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Floor Speech

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Mr. CORNYN. Well, Mr. President, we are now back in session after a busy 2-week recess where I know many of us were traveling in our States or parts of the world and attending to our duties here in the Senate in various capacities. But now we are back here in Washington, DC, and it appears to me that we have a whole lot we need to do before the Fourth of July recess.

But before we begin the day-to-day task of legislating, the majority leader, it is reported, is expected to ask for some personnel changes in the Senate.

Senator Feinstein, our colleague from California, has been out for a couple of months due to some health issues--not an uncommon occurrence here in the Senate, and I know the entire Senate joins me in wishing her a quick recovery and a speedy return here to the Senate.

But given the tight margins in this Chamber, her absence has created some complications for Senator Schumer within the Senate Judiciary Committee on which I serve.

Without her vote, our Democratic colleagues are simply unable to advance the most controversial and partisan judicial nominees whom the President has selected.

Given the lack of Republican support, these partisan nominees simply cannot move to the Senate floor for a vote. To get around the issue, Senator Schumer has come up with a unique proposal. He wants to temporarily replace Senator Feinstein on the Judiciary Committee.

The idea is to remove her from the committee for an unspecified period of time, name a replacement, and then reinstate Senator Feinstein when she returns. This is, it turns out, unprecedented. Over the years, Senators from both sides, as I indicated a moment ago, have needed time away due to various health issues. Never, not once, have we allowed temporary substitutes on committees, and now is not the time to start.

Republicans are not going to break this precedent in order to bail out Senator Schumer or the Biden administration's most controversial nominees. Yesterday evening, the majority leader said he spoke with Senator Feinstein, and she hopes she will be back soon. We all hope that she comes back soon.

But it is another reason not to go along with Senator Schumer's ploy for temporary appointment of a member of the Judiciary Committee. Senator Feinstein has been a mainstay of this body for more than three decades, and I hope to see her back in these Halls soon.

But until then, President Biden's most controversial partisan judicial nominees will have to wait.

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