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GREATER WHEN WE UNITE BEHIND A
FOR THOSE REASONS, I STRONGLY
SUPPORT SENATE RESOLUTION 159
AND MAY GOD CONTINUE TO BLESS
THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
MR. PRESIDENT, I NOTE THE
ABSENCE OF A QUORUM.
THE
CLERK WILL CALL THE ROLL.
QUORUM CALL:
NT?
THE
REPUBLICAN LEADER.
I ASK CONSENT
THAT THE QUORUM CALL BE
DISPENSED WITH.
OBJECTION.
MR. PRESIDENT,
I THINK MOST AMERICANS ARE PROUD
THAT THE MAN WHO ORCHESTRATED
THE 9/11 ATTACKS AND THEN REF
LED IN THE HORROR OF THAT DAY IS
DEAD.
TODAY WE RECOGNIZE THE DEDICATED
WORK OF THE MANY INTELLIGENCE
PROFESSIONALS, LAW ENFORCEMENT
OFFICIALS, AND THE MANY MEN AND
WOMEN OF OUR ARMED SERVICES WHO
BROUGHT US TO THIS DAY.
THE PURSUIT OF OSAMA BIN LADEN
SPANNED OVER A DECADE.
FOLLOWING THE ATTACKS OF
SEPTEMBER 11, THE SENATE VOTED
98-0 TO AUTHORIZE THE USE OF
FORCE AGAINST AL QAEDA, AN
AUTHORIZATION THAT IS STILL IN
FORCE TODAY.
AT THE TIME, PRESIDENT BUSH
ENJOYED THE SUPPORT OF A NATION
UNITED BEHIND HIS DECISION TO
PURSUE AL QAEDA AND TO DRIVE THE
TALIBAN FROM POWER.
WE SHOULD BE EQUALLY UNITED HERE
TODAY IN HONORING THOSE BRAVE
AMERICANS WHO WERE COMMITTED TO
PREVENTING FURTHER ATTACKS UPON
OUR HOMELAND.
WHILE BIN LADEN AND HIS
FOLLOWERS WERE BUILDING THEIR
TERROR NETWORKS, WE WERE
PATIENTLY AND DILIGENTLY
BUILDING OUR INTELLIGENCE
CAPABILITIES.
AND FOLLOWING THE SUCCESSFUL
RAID ON SUNDAY, THOSE WHO REMAIN
COMMITTED TO AL QAEDA AND
ASSOCIATED TERRORIST GROUPS
SHOULD KNOW THAT ONE DAY THEY,
TOO, WILL SHARE BIN LADEN'S
FATE.
SOME MIGHT THINK THAT THE
SUCCESS OF THIS RAID MEANS THE
END OF THE WAR ON TERROR.
BUT AS THE PRESIDENT HAS SAID,
THE DEATH OF OSAMA BIN LADEN DID
NOT MEAN -- DOES NOT MEAN THE
DEATH OF AL QAEDA.
AND OUR INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY
AND ARMED SERVICES MUST KEEP UP
THE PRESSURE ON AL QAEDA AND
ASSOCIATED TERROR NETWORKS.
OSAMA BIN LADEN LAUNCHED THIS
WAR ON THE FALSE ASSUMPTION THAT
AMERICA DIDN'T HAVE THE STOMACH
FOR THE FIGHT.
ON SUNDAY NIGHT, HE LEARNED HOW
WRONG HE WAS.
AND THIS WEEK AMERICA SHOWED THE
WORLD THAT WE MEANT IT WHEN WE
SAID WE WOULD NOT REST -- NOT
REST -- UNTIL JUSTICE WAS DONE
TO THOSE WHO CARRIED OUT THE
9/11 ATTACKS.
A GENERATION OF PATRIOTS HAS
PURSUED AL QAEDA FOR MORE THAN A
DECADE, DRIVEN BY THE IDEA THAT
EVERY DAY IS SEPTEMBER THE
12th, 2001.
THAT SPIRIT MUST PERSIST.
SO ONCE AGAIN I WANT TO COMMEND
THE PRESIDENT ON THIS DECISION
TO GO THROUGH WITH THIS MISSION.
ABOVABOVE ALL, I WANT TO THANK THE
REMARKABLE MEN AND WOMEN WHO
NOT TO BE FORGOTTEN ARE THE
THOUSANDS OF UNIFORMED AMERICANS
ACROSS AFGHANISTAN AND ACROSS
THE GLOBE DEFENDING AMERICA'S
INTERESTS AS WE CONSIDER THIS
RESOLUTION TODAY.
THE RESOLUTION REAFFIRMS THE
SENATE'S COMMITMENT TO
ELIMINATING SAFE HAVENS FOR
TERRORISTS IN AFGHANISTAN AND
PAKISTAN AND I AM REMINDED OF
THE DIFFICULT WORK THAT REMAINS.
BUT TODAY THOSE WHO REMEMBER THE
HORROR OF 9/11 TAKE A CERTAIN
SATISFACTION KNOWING THAT THE
LAST THING OSAMA BIN LADEN SAW
IN THIS WORLD WAS A SMALL TEAM
OF AMERICANS WHO SHOT HIM DEAD.
THE BRAVE TEAM THAT KILLED BIN
LADEN MADE THEIR NATION PROUD
AND THEY DESERVE THE SENATE'S
RECOGNITION AND ITS PRAISE.
