[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 7]
[Senate]
[Page 9886]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     NOMINATION OF MERRICK GARLAND

  Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, today marks the 99th day since President 
Obama nominated Judge Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court--99 days. 
Yet Republican colleagues continue to refuse to do their constitutional 
duty and act on the nomination.
  Just this week, we received more proof of Judge Garland's 
qualifications and another sign that Senate Republicans should act now. 
As we all know, the American Bar Association, a highly respected 
nonpartisan and nonideological group made up of qualified experts in 
the legal field, announced that it unanimously gave Judge Garland its 
highest rating of ``well qualified,'' and we know they have tough 
standards. After poring through the available records and speaking to 
colleagues and peers who know Judge Garland best, here are some of the 
examples of what they said about him in the ABA report: ``Garland's 
integrity is off the scales.'' He is a ``straight shooter'' who is 
``brilliant, exceptional, and phenomenal.''
  ``Garland is the best that there is. He is the finest judge I have 
ever met. There is no one who is his peer.''
  ``He is very sharp and works hard to find consensus among the panel. 
He decides the case but does not decide more than is necessary to 
resolve the case.''
  ``He always is the best prepared because he wants to get it right.''
  I would say that is pretty good. I would say all those quotes are 
amazing. In interviews with hundreds of individuals in the legal 
profession and community who knew Judge Garland, not one person uttered 
a negative word about him. I wish we could have that. Not one person 
uttered a negative word about him.
  The Senate has a constitutional duty, as we all know, to provide 
advice and consent on Judge Garland's nomination. Yet Senate 
Republicans have doubled down on the obstructionism and said we should 
not do anything before January 20, 2017, when the next President is 
sworn in. This is completely irresponsible. We have a Court right now 
that today came to a tied decision because they didn't have a full 
complement on the Court on a very important issue that could have been 
resolved.
  Just a week ago, Judge Garland gave the graduation speech at J.O. 
Wilson Elementary School in Northeast Washington, the school where he 
tutored students for the past 18 years. He told students in the 
graduation speech: ``Dreams don't come true by magic. . . . Go ahead 
and dream, and go ahead and work hard to make those dreams come true.''
  Judge Garland has worked hard for over 19 years, and we have seen his 
dedication to public service throughout his life and his career.
  People in Michigan and all across the country work hard and do their 
jobs every day to put food on the table, support their families, and 
build a brighter future for their children. They know they couldn't 
refuse to do a really important part of their job for 99 days in a row 
and get away with it.
  Tonight Members of Congress on both sides of the aisle will play in 
the annual Congressional Baseball Game. I hope it will not rain. 
Baseball, a game that runs for nine innings, requires nine players on 
the field at a time for a complete team. I hope my Republican 
colleagues who are playing in the game realize that ``we need nine'' is 
applicable both on the field and on the Court.
  I call on Republican colleagues to do their job and hold hearings and 
a vote for Judge Merrick Garland. You have the choice of voting yes or 
voting no, but we have the responsibility to have the vote.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Ohio.

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