[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 12]
[Senate]
[Page 16896]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     OBSTRUCTIONISM OF NOMINATIONS

  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I am sorry to see Republican obstructionism 
in the Senate return with such a vengeance. Just last November, the 
American people voted for change. They sent a new President to the 
White House to lead our government and sent a strong message that they 
expected Washington to put aside pettiness and work on their behalf on 
the serious problems facing them and the country. After only 6 months, 
it seems Republicans in the Senate have already forgotten that message.
  The Senate majority leader has spoken about the difficulties he is 
having getting any semblance of reasonable cooperation from across the 
aisle. The Republicans' obstruction of Presidential nominees is a stark 
example. Just a few years ago, they were intent on employing the 
``nuclear option'' and risking destruction of longstanding Senate rules 
and practices in order to ensure that every one of President Bush's 
nominees was confirmed. This year, with President Obama making the 
nominations, they have reverted to the anonymous holds that 
characterized their actions during the Clinton years. It is impossible 
to find a principle that justifies this obstruction. It is likewise 
difficult to see what ``extraordinary circumstances'' exist to justify 
filibusters and unwillingness to proceed to consider these nominations.
  The Senate's last week in session before the July 4th recess 
witnessed a Republican filibuster of the President's nominee to serve 
as the Legal Advisor at the State Department. The target was Harold 
Koh, the distinguished dean of the Yale Law School, a former high-
ranking official in the State Department as well as a former official 
at the Office of Legal Counsel at the Justice Department. That 
filibuster was unsuccessful, although 31 Republican Senators supported 
it. That was not the first attempt by Senate Republicans to filibuster 
executive branch nominees. Earlier this year, the Senate was forced to 
file for cloture to avert a Republican filibuster against the 
nomination of David Ogden to serve as the Deputy Attorney General.
  The destructive strategy culminated on June 25 when Republicans 
objected to confirming nine executive branch nominees reported by the 
Judiciary Committee for action by the Senate. They included five U.S. 
attorneys, 3 Assistant Attorneys General and the Chairman of the U.S. 
Sentencing Commission. In addition, the Judiciary Committee has 
reported 3 judicial nominees to begin filling the 74 vacancies in our 
Federal courts around the country. Republicans are turning the clock 
back to 10 years ago, when their obstructionism led to more than 100 
judicial vacancies and earned rebukes from Chief Justice Rehnquist.
  In an editorial entitled ``Call It Obstructionism,'' the New York 
Times on June 28 noted that the Senate adjourned for the July 4th 
recess with ``21 nominees for important posts awaiting confirmation.'' 
Thirteen had been reported by the Senate Judiciary Committee but 
remained stalled before the Senate by Republican objections. I hope 
this work period sees the cooperation from Senate Republicans that the 
American people have demanded.

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