MR. PRESIDENT, I YIELD THE
FLOOR.
A SENATOR: MR. PRESIDENT?
THE
SENATOR FROM MISSOURI.
PRESIDING OFFICER FOR
RECOGNIZING ME.
I STAND, AS EVERY MEMBER OF THE
SENATE DOES TODAY, IN SUPPORT OF
THIS RESOLUTION AND VERSION
EVERYTHING THIS RESOLUTION --
AND EVERYTHING THIS RESOLUTION
STANDED FOR.
THE ELIMINATION
OF OSAMA BIN LADEN AS A SYMBOL
OF ***, OF TYRANNY, OF
REPRESSION IS AN IMPORTANT
IT'S A MOMENT THAT CAME TEN
YEARS AFTER IT SHOULD HAVE.
IF WE COULD HAVE FOUND OSAMA BIN
LADEN TEN YEARS AGO WHEN WE WERE
LOOKING FOR HIM, 9/11 MIGHT NOT
HAVE OCCURRED, BUT IT DID OCCUR,
AND THE MESSAGE TO HIM FOR --
AND THE MESSAGE TO OTHERS WAS
THAT YOU CAN -- YOU CAN'T HIDE
FROM THE FORCES OF FREEDOM AND
DEMOCRACY.
THIS WAS A -- A MOMENT WHEN THE
FORCES OF FREEDOM AND DEMOCRACY
TRIUMPHED OVER THE FORCES OF
THIS WAS A MOMENT WHEN THE
SYMBOL OF ONE VIEW OF THE FUTURE
WAS ELIMINATED WITH THE VIOLENCE
THAT -- AND THE KIND OF VIOLENCE
THAT HE HIMSELF HAD PERPETRATED
ON SO MANY OTHERS.
I THINK THE PRESIDENT MADE A
GREAT DECISION TO SEND THIS TEAM
OF THE BEST OF THE BEST INTO
THIS COMPOUND TO FIND OSAMA BIN
LADEN, TO KNOW FOR SURE FACE TO
FACE THAT EITHER HE WAS GOING TO
BE CAPTURED BY AMERICANS OR IN
THIS CASE KILLED BY AMERICANS,
TO BE ABLE TO TAKE THE HARD
DRIVE, THE DOCUMENTS, THE
INFORMATION THAT HE HAD
SURROUNDING HIM WILL TELL US A
LOT ABOUT HIS CONTACTS AND WHO
KNOWS WHAT IT MIGHT TELL US
ABOUT THE NETWORK OF AL QAEDA.
THE PRESIDENT COULD HAVE MADE A
DECISION TO BOMB THE COMPOUND,
AND I GUESS WE WOULD BE SIFTING
THROUGH THE ASHES TODAY TO SEE
IF OSAMA BIN LADEN WAS THERE OR
NOT, AND WE MIGHT HAVE BEEN ABLE
TO CONFIRM THAT BUT WE WOULDN'T
HAVE BEEN ABLE TO CONFIRM ALL
THE INFORMATION THAT THE SEAL
TEAM WAS ABLE TO TAKE WITH THEM.
I THINK THESE WERE TWO IMPORTANT
DECISIONS MADE BY THE PRESIDENT,
THE DECISION TO BURY OSAMA BIN
LADEN IN AN UNKNOWN SPOT BUT
WITH THE -- WITH THE KIND OF
RESPECT THAT HIS OWN RELIGION
REQUIRED WAS ALSO I THINK
ANOTHER GOOD DECISION, AND I
WANT TO BE SUPPORTIVE OF THE
PRESIDENT IN THE DECISIONS MADE.
THERE ARE TIMES, I WOULD THINK,
WHEN THE PREDATOR MISSILE IS THE
RIGHT THINGS TO USE AND THERE
ARE TIMES WHEN IT'S NOT.
ONE OF THE OTHER THINGS THAT WE
SEE FROM THE DEATH OF -- OF BIN
LADEN IS THAT THERE IS VALUE TO
CAPTURING OUR ENEMIES AND
GETTING INFORMATION FROM THEM,
AND THAT THREAT OF INFORMATION
THAT BEGAN MAYBE AS MUCH AS NINE
YEARS AGO FINALLY WAS ABLE TO
UNRAVEL IN A WAY THAT MADE THE
CONNECTION THAT NEEDED TO BE
MADE SO THAT OSAMA BIN LADEN
COULD BE FOUND, SO THAT HIS --
THAT JUSTICE COULD BE DONE, SO
THAT THE PRICE WOULD BE PAID BY
HIM AS IT'S BEEN PAID BY SO MANY
OTHERS IN DEFENSE OF FREEDOM.
AND CERTAINLY, MR. PRESIDENT,
THERE ARE QUESTIONS TODAY ABOUT
PAKISTAN, BUT THERE IS NO
QUESTION THAT PAKISTANIS HAVE
DIED FIGHTING ALONGSIDE
AMERICANS IN THE LAST DECADE.
THERE IS NO QUESTION THAT
PAKISTANIS HAVE BEEN THE VICTIM
OF TERRORISM.
HOPEFULLY THIS WILL BE A MOMENT
THAT BRINGS ALL OF THOSE WHO
SIDE.
I JUST RETURNED FROM A QUICK
VISIT TO EGYPT, WHICH COULD VERY
WELL BE ON THE RIGHT PATH FOR
THE MIDDLE EAST, A PATH WHERE
WITHOUT VIOLENCE, PEOPLE STAND
UP AND WANT MORE FREEDOM.
