men across the country who thought it was absolutely 
wrong for her to be ignored, attacked, swept aside, and disbelieved. I 
ran for, right here, in this moment, in the U.S. Senate, to make sure 
we never allow that to happen again. I ran for my daughter who sat by 
my side as we watched that all-male Judiciary Committee grill Anita 
Hill, for her daughters--my granddaughters--who are not quite old 
enough to understand what will happen on Thursday but who will grow up 
in a world that will treat them better or worse depending on how women 
are treated this week, for Caitlin and the women like her who shared 
their stories with me--some out loud in front of crowds, some in 
whispered voices after everyone else has left--and for the women we 
don't know who have buried their experiences deep down inside, who have 
kept their secret for decades because they have been too scared or 
intimidated to come forward and who are watching right now to see what 
happens here, right now, in this moment, in the U.S. Senate.
  I am proud to bring their voices to the floor today, and I am truly 
hopeful enough Republicans stand with them and that we can do the right 
thing.
  Republican leaders need to listen--truly listen--to the women coming 
forward to share their experiences. Republican leaders need to 
investigate--truly investigate--the allegations they are making and the 
inconsistencies in Judge Kavanaugh's statements on so many issues. 
Republican leaders need to end this scramble and rush. They need to 
slow it down and do this right.
  Women and men are watching. They are paying attention, and they are 
not going to forget.
  Thank you.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.