Nomination of Vanita Gupta

Floor Speech

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Ms. KLOBUCHAR. Mr. President, I thank Senator Durbin for his leadership, and following my colleague and friend, Senator Lee, I disagree with him vehemently about Vanita Gupta. She is someone I have worked closely with for years on voting rights, on police reform, and just last year I marched with her across the Edmund Pettus Bridge with the late John Lewis to mark the 55th anniversary of Bloody Sunday in Selma, AL.

After working alongside her to build a more just system, I have no doubt that she will take this job on with two words, two words that I think are so important right now to build trust with the people of this country: honor and integrity. That is what has marked her career.

As a civil rights lawyer, public servant, and as President of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, the Nation's oldest, largest, and most diverse civil and human rights coalition, she has a record of fighting for all Americans, with dedication, consistency, and--and--a willingness to work across ideological lines to achieve results.

Why did she get those police endorsements and the kind of support that she got, even though she was taking on reform? It is because she earned people's respect. She is the right person for the right time in the Justice Department, and I say this coming from Minnesota, where my State is reeling after the killing of Duante Wright.

Our hearts break for Daunte's family and for our community, which is still in the midst of the George Floyd murder trial of Derek Chauvin. I was so proud and am so proud of the ordinary citizens that came forward and testified from my State: a clerk in the store, a man walking by, all of them having carried the burden--the burden--of this murder, looking inside themselves thinking: What could I have done better?

And that case will soon conclude, but those citizens coming forward and actually the law enforcement coming forward and testifying at all levels of law enforcement for the prosecution of Derek Chauvin--that meant something to the people of my State. I want to be able to go back and tell those citizens who testified that you don't carry this burden alone; that we have a Justice Department that is going to stand up for you.

And, for me, one of those key people is Vanita Gupta. She is exactly who we need right now to champion the cause of equal justice under the law.

She has described the Department as an institution she loves dearly because, as she said, it bears the name of a value--justice--one that carries a unique charge and North Star. It is the sacred keeper of the promise of equal justice under the law, and coming from the North Star State, that means a lot.

Her commitment to defending the Constitution and upholding the integrity of this important Agency is, for her, a professional calling. It is also a personal calling. As she has described, she inherited from her parents, who came to this country, a belief in the promise of America, one that carries with it a personal responsibility to make this country better for everyone.

We all know immigrants who think like that every day--people who have just arrived and people who have raised their families here. They are Vanita Gupta. There is no question that Ms. Gupta has the experience for this job.

As an attorney for the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, she worked on the frontlines, fighting in court to protect the civil rights of some of the most vulnerable people. Later, at the American Civil Liberties Union, she brought cases on behalf of immigrant children and worked to end mass incarceration while keeping communities safe.

While serving as our country's chief civil rights prosecutor at the Department of Justice, during the Obama administration, she led critical work on criminal justice reform, prosecuting hate crimes and human trafficking, defending the right to vote, and protecting the rights of the LGBTQ community and those with disabilities.

Ms. Gupta's depth of experience at the Department of Justice and her years as a civil rights attorney make her imminently qualified to serve as Associate Attorney General. In that position, she will oversee the work of the Department's Civil Rights Division and will help direct the Department's work to reform our justice system. Having helped to lead the Federal review of police practices, she understands the need for systemic reform in our justice system, as well as ways to work with law enforcement--with law enforcement--to make necessary changes.

That is why she has the support of police chiefs, sheriffs, and major law enforcement groups across the country, including the National Sheriffs' Association, including the International Association of Chiefs of Police, and including the Major Cities Chiefs Association. They know that Ms. Gupta is a trusted partner who, as the Fraternal Order of Police wrote in a letter of support, has ``always worked with us to find common ground even when that seemed impossible.''

Grover Norquist, a Republican and president of Americans for Tax Reform, described Ms. Gupta as ``an honest broker; someone with an ability not only to understand but also appreciate different perspectives. She was someone who sought consensus,'' he said. That is exactly the kind of person we need at the Department right now.

I look forward to working with her on the next steps in our efforts to reform our criminal justice system, which we were able to discuss at her hearing. We talked about her commitment to police reform and the need to increase funding for alternatives to incarceration, such as drug court, which is something I have worked on for years since my time as county attorney, and her support for conviction integrity units to help States to review legal cases for people believed to be innocent. She gets that the work of a prosecutor is, yes, working for safety, but it is also to be a minister of justice and to make sure that people are treated equally under the law.

I also have talked to Ms. Gupta about the urgent need to finally reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act, which I hope my colleagues and I will work to pass and get to President Biden's desk. In the Obama administration, she coordinated the Department of Justice's efforts to develop guidance supported by data on how law enforcement can prevent gender bias when responding to sexual assault and domestic violence. At our hearing, she affirmed the important role that the Department has in protecting victims of domestic violence, and I look forward to working with her on these issues.

As chair of the Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and Consumer Rights, I am also pleased that Ms. Gupta committed to make vigorous antitrust enforcement a priority. I think there is agreement from both sides of the aisle that robust competition is essential to protect consumers, workers, and businesses, large and small.

I am confident that Ms. Gupta will lead the Department's efforts to confront monopoly power and restore competitive markets along with Lisa Monaco and along with, of course, the Attorney General himself, Merrick Garland.

Ms. Gupta's history as a champion of civil rights and record as a consensus builder makes her, as I said, the right person at the right time. She has the backing of more than 220 national civil and human rights organizations, including the ACLU, the NAACP, and the Human Rights Campaign.

She has, as I said, the support from law enforcement and from former Department of Justice leaders from both parties. She is a person who works to bring people together to get big things done. That is what we need right now, someone who sees that vision but also understands that the way we get to justice is by doing things step by step by step and bringing people with you as you march along. We need to do more than restore what has been undermined or lost. We need the courage of leadership to preserve and strengthen our democracy by protecting the rule of law.

I would like to finally acknowledge that her nomination is historic. In addition to Ms. Gupta's years of experience, dedication to justice, and support from across the ideological spectrum, she will be the first civil rights lawyer and the first woman of color to serve as Associate Attorney General. I look forward to confirming her to be Associate Attorney General, and I urge my colleagues to do the same.

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