THEY WANT -- THEY WANT
DEMOCRACY, AND THAT'S NOT THE
GOAL OF THE EXTREMISTS IN
ISLAMIC THAT OSAMA BIN LADEN
BECAME THE GREAT SYMBOL FOR.
WE DON'T BELIEVE THAT OSAMA BIN
LADEN HAS BEEN IN CONTROL, IN
OPERATIONAL CONTROL OF AL QAEDA
FOR SOME TIME.
IT WOULD BE WONDERFUL IF WE FIND
OUT IN THE NEXT FEW DAYS HE WAS
AND THAT THE TERROR OF AL QAEDA
WOULD BE ELIMINATED.
I DON'T THINK WE'LL FIND THAT
OUT BUT WE DO KNOW THAT HE IS A
SYMBOL THAT WAS UNIQUE IN THE
WAY HE SYMBOLIZES THIS WRONG
VIEW OF THE FUTURE, THE WAY HE
SYMBOLIZES THE WRONG VIEW OF THE
REQUIREMENT THAT EVERYBODY
LIVING TOGETHER BE EXACTLY THE
SAME.
AND WE, UNLIKE ANY OTHER COUNTRY
IN THE WORLD, DEFY THAT VIEW OF
THE FUTURE.
WE HAVE PROVEN LIKE NO OTHER
COUNTRY HAS EVER PROVEN THAT
PEOPLE CAN LIVE TOGETHER IN
GREAT DIVERSITY, THAT PEOPLE CAN
LIVE TOGETHER WITH DIFFERENT
POINTS OF VIEW AND THAT YOU CAN
LIVE IN A SOCIETY THAT STILL
AND SO, OF COURSE, WE'RE THE
ENEMY OF A WORLD VIEW THAT
THAT'S NOT POSSIBLE, AND IT'S
NOT BECAUSE OF ANYTHING THAT WE
HAVE DONE TO THE EXTREMISTS IN
THE WORLD COMMUNITY.
IT'S BECAUSE OF WHO WE ARE.
AND YESTERDAY, THE MESSAGE OF
WHO WE ARE WAS REGISTERED AGAIN
IN A POWERFUL WAY AS WE ALL OVER
THIS COUNTRY AND PEOPLE ALL OVER
THE WORLD TALKED ABOUT WHAT HAD
HAPPENED THE EVENING BEFORE.
AND CERTAINLY, NOT ONLY THE
SEALS THAT WENT INTO THE
COMPOUND TO SEE THAT JUSTICE WAS
DONE, BUT ALSO ALL THOSE WHO ARE
WILLING TO SERVE, THOSE WHO
WOULD HAVE BEEN AMONG THE ELITE
THAT WENT IN OR ALL THOSE WHO
HAVE SERVED, THE OVER 4,000
AMERICANS INCLUDING MANY
MISSOURIANS WHOSE LIVES HAVE
BEEN LOST IN THE LAST DECADE, IN
ADDITION TO THE 3,000 LIVES THAT
WERE BRUTALLY TAKEN BY THE
OPERATIVES OF AL QAEDA AND OSAMA
BIN LADEN ON SEPTEMBER 11, 2001.
AND SO THIS RESOLUTION THAT
RECOGNIZES THE COURAGE TO BRING
JUSTICE, THAT RECOGNIZES THE
EVIL THAT WAS DONE BY OSAMA BIN
LADEN AND HIS FOLLOWERS, THAT
RECOGNIZES THE IMPORTANCE OF
FREEDOM AND DEMOCRACY IN A
SOCIETY IS A RESOLUTION THAT I'M
PROUD TO SUPPORT.
I'M PROUD OF WHAT THE MEN AND
WOMEN DID FOR US WHO EXECUTED
THIS WELL-PLANNED MISSION, BUT
ALSO OF EVERYBODY WHO SERVES
EVERY DAY, FOR ALL THE FAMILIES
WHO HAVE A MISSING PLACE IN
THEIR FAMILY FOR SOMEONE WHOSE
LIFE WAS LOST SERVING THE
COUNTRY, FOR ALL THE FAMILIES
WHO LIVE WITH SOMEONE WITH
DISABILITY BECAUSE OF THE KIND
OF WAR WE'RE IN NOW.
AND SO, MR. PRESIDENT, I AM
PLEASED TO STAND HERE
REPRESENTING MY STATE BUT
HOPEFULLY REPRESENTING, AS ALL
OF US DO, THE FORCES OF FREEDOM
AND DEMOCRACY THAT WILL ULTIMATE
LY TRIUMPH OVER THE
FORCES OF REPRESSION AND ***
AND CHAOS THAT ONE WORLD VIEW
WOULD TRY TO PERPETUATE, AND WE
RECOGNIZE TODAY ANOTHER STEP
AGAINST THAT VIEW OF THE WORLD,
AND I YIELD BACK.
I QUESTION A QUORUM.
THE CLERK
WILL CALL THE ROLL.
CALL:
SIDENT?
THE
LEADER.
I ASK CONSENT THE CALL
OF THE QUORUM BE TERMINATED.
WITHOUT
OBJECTION.
I WOULD ASK THERE BE
ORDER IN THE SENATE.
ORDER,
PLEASE.
THE LEADER.
