May 15, 2019 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S2877 savings, which everyone says is impor- close either to my and Senator HAR- The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Sen- tant, including the Congressional RIS’s screening commissions or to the ator from Ohio. Budget Office, and to help people have Judiciary Committee itself more than f peace of mind in retirement. What 75 articles. LEGISLATION SESSION could be more important? Importantly, several of Mr. Lee’s ar- Again, I thank my colleague from ticles demonstrate a continuity be- Maryland for allowing me to join him tween what he wrote and the positions MORNING BUSINESS on the floor to talk about the impor- he has continued to advocate well into tance of this legislation. his legal career. Mr. PORTMAN. Mr. President, I ask I urge my colleagues on both sides of For example, Mr. Lee was a vocal unanimous consent that the Senate the aisle to take a look at this. I hope critic of affirmative action, writing: proceed to legislative session and be in they will sign it and be cosponsors on ‘‘Our stance on affirmative action has a period of morning business, with Sen- this legislation. Let’s get this passed. always been that it ultimately hurts ators permitted to speak therein for up Let’s do it this year. the recipients instead of helping them. to 10 minutes each. I yield the floor. . . . Black students will unfortunately The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection? NOMINATION OF KENNETH KIYUL LEE be treated as inferiors because people Without objection, it is so ordered. Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, I will always assume that they were ac- rise today in opposition to the nomina- cepted solely because of their race.’’ f In a 2003 piece, written while he was tion of Kenneth Lee to the United MEASURES PLACED ON THE a practicing attorney, Mr. Lee criti- States Court of Appeals for the Ninth CALENDAR—H.R. 986 and H.R. 2157 cized the Supreme Court’s opinion in Circuit. the Bakke case, which upheld the use Mr. PORTMAN. Mr. President, I un- Mr. Lee has been nominated to a derstand there are two bills at the desk California seat on the Ninth Circuit of race as one of several criteria to be considered in college admissions. due for a second reading en bloc. over the objections of Senator HARRIS Mr. Lee wrote that ‘‘[t]he Supreme The PRESIDING OFFICER. The and myself. Neither Senator HARRIS Court can no longer hide behind the clerk will read the titles of the bills for nor I returned blue slips for Mr. Lee; wishful thinking of Bakke,’’ which he the second time. yet the majority moved forward with said ‘‘was based on the naive assump- The senior assistant bill clerk read as his nomination, disregarding our con- tion that universities would consider follows: cerns. race merely as a tie-breaker.’’ A bill (H.R. 986) to provide that certain In doing so, the majority is violating Mr. Lee has not backed away from guidance related to waivers for State innova- Senate norms and traditions by—for his opposition to affirmative action tion under the Patient Protection and Af- the first time ever—ignoring the lack and so the Congressional Black Caucus fordable Care Act shall have no force or ef- of a blue slip from the Judiciary Com- wrote a letter stating: ‘‘While many of fect. mittee’s ranking member. Let me re- [Mr. Lee’s] most disturbing writings A bill (H.R. 2157) making supplemental ap- peat: This has never been done before. propriations for the fiscal year ending Sep- have come from when he was in college tember 30, 2019, and for other purposes. There was no need to proceed with and law school, there is every indica- Mr. PORTMAN. In order to place the Mr. Lee’s nomination over our objec- tion that these views were well-settled bills on the calendar under the provi- tions. and carried through his career.’’ As has been true of many of my In a 2005 article, written years after sions of rule XIV, I would object to fur- Democratic colleagues, Senator HARRIS he graduated from law school, Mr. Lee ther proceeding en bloc. and I made it clear to the Trump ad- criticized President George W. Bush’s The PRESIDING OFFICER. Objec- ministration that we were ready to plan to allow undocumented immi- tion having been heard, the bills will be work with the White House to find a grants to work legally within the placed on the calendar. consensus pick for this and two other United States. f Ninth Circuit California seats. Mr. Lee wrote: ‘‘By describing illegal RECOGNIZING AND SUPPORTING Sadly, our willingness to work with immigrants as ‘hard-working men and THE GOALS AND IDEALS OF NA- the administration has not been recip- women’ who are pursuing ‘better lives,’ TIONAL SEXUAL ASSAULT rocated. Once again, the majority is in- [President Bush] blurs the distinction AWARENESS AND PREVENTION sisting on moving ahead with a nomi- between illegals and those who came to MONTH nation, despite the strong objections of America following the rules.’’ both home-State Senators. Mr. Lee’s portrayal of undocumented Mr. PORTMAN. Mr. President, I ask Senator HARRIS and I refused to re- immigrants is both inaccurate and unanimous consent that the Judiciary turn blue slips for Mr. Lee for two key troubling. Committee be discharged from further reasons. Mr. Lee has also taken extreme posi- consideration of S. Res. 178 and that First, Mr. Lee has a long record of tions on women’s rights. He argued the Senate proceed to its immediate controversial writings and statements that feminism ‘‘is not about extending consideration. on race and diversity, immigration, af- equal rights and opportunities to The PRESIDING OFFICER. The firmative action, women’s rights, and women . . . [but] is about adhering to a clerk will report the resolution by other issues. stifling orthodoxy.’’ He attacked femi- title. Second, Mr. Lee failed to disclose nists for ‘‘support[ing] unfettered abor- The senior assistant bill clerk read as dozens of problematic writings to our tion-on-demand.’’ follows: in-state judicial commissions and to As NARAL put it in a letter sub- A resolution (S. Res. 178) recognizing and the Judiciary Committee itself. mitted to the committee, Lee’s supporting the goals and ideals of National That failure raises significant doubts writings ‘‘suggest a disdain for women Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention about Mr. Lee’s candor and judgment, that is concerning in any context, but Month. and it should be concerning to all especially so for someone up for a life- There being no objection, the com- Members of this body. In fact, when an- time seat on the federal bench.’’ mittee was discharged, and the Senate other nominee for the Ninth Circuit, In conclusion, I believe Mr. Lee’s proceeded to consider the resolution. Ryan Bounds, also failed to turn over record shows that he is far outside the Mr. PORTMAN. I further ask unani- his writings, his nomination was re- legal mainstream. mous consent that the resolution be jected by the Senate. Given the positions he has taken in agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, Mr. Bounds had failed to identify to dozens of articles and given his failure and the motions to reconsider be con- Oregon’s in-state judicial screening to disclose writings to my commission sidered made and laid upon the table commission at least five articles that and to the Judiciary Committee I can- with no intervening action or debate. took controversial positions on issues not support Mr. Lee’s nomination to The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without including campus sexual assault and the Ninth Circuit. objection, it is so ordered. diversity at institutions of higher edu- I will vote against Mr. Lee and I urge The resolution (S. Res. 178) was cation, whereas Mr. Lee failed to dis- my colleagues to do the same. agreed to.

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