[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 26 (Wednesday, February 9, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Page S603]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                        Supreme Court Nomination

  Mr. CARDIN. Madam President, article II, section 2, clause 2 of the 
Constitution provides that the President ``shall nominate, and by and 
with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint . . . judges 
of the Supreme Court.''
  One of the most important constitutional responsibilities I have as a 
Senator is to provide advice and consent on a President's Supreme Court 
nominee. A new Justice is someone who could serve for a generation or 
more and have a profound impact on the lives of all Americans for 
decades to come.
  Recently, Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer announced that he 
would step down once the Senate confirms his successor. In his remarks, 
while reflecting on what he learned during his nearly three decades on 
the High Court, he said:

       This is a complicated country. There are more than 330 
     million people, and my mother used to say it's every race, 
     it's every religion--and she would emphasize this--and it's 
     every point of view possible.

  Justice Breyer has built a reputation and cemented a legacy as a 
champion of civil rights and fought to protect American consumers and 
our very democratic system of government from the attempts to undermine 
our campaign finance system and weaken the sacred franchise of the 
right to vote. His thoughtful scholarship on the importance of 
safeguarding human rights and respecting international law will 
continue to influence democratic governments around the world for years 
to come.
  When I think about a successor to Justice Breyer, I want to see 
someone who can serve as a strong and thoughtful presence on a Court 
that is tasked with some of the most complicated legal problems and 
questions in our Nation. Each new Justice is someone who could serve 
for a generation or more and have a profound impact on the lives of all 
Americans for decades to come.
  The Supreme Court will make decisions on a broad range of issues, 
such as voting rights, healthcare, women's reproductive freedoms, equal 
rights for women, climate change policy, gun safety, campaign finance, 
civil rights issues, and so much more. A nominee should represent the 
values of our Constitution in such a way that allows us to expand, not 
restrict, the civil rights of all Americans and keep powerful special 
interests and corporations in check.
  The U.S. Constitution is not a perfect document, but its authors 
designed a system of government around the rule of law and protection 
from abuses of power. Abuses could come from special interests or the 
government itself. Our Constitution created the Supreme Court of the 
United States as the protector of our constitutional rights.
  A Justice should have a healthy respect for the separation of powers 
and checks and balances in our constitutional system. A nominee should 
strive to safeguard the independence of the judiciary and protect the 
prerogatives of each branch of government, including Congress and its 
duly-enacted laws. A strong nominee must be respectful of the diversity 
of the American experience and live up to his or her constitutional 
oath to uphold the Constitution and laws of the United States, as well 
as their judicial oath to ``administer justice without respect to 
persons, and do equal right to the poor and to the rich.''

  Thus far, 115 Justices have served in our Nation's history, including 
Baltimore's own Thurgood Marshall, who was the first Black Supreme 
Court Justice. It is long past time to improve diversity on our 
Nation's Court, which promises ``equal justice under the law'' to all 
those who enter its hollowed chambers. The Supreme Court and its 
Justices should look more like the America it serves in both its 
demographic and professional diversity.
  Madam President, I know you are aware that of the 115 Justices who 
have served throughout the history of the United States on the Supreme 
Court, 108 of those 115 are White males. We need greater diversity in 
our courts, and we need greater diversity on the Supreme Court of the 
United States.
  In Maryland, for years, I have worked diligently when vacancies arise 
to recommend highly qualified lawyers to the President who will better 
diversify our Federal bench. Our Federal district court in Maryland 
consists of 10 active district court judges who sit in Baltimore and 
Greenbelt. I am proud that our court reflects the breadth and depth of 
the demographic and professional diversity in Maryland, including the 
first Black woman to serve as a Federal judge in Maryland and the first 
Asian-American Federal judge in Maryland.
  Half of the active district judges in our State are now women. I 
chuckle when I recall the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader 
Ginsburg's comment on how many women should be on the Supreme Court, as 
she was only the second female Justice in the Court's history. This is 
her quote:

       When I'm sometimes asked `When will there be enough [women 
     on the Supreme Court]?' and I say `When there are nine,' 
     people are shocked. But there'd been nine men, and nobody's 
     [even] raised a question about that.

  Our Federal judges in Maryland come from a wide variety of legal 
backgrounds, including having served as prosecutors, public defenders, 
private law firm attorneys, and judges in other courts. Maryland now 
has its first Black U.S. attorney in our State's history, whom I was 
pleased, along with Senator Van Hollen, to recommend to President Biden 
and who was unanimously confirmed by the Senate.
  I believe that a more diverse court and justice system inspires the 
confidence of Marylanders who seek their day in court and want to be 
treated fairly, with dignity and respect.
  I am confident that the Senate, under the leadership of Majority 
Leader Schumer and Judiciary Chair Durbin, will conduct a fair hearing, 
vetting, and confirmation process for President Biden's eventual pick 
to replace Justice Breyer.
  I look forward to working with my colleagues in the Senate over the 
coming months to give full and fair consideration to President Biden's 
nominee to replace Justice Breyer in order to fill the upcoming vacancy 
on the Supreme Court. I am hopeful the American people will be proud of 
the process that unfolds in the Senate as they watch and learn more 
about the Constitution and the three branches of government that 
interact in this unique process to select the next Justice who will 
dispense justice on the highest Court in our land.
  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. BROWN. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.