MR. PRESIDENT, THOSE
WATCHING AROUND THE WORLD MAY
NOT BE ABLE TO SEE ON THEIR
SCREENS THE SCENE HERE IN THE
UNITED STATES SENATE TODAY.
WE HAVE ALL COME TO THE FLOOR IN
A WAY WE RARELY DO.
WE'VE COME HERE THIS AFTERNOON
TO EXPRESS WITH ONE VOICE OUR
ENDLESS RESPECT AND ADMIRATION
FOR THE MEN AND WOMEN OF OUR
MILITARY AND OUR INTELLIGENCE
ORGANIZATIONS.
THE RESOLUTION IS AN APPROPRIATE
NAME FOR THIS LEGISLATION THAT'S
NOW BEFORE THIS BODY.
IT HONORS THE RESOLUTION TO A
PROBLEM THAT HAS LINGERED FOR
NEARLY A DECADE, ONE WHOSE
WEIGHT HAS GROWN HEAVIER EACH
DAY ON THE SHOULDERS OF THE
FAMILIES BIN LADEN TRAUMATIZED
AND THE MANY MORE HE TERRORIZED.
IT HONORS THE RESOLVE WITH WHICH
OUR BRAVEST STARED DOWN DANGER.
THE WORLD IS STILL ABSORBING
AMERICA'S ASTOUNDING
ACCOMPLISHMENT, THE MISSION TO
BRING OSAMA BIN LADEN TO JUSTICE
JUSTICE, ONE THAT BEGAN MORE
THAN 9 1/2 YEARS AGO AND WAS
ACCOMPLISHED JUST A LITTLE MORE
THAN A DAY AND A HALF AGO.
9 1/2 YEARS AFTER THE WORST
MORNING IN OUR MEMORY, WE WOKE
UP YESTERDAY MORNING TO A WORLD
WITHOUT OSAMA BIN LADEN AND WITH
A PALPABLE SENSE OF JUSTICE.
OUR MILITARY AND INTELLIGENCE
OPERATIVES ARE THE BEST IN THE
WORLD AT WHAT THEY DO.
AS THEY SET OUT TO KILL OR
CAPTURE OUR MOST VALUABLE
TARGET, THEY CAPTIVATED US WITH
THEIR SKILL AND EXPERTISE, THEIR
PATRIOTISM AND THEIR
PROFESSIONALISM.
A FLOOD OF THOUGHTS AND EMOTIONS
AND ANALYSIS HAS BEEN SHARED
OVER THE PAST 36 HOURS BY MANY.
AS I SAID FROM THIS DESK
YESTERDAY, THE END OF HIS LIFE
IS NOT THE END OF THIS FIGHT.
IT IS A VICTORY BUT IT IS NOT
A LOT HAS ALREADY BEEN SAID
ABOUT WHAT BIN LADEN'S DEATH
REALLY MEANS.
SO BEFORE WE VOTE ON THIS
RESOLUTION, I WANT TO SPEAK ONLY
BRIEFLY THE AMERICAN MEN AND
WOMEN WHO CARRIED OUT THIS
CRITICAL SUCCESSFUL MISSION, A
MISSION THAT WAS HISTORICALLY
SIGNIFICANT AND TACTICALLY
STUNNING.
OSAMA BIN LADEN WAS THE
MOST-WANTED AND MOST-HUNTED MAN
IN THE ENTIRE WORLD.
HIS WAS THE FACE OF OUR ENEMY
AND THE FACE OF EVIL.
THERE WERE FEW FACES MORE
RECOGNIZABLE TO THE AMERICAN
PEOPLE AND TO THE CITIZENS OF
THE WORLD.
THOSE WHO CARRIED OUT THE
COMMANDER IN CHIEF'S ORDERS THIS
WEEKEND COULD NOT BE MORE
DIFFERENT.
THE WORLD DOESN'T KNOW THEIR
WE WOULDN'T RECOGNIZE THEM IF WE
PASSED THEM ON THE STREET TODAY.
AND THAT'S EXACTLY HOW THEY
WOULD WANT IT.
THIS IS THE NEWEST PROUD PAGE IN
A LONG STORY OF THE AMERICAN
HERO, THE UNKNOWN SOLDIERS, THE
UNSUNG SAVIORS WHO SACRIFICED
FOR OUR COUNTRY'S FLAG AND THEIR
COUNTRYMEN'S FREEDOM.
THEY DON'T ASK FOR RECOGNITION.
THEY DON'T ASK QUESTIONS.
THEY JUST ANSWER THE NATION WHEN
IT CALLS.
TODAY THE SENATE STANDS IN AWE
OF THE COUNTLESS MEN AND WOMEN
WHO HAVE TOILED IN OBSCURITY IN
WORLD.
PROFESSIONALS WHO GATHER ONE
SMALL SHRED OF EVIDENCE HERE,
UNEARTH ANOTHER CLUE THERE,
ELSE.
THE MEN AND WOMEN WHO OVER THE
COURSE OF TEN LONG YEARS PIECED
TOGETHER THE MOST MEANINGFUL
PUZZLES SO THAT A FEW DOZEN OF
THEIR FELLOW HEROES COULD
EXECUTE AN OPERATION THE WORLD
WILL NEVER FORGET.
THESE HEROES CONFRONTED FEAR
WITH BRILLIANCE AND BRAVERY.
