[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 163 (Tuesday, September 21, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Page S6560]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                Nomination of Margaret Irene Strickland

  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, today the Senate will vote on the 
nomination of Margaret Strickland for the U.S. District Court for the 
District of New Mexico.
  For nearly 15 years, Ms. Strickland has served the people of New 
Mexico as a public defender and a civil rights attorney. With her 
extensive qualifications and distinguished career in public service, 
Ms. Strickland will make an excellent addition to the New Mexico 
District Court.
  She began her legal career in the Law Offices of the Public Defender 
for the State of New Mexico, a role in which she handled nearly every 
type of criminal case. Over the years--and this is an amazing number--
she has tried nearly 90 cases. The vast majority of her practice has 
been in Federal court.
  Here in the Senate, Ms. Strickland boasts the strong support of her 
home State Senators, Senators Heinrich and Lujan. Her nomination also 
received bipartisan support in our Judiciary Committee. She received a 
``well qualified'' rating from the American Bar Association.
  And like so many of the nominees coming from the Biden 
administration, she really shows professional diversity in her 
background. As a former public defender and civil rights attorney, she 
will offer a legal perspective that we often find missing from the 
bench. She has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to equal justice 
under the law, and as a judge, she will ensure that every voice is 
heard in the courtroom.
  I urge my colleagues to support her nomination.