Congratulating the Los Angeles Galaxy for Winning the 2024 Major League Soccer Cup

Floor Speech

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Mr. PADILLA. Res. 936, submitted earlier today.
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Mr. PADILLA. Madam President, as we conclude the final week of the 118th Congress, and we bring to a close the historic--truly historic-- Biden-Harris administration, we look back on the biggest accomplishments of this body.

Now, serving on the Senate Judiciary Committee alongside my partners over the years, Senators Dianne Feinstein, Senator Laphonza Butler, and as of last week, Senator Adam Schiff, I am particularly proud to have played a role in the confirmation of a nearly record number of President Biden's Federal judicial nominees.

Today, I want to ask for your support on the final two nominees that are awaiting confirmation by this body.

So first let me introduce to you Judge Serena Murillo, President Biden's nominee to serve on the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, the proud daughter of a waitress and a Mexican- American farmworker who went back to school to become a teacher.

Judge Murillo was born in Pomona, CA. She earned her undergraduate degree from the University of California-San Diego and earned her law degree from Loyola Law School in Los Angeles. And after a year in private practice, Judge Murillo joined the District Attorney's Office in Los Angeles where she served as a prosecutor for the next 7 years.

In the District Attorney's Office, she served as both a trial and appellate attorney, and throughout her time there, she tried 68 cases to verdict. Now, since 2015, Judge Murillo has served as a judge on the Los Angeles Superior Court and was even appointed justice pro tem on the California Court of Appeals, Second Appellate District, from 2018 to 2019.

Her deep experience across the whole spectrum of criminal and civil law, and her reputation for thoughtfulness, fairmindedness, courtesy, and hard work on the bench will make her a tremendous district judge if she earns this body's support. On her behalf and on behalf of the people of California, I ask for your ``aye'' vote for this nomination. Nomination of Benjamin J. Cheeks

Madam President, now this week, we will also consider the nomination of Judge Benjamin Cheeks to serve on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California. Judge Cheeks was born in Albany, GA, and raised by a single mother who worked multiple jobs to provide for him and his siblings.

Recognizing that education was the key to a better future, he worked hard and earned a full scholarship to attend the University of Miami, and he went on to earn his law degree from American University, Washington College of Law.

After law school, Judge Cheeks served as an assistant district attorney in Manhattan for 7 years. And then the light went off, and he made his way to California where he served as assistant U.S. attorney for the Southern District of California.

Three years later, he started his own criminal defense practice serving on a panel to represent defendants who could not afford private attorneys. And earlier this year, Judge Cheeks was unanimously selected by members of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District to serve as a magistrate judge. That says a lot. And it says a lot about the qualifications, the values, the approach, and the great service he will provide as a district judge with your support.

So two more-than-qualified, more-than-ready-to-serve nominees awaiting our confirmation. I ask you, colleagues, for your support. Tribute to Tony Cardenas

Madam President and colleagues, I rise today to congratulate and to thank Congressman Tony Cardenas as he prepares to retire after 12 distinguished years of service in the U.S. House of Representatives and 28 years in public service overall.

Since his time in the House, he has been a tremendous, aggressive, effective, and passionate member of the California delegation in particular, and one of the true stars of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.

He is my fellow ``tiger'' from San Fernando High School. He was my first boss in politics, and, more recently--to the thrill of our wives--my roommate here in Washington. For many decades now, Tony has been a cherished friend and truly a brother in politics and in life.

Tony Cardenas is a champion for the San Fernando Valley and has been for nearly three decades, and Tony's story and legacy deserves to be celebrated and remembered. And that is why I choose to make these remarks today, so that they are a permanent record; yes, even here in the U.S. Senate.

Now, he was raised just a few blocks from where I grew up in the proud working-class community of Pacoima. Antonio ``Tony'' Cardenas was born on March 31, 1963, the youngest of 11 children born to Andres and Maria Cardenas.

And, yes, Tony is just a few years ahead of me, but our stories followed similar paths. Tony's parents and my father are from the same State of Jalisco in Mexico, and they immigrated to the United States in search of a better life--in pursuit of the American dream, Colleagues, that you know I fight so hard to defend.

We both attended Telfair Elementary School and went on to attend San Fernando high school. And when it came time to attend college, despite discouragement from some of our teachers, we both went on to college and earned engineering degrees.

Yet it is in part because of Tony and his passion and commitment to community that I left what could have been a very promising and fruitful career in engineering to pursue public service. When Tony first set out to make a difference and run for the State Assembly in 1996, he actually took a chance on me asking me to be his campaign manager. When he asked, I couldn't help but be honest. I looked at him, and I said: Tony, I don't know the first thing about running campaigns. I think he was equally honest because he looked right back at me and said: Well, I don't know the first thing about running for office. But you know me; I know you. We are smart. We are committed. We are hard- working. We will figure this out together. And I think we kind of did.

I was pretty young at the time, like, literally, fresh out of college. But he took a leap of faith on me, and I took a leap of faith on him. Like many, many young people--right?--you are cynical about politicians and about government. But I knew who Tony was as a person. I knew his values. I knew his work ethic. I knew his moral compass, aside from having so much in common growing up. And I knew just how committed he was to our community and to making change.

See, Tony had previously left engineering and entered real estate. He had his own very successful real estate company. He could have moved on to live anywhere else and been tremendously successful in the private sector, but he chose to leave that and enter public service to improve the quality of life of the folks that we grew up with.

And from his very first election to the State Assembly--and he was an underdog candidate, trust me, but he was successful--to the times when he and I worked together on the Los Angeles City Council to the last few years when we served together here in the Halls of Congress, I have been blessed not just because of his mentorship, not just because of his friendship, but to just have a front row seat to his public service career.

I have seen him, and I have been inspired by him and his fights for justice and opportunities for at-risk youth; him leading the charge in our Nation's clean energy transition--again, something that started years ago in prior offices but has continued here at the national level through his work in Congress; and his advocacy for better access to mental health care. He has done so much in a number of policy areas.

But what I admire most is sort of the through line in his narrative and in his career that he has never shied away from a righteous fight. The most righteous fights, as you know, are often the most hard battles to fight. Tony never shied away from that, and he won a heck of a lot more often than he didn't because it was the right thing to do.

And I also appreciate and reflect on his public service and the way he has gone about carving out a path for others to follow. When I mentioned his first run for the State legislature in 1996, I take you back to a time where, even in the State of California, there were not nearly as many Latinos in positions of power at the Federal or State or even the local level. But through the power of his example, he has opened the door for so many others--including me--to dream of running for office, to think of running for office, to actually run for office, to win the opportunity and to serve well. Yes, colleagues, entire generations of young Latino leaders now see running for office and having a say in the decisions that affect our communities as the norm, not the exception. And it is, in part--large part--because of the trailblazing legacy of Tony Cardenas.

And I would be remiss if I didn't take a moment to thank his wife Norma, and his four children--Vanessa, Cristian, Andres, and Alina--and the entire Cardenas family for sharing him with us for all these years.

And while next month Tony will officially step away from his work in the U.S. House of Representatives, I have no doubt that his service to others is not coming to an end. It will continue. I look forward to continuing to fight alongside him for many, many years to come.

(The PRESIDENT pro tempore assumed the Chair.)

(Mr. KAINE assumed the Chair.)

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