THEY MET THE WORST OF HUMANITY
WITH THE BEST OF AMERICA.
THE TERRORIST WHO CARRIED OUT
THE 9/11 ATTACKS DID SO WITH
THIS MISSION DID SO WITH
UNFAILING COURAGE.
NO ONE HAS ASKED HOW THESE MEN
AND WOMEN VOTE OR WHAT THEIR
POLITICS ARE, AND SO WE'VE COME
HERE TO THE FLOOR TODAY TO VOTE
TOGETHER ON THIS RESOLUTION NOT
AS TWO PARTIES, NOT EVEN AS A
HUNDRED SENATORS BUT AS ONE BODY
REPRESENTING ONE GRATEFUL
COUNTRY.
MR. PRESIDENT, ON THIS
RESOLUTION, SENATOR McCONNELL
AND I ASK FOR THE YEAS AND NAYS.
IS THERE
A SUFFICIENT SECOND?
THERE IS.
THE CLERK WILL CALL THE ROLL.
VOTE:
VOTE:
ANY
SENATORS WISHING TO VOTE OR TO
CHANGE THEIR VOTE?
THE VOTE IS 97-0.
THE RESOLUTION IS AGREED TO.
UNDER THE PREVIOUS ORDER, THE
PREAMBLE IS AGREED TO AND
MOTIONS TO RECONSIDER ARE
TABLE.
THE SENATE WILL PROCEED TO A
PERIOD OF MORNING BUSINESS WITH
SENATORS PERMITTED TO SPEAK FOR
UP TO 10 MINUTES EACH.
MR. PRESIDENT?
THE
SENATOR FROM ILLINOIS.
I SUGGEST THE
ABSENCE OF A QUORUM.
THE CLERK
WILL CALL THE ROLL.
QUORUM CALL:
A SENATOR: MR. PRESIDENT?
THE
SENATOR FROM RHODE ISLAND.
MADAM PRESIDENT, I ASK
THAT THE QUORUM CALL BE DIS
OBJECTION.
MADAM PRESIDENT, I
RISE TODAY IN SUPPORT OF THE
NOMINATION OF JOHN JACK
McCONNELL TO SERVE AS JUDICIAL
COURT JUDGE IN THE STATE OF
RHODE ISLAND.
THE
SENATE WILL COME TO ORDER.
WE HAVE HEARD AND WE
WILL HEAR A NUMBER OF VERY
STRONG STATEMENTS ABOUT THIS
NOMINATION.
I WOULD ARGUE THEY -- I WOULD
ARGUE THAT MANY ARGUMENTS THAT
HAVE BEEN MADE ARE INACCURATE
AND THEY'RE NOT SHARED BY THE
RHODE ISLAND.
IN FACT, JACK McCONNELL IS
SUPPORTED PUBLICLY AND
ENTHUSIASTICALLY BY THE TWO
FORMER REPUBLICAN ATTORNEY
GENERALS OF RHODE ISLAND, ARLENE
VIOLATE AND JEFF VINE.
HE IS SUPPORTED BY THE GREATER
PROVIDENCE OF RHODE ISLAND AND
HE'S SUPPORTED BY OUR LEGAL
COMMUNITY.
HE HAS RECEIVED THE STRONG
ENDORSEMENT OF OUR LEADING
NEWSPAPER, "THE PROVIDENCE
JOURNAL," WHICH HAS A RECORD OF
MODERATION, INDEED, IF NOT
CONSERVATISM IN TERMS OF THEIR
JUDGMENTS ABOUT JUDICIAL
CANDIDATES AND SOME ISSUES, BUT
CERTAINLY MODERATION.
NOW, LATER SENATOR WHITEHOUSE
AND I WILL RESPOND SPECIFICALLY
TO THE ASSERTIONS AND CONCERNS,
BUT I THINK IT'S TIME AT THIS
JUNCTURE TO MAKE A FEW BRIEF
POINTS ABOUT WHERE WE ARE AT
THIS SENATE.
WE ARE AT A POINT WHERE WE MIGHT
BE CROSSING A BRIDGE IN WHICH WE
CAN'T RETURN.
THAT UNLIKE OUR PREVIOUS
HISTORY, DISTRICT JUDGES WILL BE
SUBJECT ROUTINELY TO CLOTURE
MOTIONS BECAUSE ONE FACTION OR
ANOTHER DECIDES, NOT ON THE
MERITS, BUT PROCEDURALLY, THEY
SHOULD NOT GO FORWARD.
NOW, LET ME MAKE A FEW POINTS.
SENATOR WHITEHOUSE AND I
RECOMMENDED MR. McCONNELL TO
THE PRESIDENT AFTER PUBLICLY
SEEKING APPLICANTS, TALKING TO
ATTORNEYS THROUGHOUT OUR STATE,
INTERVIEWING ALMOST EVERY SINGLE
APPLICANT.
AND WE TOOK THIS DECISION
SERIOUSLY AS YOU WOULD EXPECT.
AND WE KNOW IT'S A REFLECTION
STATE.
