[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 17]
[Senate]
[Pages 24413-24414]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                  NOMINATION OF JUDGE MICHAEL MUKASEY

  Mr. KYL. Mr. President, I wish to address two topics quickly, and I 
appreciate the cooperation of the chairman of the Armed Services 
Committee.
  I first wish to speak to the President's announcement this morning 
that he is going to ask the Senate to confirm Judge Michael Mukasey as 
the new Attorney General for the United States. I had an occasion to 
meet with Judge Mukasey this morning, and I have been reading 
throughout the last several months a great deal of what he has written, 
particularly on matters of national security and intelligence 
gathering. I find him to be very thoughtful and a highly qualified 
person for this position.
  I simply wish to make the point to my colleagues that I am looking 
forward to this confirmation process, first as a member of the 
Judiciary Committee and then as a matter before the full body.
  I think my colleagues will find Judge Mukasey not only highly 
qualified, being a graduate of Columbia and Yale Law School, but also 
someone who has an extraordinarily fine reputation on the bench and 
bar.
  After practicing law and serving as a U.S. assistant attorney, Judge 
Mukasey, nominated by President Ronald Reagan, served 18 distinguished 
years on the Federal bench in New York as chief of the New York 
division. During that period of time, he acquired a reputation of the 
highest order, someone who is tough but fair, someone who is highly 
respected by his peers and the litigants who appeared before him and, 
as I said, who has presided over some of the most difficult and high-
profile cases to come before the bench, particularly in matters dealing 
with terrorism.
  I am looking forward to the confirmation process. I note that Members 
on both sides of the aisle have expressed concern that many of the 
positions in the Attorney General's Office have been vacant. I believe 
now there are 9 out of 15 high-level positions in the Department of 
Justice vacant, including the position of Attorney General. It is clear 
that we need to get the nominee dealt with as soon as possible.
  The average time for confirming an Attorney General is 3\1/2\ weeks, 
and I

[[Page 24414]]

am hopeful we can use our time wisely to confirm Judge Mukasey within 
that period of time.

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