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Floor Speech

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Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I want to address an extremely unusual request that our Democratic colleagues have made with respect to the Judiciary Committee.

Our dear friend Senator Feinstein is a titanic figure and a stateswoman. Elaine and I have been honored to count the Senator and her late husband Dick as close, personal friends for many, many years. We miss our colleague. We wish her the very best for a speedy recovery and a smooth return.

In the meantime, our colleague's temporary absence has really not ground the Judiciary Committee to a halt. So far this Congress, the committee has reported out 40 judicial nominees--listen to this--more than half of them--more than half of them--on a bipartisan basis.

Let me say that again. More than two dozen judicial nominees have been reported out this Congress on bipartisan votes.

There are more than a dozen article III judges already waiting on the Executive Calendar, and a whole bunch of the nominees currently in committee are likely to receive bipartisan support as well. So the administration does not face any obstacle to moving nominees who are remotely qualified for the job. People who are mainstream and qualified have a path forward.

Yet some of the same far-left voices who have attacked Senator Feinstein in the past are now suggesting that the Senate move her off the Judiciary Committee indefinitely--indefinitely. The stated reason, the supposed emergency, is that Senate Democrats are unable to push through the small fraction of their nominees who are so extreme--so extreme--and so unqualified that they cannot win a single Republican vote in Committee.

Let me say that again. The far left wants the full Senate to move a Senator off a committee so they can ram through a small sliver of their nominees who are especially extreme or especially unqualified.

There are four main nominees whom our Democratic colleagues are currently unable to move. One of them threatened an underage abuse victim while representing her prep school. One of them didn't know what article II of the Constitution says. One of them didn't know what a Brady motion is. The fourth one argued that the sex offender registry-- listen to this--does not help keep children safe. Those are the four they are having a hard time moving. They are not on track to get bipartisan support.

It is purely the Democrats' political choice to hold relatively more reasonable nominees hostage so the unqualified ones can move in a pack. So even though they could move a number of less controversial nominees right now--right now--they want to sideline Senator Feinstein so they can ram through the worst four as well.

I understand our Judiciary Committee colleagues report they cannot find a single past example where their committee let a Member be temporarily replaced in this fashion that some Democrats are advocating.

So let's be clear. Senate Republicans will not take part in sidelining a temporarily absent colleague off a committee just so Democrats can force through their very worst nominees.

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