AND FROM THIS POOL OF APPLICANTS
WE SELECTED MR. McCONNELL
BECAUSE WE FOUND HIM TO BE AMONG
THE BEST ATTORNEYS IN THE STATE,
A PILLAR OF OUR COMMUNITY, ONE
OF THE MOST GENEROUS
PHILANTHROPISTS IN OUR STATE AND
IN MOST CASES ANONYMOUSLY AND IN
MANY CASES, NOT SIMPLY WRITING A
CHECK, BUT STANDING IN A
SUPERLINE -- SOUP LINE EARLY IN
THE MORNING HANDING OUT FOOD TO
PEOPLE WHO NEED IT WITHOUT
ACCLAIM, WITHOUT FANFARE.
THIS IS THE CHARACTER OF AN
INDIVIDUAL AND A CHARACTER I
THINK ULTIMATELY IS THE TEST OF
A JUDGE.
AND HE HAS A TRUE DESIRE TO
SERVE THIS COUNTRY.
INDEED, MR. McCONNELL HAS
PRACTICED LAW FOR DECADES.
HE HAS NEVER BEEN SUBJECT TO AN
ETHICS CLAIM, A MALPRACTICE
CLAIM, A RULE 11 MOTION, AND,
MOST IMPORTANTLY, HE HAS NEVER
HAD A MOTIONS FOR SANCTIONS
FILED AGAINST HIM CONCERNING HIS
CONDUCT IN ANY LITIGATION HE'S
BEEN INVOLVED IN.
HE HAS A SPOTLESS RECORD.
MOREOVER, WE SELECTED
MR. McCONNELL BECAUSE WE KNEW
BASED ON ALL OF THIS, HIS
PERSONAL BACKGROUND, HIS SWORN
TESTIMONY, THAT HE WILL FOLLOW
THE PRECEDENCE OF THE LAW AND OF
THE FIRST CIRCUIT COURT OF
APPEALS AND THE UNITED STATES
SUPREME COURT.
THIS IS NOT SOMETHING WE TAKE
LIGHTLY AND IT'S NOT SOMETHING
THAT MR. McCONNELL TAKES
AND WE KNOW AND HE KNOWS THAT
WHEN YOU STEP UPON THE BENCH,
YOU ASSUME A HUGE
YOU HAVE TO NOT ONLY APPEAR TO
BE IMPARTIAL, YOU HAVE TO IN
EVERY WORD INDEED GO THE EXTRA
MILE TO DEMONSTRATE THAT
IMPARTIALITY, THAT YOU'RE NOT
FAVORING ANYONE.
AND HE IS PREPARED TO DO THAT.
IN FACT, I THINK THAT IS PART AN
PARCEL OF THIS -- THE NATURE OF
THIS GENTLEMAN.
NOW, WE HAVE TO STOP HERE AND
ASK OURSELVES COLLECTIVELY, DO
WE WANT TO GO AHEAD AND TAKE
THIS STEP OF CLOTURE FOR
DISTRICT COURT NOMINEES?
TO WE REALLY WANT TO ADD ANOTHER
PARTISAN
POLITICAL GUMPTION.
DO THEY WANT TO CAST ASIDE, FOR
EXAMPLE, THE BLUE SHIP PROCESS
WHICH ALLOWS SENATORS FROM A
HOME STATE, PARTICULARLY WITH A
NAY.
THE PROCESS THAT'S BEEN IN THIS
SENATE, IN THE INFORMAL CULTURE
OF THIS SENATE FOR YEARS AND
YEARS AND YEARS.
DO THEY WANT TO DENY A NOMINEE
WHO'S BEEN REPORTED OUT OF
COMMITTEE ON A BIPARTISAN VOTE
THREE TIMES -- NOT ONCE -- AN
UP-OR-DOWN VOTE?
I'VE HEARD AND HAVE HEARD FOR
YEARS, PARTICULARLY ON PRESIDENT
BUSH, MANY PEOPLE COMING TO THIS
FLOOR AND CLAIMING EVERYONE
WHO'S BEEN NOMINATED AND COMES
OUT OF COMMITTEE DESERVES A
UP-OR-DOWN VOTE, PARTICULARLY IN
DISTRICT COURT.
ESPECIALLY DISTRICT COURT.
SO, THIS IS WHERE WE'RE POISED,
TO REJECT ALL OF THAT, TO ANSWER
A NEW DIMENSION OF CONTROVERSY
AND CONFLICT IN THE SENATE.
WE HAVE A LONG HISTORY IN THE
SENATE OF PRECEDENTS AND
TRADITION WHEN IT COMES TO
NOMINATIONS, PARTICULARLY
DISTRICT COURT NOMINATIONS.
IN MY STATE, MY PREDECESSORS,
MEN LIKE JOHN CHAFEE, CLAIBORNE
PELL, LINCOLN CHAFEE CLEARLY
ADHERE TO THOSE AND WE HAVE A
STRONG RECORD OF JUDGES IN OUR
STATE AND THEY HAVE COME FROM
DIFFERENT BACKGROUND.
THEY HAVE COME FROM THE PRACTICE
OF CORPORATE LAW.
THEY'VE COME FROM BEING A FORMER
FEDERAL ATTORNEY.
THEY'VE COME FROM BEING A
SIGNIFICANT AND PRINCIPLED
COMPANY.
THEY'VE COME FROM A VAST ARRAY
OF LEGAL BACKGROUND AND
PROFESSIONS.
ONE THING THEY HAVE HAD IN
COMMON WHICH IS SHARED BY JACK
McCONNELL IS INTEGRITY AND
COMMITMENT TO THE LAW.
AND THAT WE INSIST UPON.
