Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2006

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2006

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NOMINATION OF HARRIET MIERS

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, today I rise to commend President Bush for his choice of Harriet Miers to be the Nation's next Associate Justice of the Supreme Court. Ms. Miers has an exemplary record of service to our country. She will bring to the Court a lifetime of experience in various levels of government and at the highest levels of the legal profession. She is a woman of tremendous ability and very sound judgment.

Ms. Miers received her bachelor's degree and law degree from Southern Methodist University in her native Texas. Upon graduation, she clerked for District Judge Joe Estes in the early 1970s. Ms. Miers has a distinguished career as one of the foremost lawyers in this country. She served has a role model for women lawyers everywhere. After clerking with Judge Estes for 2 years, Harriet was the first woman ever hired at the renowned Dallas law firm of Locke Purnell Rain Harrell in 1972. By 1978, she had made partner. And 24 years after first entering the firm's doors, her colleagues elected her to be the first female president. She was the first woman to lead a Texas firm of that size and stature. That is a remarkable rise and a testament to her ability to lead and, for that matter, to inspire others.

Further evidence of her administrative skill came when her firm merged with another firm to become the larger Locke Liddell & Sapp, LLP, and Ms. Miers became the comanaging partner, overseeing 400 lawyers. As an accomplished trial litigator, Ms. Miers has skillfully represented clients as varied as Microsoft, Walt Disney, and SunGuard Data Systems. Her peers have recognized her many talents, as the National Law Journal has repeatedly honored her as one of the top lawyers in our country.

Complex corporate litigation is a notoriously challenging practice area. Ms. Miers' ability to master a wide range of substantive legal issues has served her well time and time again, both in government and in the private sector.

In 1985, Harriet Miers became the first woman president of the Dallas Bar Association, and in 1992, she became the first woman president of the State Bar of Texas. She has played a large role in the American Bar Association, serving in various leadership positions in that organization, including as chair of the board of editors of the prestigious ABA Bar Journal.

Ms. Miers has great experience in government, as well as at the local, State, and Federal levels. In 1989, she was elected to the Dallas city council. From 1995 to 2000, she volunteered to serve as chairwoman of the Texas Lottery Commission, while fulfilling her time-consuming duties as a leader in a prestigious law firm. She was a powerful force for the fair and honest administration of the State lottery which had previously suffered from scandal. In an editorial, the Dallas Morning News commended her for her meritorious service and for her integrity.

Ms. Miers has great experience in the Federal Government, as we all know, serving as assistant to the President and staff secretary, Deputy Chief of Staff to the President, and in her current role as Counsel to the President, where I and others have had a good deal of dealings with her over the last few months. She succeeded Attorney General Gonzales as White House Counsel. All of my dealings with her have been of the highest order. I really couldn't compliment her more, both for her personality and for her legal skills. My interaction with her could not have gone better in every respect.

In these duties, she has grappled with the challenging issues that face not only the White House but our entire country these days. She is an accomplished lawyer who has won the respect of Republicans and Democrats alike. She understands the role of a judge is not to legislate from the bench but to interpret the law. She will bring to the Supreme Court her broad experiences in the worlds of government and the law. She is well qualified to join our Nation's highest court and the President, after unprecedented consultation with the great majority of us in the Senate, has made an outstanding nomination. She will make a fine addition to the Supreme Court, and I look forward to her confirmation.

Now that we have a nominee, it is the Senate's responsibility to provide advice and consent in a fair, dignified, and responsible manner. We did that on the Roberts nomination. I fully expect the Senate to conduct itself in the same way on the Miers nomination.

In doing so, we should follow three basic principles: We should treat Harriet Miers respectfully. We should have a fair process, and we should complete our process with an up-or-down vote in a timely manner.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

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