Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2006
DEPARTMENT OF STATE, FOREIGN OPERATIONS, AND RELATED PROGRAMS APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2006 -- (Senate - July 19, 2005)
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Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, if reports are correct, less than 5 hours from now, President Bush will announce to the Nation his first nomination to the Supreme Court. This process and his choice will surely make up a large part of his lasting legacy.
The President no doubt spent a great deal of time and thought before making the selection he will announce tonight, and I am hopeful--still hopeful--that it will be a truly consensus nominee, one we can all support and one that will serve this country well on the highest court in the land.
I must admit to some disappointment that President Bush did not do more to consult with the Senate on this pick because, as many of us have said all along, it is such consultation that helps ensure a smooth confirmation process and a unified vote.
Had we been given some names beforehand, we would have been able to do some due diligence before any announcement and be able to suggest to the President who might quickly succeed and who might face a tougher road to confirmation, just as Orrin Hatch did with President Clinton.
But be that as it may, tonight we start fresh and likely with a nominee who has not been vetted with the Senate beforehand. This will make the upcoming hearings on this nominee that much more important--perhaps the most important we have had in several generations. We, in the Senate, will soon begin to fulfill our constitutional duty to advise and then to give or withhold our consent on the President's nominee. Whomever the nominee, whether Edith Clement, as many are rumoring, or another, there will be many tough questions on a broad range of issues. It is my hope that every Member of the Senate will take this solemn duty seriously and move forward with dignity, diligence, and a view toward coming to a deliberate, but not dilatory, conclusion on whether the coming nominee should be on the Supreme Court.
Because Justice O'Connor was such a swing vote on so many issues vital to Americans, the answers this nominee gives at the hearings will be of incredible importance in determining whether the nominee is suitable for the Court.
So tonight is a momentous night--for President Bush, for the nominee, for the Senate, and most of all for the country. We must renew our determination to fulfill this sacred trust with vigor and fairness, but with thoroughness as well.
I yield the floor.
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