Congressional Record—Senate S2263
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April 1, 2008 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S2263 received over 10,000 calls in the last 6 supported filibusters of Republican office. So far in the 110th Congress, we months. nominees. have confirmed only six appeals court This is a sign from the foreclosure I have not taken a partisan approach nominees for President Bush. hotline in Colorado. Since it was first to judicial confirmations. But I must Now, to meet the historical average, formed, this consortium between the say that today this body is failing to we will have to confirm 44 district government, the private sector, and do its confirmation duty. court and 11 appeals court nominees in nonprofit organizations, more than At both stages in the confirmation the next several months. If anyone be- 29,000 people in Colorado have called process—in the Judiciary Committee lieves that will happen, I have some this hotline. and on the Senate floor—Democrats oceanfront property in the Utah desert This legislation will go a long way are failing to meet not only historical I would like to sell them. toward helping us implement this kind standards but their own standards as Even if we did the completely unex- of program all the way across the coun- well. Democrats have vowed not to pected, President Bush would still try. The American dream of home own- treat President Bush’s nominees the leave office with a much smaller im- ership is today a dream which is be- way Republicans treated President pact on the Federal bench than his coming nebulous for the people of our Clinton’s nominees. Democrats are predecessor. country because of the huge fore- keeping that promise. Let me refer to closure crisis we have seen across the this chart. President Bush has so far appointed country which has caused such a de- In the past 10 months, for example, 295 life-tenured Federal judges, well be- cline in home values all across Amer- the Judiciary Committee, under Demo- hind President Clinton, who appointed ica. cratic control, has held a hearing on 346 at this same point in his presi- I believe it is our responsibility in only three appeals court nominees. dency. the Senate to move forward to provide During the same period under Presi- Now, some around here spin a yarn relief to these middle-class families dent Clinton, the Judiciary Committee about a supposed Republican blockade who are in danger of losing value in held a hearing on 12 appeals court against President Clinton’s judicial their homes and in danger of losing nominees—four times as many. And by nominees. Some blockade. It allowed their homes. This is an economic stim- the way, every one of those Clinton President Clinton nearly to set the all- ulus program which I think is timely nominees was confirmed, 11 of them time judicial appointment record. for us to act upon. I hope our col- within an average of only 48 days after On the Senate floor, Democrats are leagues will join us in voting aye on their hearing, and 9 of them without a not only failing to meet historical the motion to proceed to the housing single negative vote. standards, they are also failing to meet legislation. When I chaired the Judiciary Com- even their own standards. Eight years Mr. President, I yield the floor. mittee under President Clinton, we ago, when Democrats were in the mi- The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Sen- held no less than 10 hearings that in- nority during the last year of President ator from Utah. cluded more than 1 appeals court nomi- Clinton’s tenure, they were crystal f nee—10. While Democrats have con- clear about what the judicial confirma- trolled this body under President Bush, tion standard should be. THE CONFIRMATION PROCESS the Judiciary Committee has not held One senior Democrat on the Judici- Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, the a single one—not one. Ten to zero. ary Committee, for example, came to American people sent us here to get Democrats are certainly not treating this floor often in 2000, insisting over things done. One of the most important Bush nominees the way Republicans and over that Democrats had set the things we do is consider and vote on treated Clinton nominees. proper standard back in 1992. This is the President’s nominations to the The Democrats are not only failing what he said: Federal bench and the Department of to meet historical standards in the Ju- Justice. I say let us compare 1992, in which there diciary Committee, they are failing to was a Democrat majority in the Senate and I can put it simply: We are failing to meet even their own standards. When I a Republican President. We confirmed 11 do our duty. chaired the committee, Democrats court of appeals court nominees . and 66 Let me first address the judicial con- complained about every nomination judges in all. In fact, we went out in October firmation process. The Constitution hearing that did not include an appeals of that year. We were having hearings in gives to the President the authority to court nominee. With Democrats in September. We were having people confirmed nominate and appoint Federal judges. charge under President Bush, the Judi- in October. The Constitution gives to the Senate ciary Committee has held nearly a Today, as in 1992, a President Bush is the role of advice and consent as a dozen nomination hearings without a in the White House. check on the President’s appointment single appeals court nominee. Today, as in 1992, Democrats control power. There has already been one confirma- the Senate. The Senate gives the President ad- tion hearing this year without an ap- Today, Democrats do not have to vice about whether to appoint his judi- peals court nominee, and another one badger the majority to meet their judi- cial nominees by giving or withholding will take place on Thursday. cial confirmation standard. They are in our consent. We are supposed to do so The picture is the same on the Sen- the majority. All they have to do is through up-or-down votes. That is what ate floor, where Democrats are failing meet their own standard, and thus far the Constitution assigns us to do and to meet either historical standards or they have failed to do so. what the American people expect us to their own standards. do. President Bush is the fourth Presi- After all, if the Judiciary Committee That is what we are failing to do. dent in a row to face a Senate con- is not holding hearings on appeals For the record, since I was first elect- trolled by the other party during his court nominees now, if the Senate is ed, I have voted against only 5 of the last 2 years in office. not confirming nominees now, what more than 1,500 nominees to life- Under his three predecessors, the makes anyone think we are going to be tenured judicial positions the Senate Senate confirmed an average of 75 dis- doing so in September or October as has considered on the floor. Some of trict court nominees during their last 2 Democrats once said we should? my Democratic friends, including those years in office. More than half of them We will no doubt hear any number of with far less seniority, have voted were confirmed in the final year. rehearsed responses, retorts, and re- against more than three times as many Fifteen months into the current joinders. We will hear, for example, nominees of the current President 110th Congress, we have confirmed only that the White House has not sent us a alone. 31—only 31—district court nominees for nominee for every existing judicial va- I have strongly opposed all filibusters President Bush. cancy. True, but beside the point. against judicial nominees, both Demo- Similarly, under the previous three Lacking nominees for vacancies X, Y, crats and Republicans. Some of my Presidents, the Senate confirmed an and Z is no excuse for failing to hold Democratic friends opposed filibusters average of 17 appeals court nominees hearings and votes on nominees to va- of Democratic nominees but heartily during the President’s final 2 years in cancies A, B, and C. VerDate Aug 31 2005 02:10 Apr 02, 2008 Jkt 069060 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 4624 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\G01AP6.025 S01APPT1 wwoods2 on PRODPC68 with SENATE S2264 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE April 1, 2008 We have already heard about the so- hearings or votes on judicial nominees the details of the confirmation process, but called Thurmond rule, supposedly jus- who do have their home State Sen- they cannot help but notice the personal at- tifying grinding the confirmation proc- ators’ support. tacks on nominees, the emphasis on politics ess to a halt in this Presidential elec- over progress, and the basic unfairness of de- The U.S. Court of Appeals for the nying qualified nominees a fair up-or-down tion year. The Thurmond rule neither Fourth Circuit, for example, is one- vote by the committee and full Senate. is a rule nor can it be attributed to the third empty—one of the most impor- A year into the 110th Congress, the Judici- late Senator Strom Thurmond, a tant circuit courts in the country. ary Committee has held hearings for only former Judiciary Committee chairman. President Bush has sent us nominees to four appeals court nominees and has voted Here is what the Democrats said four of the five vacancies on that on only six. As a result, the full Senate has about the so-called Thurmond rule in court.