NOW, WE'VE LONG RECOGNIZED THAT
THESE DISTRICT JUDGES SERVE A
CRITICAL ROLE, AND WE ALL
RECOGNIZE TOO, I THINK, HERE AS
SENATORS IS THAT THIS IS A
SPECIAL ROLE OF THE HOME-STATE
WE UNDERSTAND THAT THE CIRCUIT
LEVEL WHEN JUDGES HAVE TO
CONSIDER ISSUES OF
CONSTUTIONALITY, WHERE MAJOR
POLICY ISSUES COULD BE RESOLVED,
IN FACT FINALLY RESOLVED, AT
LEAST FOR THAT CIRCUIT, WE
UNDERSTAND THERE'S ANOTHER ADD
BUT IN DISTRICT COURTS WE HAVE
TRADITIONALLY RECOGNIZED THE
JUDGMENT OF NOT ONLY LOCAL
SENATORS BUT THE JUDGMENT OF THE
LOCAL LEGAL COMMUNITY.
AND ONCE AGAIN HERE BOTH THE
LEGAL COMMUNITY AROUND -- AND I
CAN'T EMPHASIZE ENOUGH TWO
FORMER REPUBLICAN ATTORNEYS
GENERAL THAT KNOW HIM WELL, THAT
HAVE OBSERVED HIM CLOSELY HAVE
COME FORWARD OF THEIR OWN
VOLITION AND ENTHUSIASTICALLY
SUPPORTED HIS CANDIDACY.
THEY KNOW HIM AS A LAWYER, THEY
KNOW HIM AS A MAN OF INTEGRITY
AND HONOR AND DECENCY.
NOW THERE ARE A NUMBER OF MY
COLLEAGUES ON THE OTHER SIDE
THAT RECOGNIZE THIS, AND THEY
HAVE BEEN VERY FORTHRIGHT IN
MAKING THE POINT ABOUT THE
PRECIPICE THAT WE ARE ON AND HOW
THAT IS NOT SOMETHING A
PRECEDENT WE WANT TO ESTABLISH.
AND I THANK THEM FOR THAT.
I THANK THEM FOR THEIR
CONSIDERATION.
THEY HAVE LITERALLY ADHERED TO
CONSISTENTLY NOT JUST IN THE
PAST BUT NOW, THE NOTION THAT
WHEN A JUDGE IS GIVEN APPROVAL
BY THE A.B.A., WHEN A NOMINEE
GOES TO THE COMMITTEE AND COMES
TO THIS FLOOR AT THE DISTRICT
LEVEL, THAT'S WHEN A VOTE SHOULD
TAKE PLACE.
AND HOW YOU VOTE ON FINAL
PASSAGE, THAT IS A FUNCTION OF
ANYTHING, YOUR JUDICIAL
PHILOSOPHY VERSUS THEIR JUDICIAL
PHILOSOPHY, YOUR VIEW OF THE
RESPONSIBILITY THEY HAVE AND THE
RESPONSIBILITY OF THE DISTRICT
JUDGE.
WE HAVE, I THINK, AGAIN BEEN
INVOLVED IN DIFFICULT DEBATES,
AND THEY HAVE BEEN PARTICULARLY
DIFFICULT WHEN IT COMES TO THE
CIRCUIT COURT.
AND I DO THINK WE RECOLLECTIVELY
BECAUSE OF THE NATURE OF THE
CIRCUIT COURT, RATHER, THERE IS
THIS IS THE GATEWAY, AND MANY
TIMES THE CASES NEVER GO BEYOND
THE CIRCUIT COURT.
AND CONSTITUTIONAL LAW,
PRINCIPLES THAT APPLY TO WHOLE
PANELS OF JUDGES.
STANDARD.
BUT WE'VE NEVER REALLY APPLIED
THAT STANDARD TO THE DISTRICT
WE'VE RELIED -- ALL MY
COLLEAGUES HAVE -- ON THE
ABILITY OF HOME-STATE SENATORS,
TOGETHER WITH THEIR LOCAL
LAWYERS, TOGETHER WITH THEIR
LOCAL COMMUNITY TO MAKE
RECOMMENDATIONS TO SERVE ON THE
DISTRICT COURT.
LET ME POINT OUT HOW
EXTRAORDINARILY UNUSUAL THE VOTE
TOMORROW WILL BE.
FROM OUR RECORDS, TALKING TO THE
CONGRESSIONAL RESEARCH SERVICE
AND THE SENATE LIBRARY, AS FAR
AS WE CAN CONSIDER, THERE HAVE
BEEN ONLY THREE CLOTURE VOTES ON
SENATE NOMINEES FOR DISTRICT
COURT IN THE HISTORY OF THE
SENATE.
THREE TIMES.
TOMORROW WILL BE THE FOURTH.
BY THE WAY, ALL THREE OF THESE
INDIVIDUALS ULTIMATELY RECEIVED
IT APPEARS FROM OUR
RECONSTRUCTION THAT THEY WERE
CAUGHT UP IN A PROCEDURAL
DISCUSSION OF WHO SHOULD GO
FIRST, THIS PERSON SHOULDN'T GO
FIRST UNTIL OTHERS HAVE BEEN
ALL THREE WERE -- AFTER THE
PROCEDURAL VOTES ON CLOTURE,
WERE CONFIRMED.
BUT IT'S QUITE CLEAR THAT AT
LEAST ON THE PART OF SOME THAT
THIS CLOTURE VOTE TOMORROW IS
DESIGNED TO STOP AND END THE
CONFIRMATION OF MR. McCONNELL.
THAT WOULD BE A FIRST, AS FAR AS
WE KNOW, IN OUR RECONSTRUCTION
OF THE HISTORY OF THE SENATE.
SO WE ARE FACING THIS QUESTION,
THE QUESTION OF WHETHER WE WANT
TO ESTABLISH THIS PRECEDENT,
WHETHER WE WANT TO DISREGARD THE
RECORD OF THIS INDIVIDUAL WHO IS
A MAN OF INTEGRITY AND HONOR,
WHO IS STRONGLY SUPPORTED BY OUR
LOCAL BUSINESS COMMUNITY, WHO IS
STRONGLY SUPPORTED BY REPUBLICAN
OFFICEHOLDERS AS WELL AS
DEMOCRATIC OFFICEHOLDERS, WHO
HAS GAINED THE TRUST AND THE
RESPECT OF THOSE WHO KNOW HIM
BEST AND WHO WILL SERVE WITH
DISTINCTION AND INTEGRITY ON THE
DISTRICT COURT IN THE DISTRICT
OF RHODE ISLAND.
THAT IS THE BIG ISSUE WE FACE
TOMORROW.
NOW, LATER I WILL -- WE WILL
COME DOWN AND WE WILL RESPOND TO
THOSE ISSUES OF SPECIFIC DETAIL.
BUT I CAN RECALL NOT TOO LONG
AGO WHEN THERE WAS A GROUP OF
REPUBLICANS AND DEMOCRATS WHO
CAME TOGETHER AND DECIDED THAT
THESE TYPES OF DECISIONS SHOULD
NOT BE SUBJECT TO PROCEDURAL,
BUT SHOULD BE BASED ON THE
MERITS.
THE GANG OF 14 WORKED.
I'M TRYING TO PULL TOGETHER A
I KNOW ALSO BOTH SENATOR REID
WITH A GROUP OF PEOPLE ON A
BIPARTISAN UNDERSTANDING
REGARDING EXECUTIVE NOMINATIONS.
NOT JUDICIAL NOMINATIONS BUT
EXECUTIVE NOMINATIONS.
AND THESE ARE VERY HOPEFUL AND
POSITIVE SIGNS.
I HOPE WE CAN BUILD ON THAT
PROGRESS AND NOT TOMORROW TAKE A
STEP WHICH I THINK HISTORICALLY
IS ATYPICAL, UNIQUE, IN FACT A
STEP I THINK IN THE VERY WRONG
WE WILL COME BACK AGAIN AND WE
WILL TALK ABOUT THE SPECIFICS OF
MR. McCONNELL'S NOMINATION AND
THESE ASSERTIONS.
BUT ALL OF THESE ALLEGATIONS
CAST AGAIN NOT ONLY A CLOUD UPON
MR. McCONNELL, BUT ON THE
A.B.A. PROCESS, WHICH LOOKS VERY
CAREFULLY AT A CANDIDATE IN
TERMS OF THEIR JUDICIAL SKILL,
BUT ALSO THEIR CHARACTER, THEIR
INTEGRITY AND THEIR ABILITY TO
SERVE, AND THE PROCESS HERE IN
THE UNITED STATES SENATE THROUGH
THE COMMITTEE PROCESS.
SO I WOULD HOPE THAT WE CAN
FAVORABLY CONSIDER -- IN FACT, I
WOULD HOPE AS TYPICALLY, WE
WOULD MOVE QUICKLY TO A FINAL
PASSAGE VOTE AS WE DO WITH 99
OUT OF 100 DISTRICT COURT
BUT, MADAM PRESIDENT, THIS IS A
SERIOUS ISSUE.
I FEAR THAT WE ARE ON THE PRESS
PINS OF TAKING A -- PRECIPICE OF
TAKING A STEP THAT WILL COME
BACK REPEATEDLY TO HAUNT US AND
UNDERCUT THE CUSTOM AND
TRADITION IN A SENSE OF THIS
SENATE, WHICH IS NECESSARY TO
MAINTAIN NOT TO ABANDON.
WITH THAT, MADAM PRESIDENT, I
WOULD YIELD THE FLOOR.
A SENATOR: MADAM PRESIDENT?
THE
SENATOR FROM RHODE ISLAND.
MADAM PRESIDENT, I KNOW I AM IN
SENATOR LANDRIEU'S TIME, AND I
APPRECIATE MY FRIEND'S
WILLINGNESS TO ALLOW ME JUST A
MOMENT TO ASSOCIATE MYSELF WITH
THE ELOQUENT AND THOUGHTFUL
REMARKS OF MY SENIOR SENATOR AND
TO URGE ALL OF MY COLLEAGUES,
BEFORE WE STEER THIS BODY OFF
THE PRECIPICE THAT HE REFERRED
TO, TO GIVE HIS WORDS THEIR VERY
CONSIDERATION.
I THANK THE DISTINGUISHED
SENATOR FROM LOUISIANA, AND I
YIELD THE FLOOR.
MADAM PRESIDENT?
THE
SENATOR FROM LOUISIANA.
MADAM PRESIDENT.
I'D LIKE TO SPEAK FOR THE NEXT
JUST FEW MINUTES AS WE'RE IN
MORNING BUSINESS ABOUT THE