Executive Session

EXECUTIVE SESSION

Mrs. MURRAY. Madam President, the majority believes that the Senate should spend 30 hours discussing what the New York Times calls a manufactured crisis on judges. While I believe our time would be better spent helping laid-off workers by extending unemployment benefits, I am happy to talk about the confirmation of judges. I am happy to talk about how these lifetime appointments affect the rights and freedoms of every American, and I am happy to talk about our impressive record of confirming 98 percent of the judges this majority has brought to the Senate floor.

I want to be clear that by spending 30 hours talking about four judges who already have jobs, we are not helping the 3 million Americans who do not have jobs. This marathon is the type of political grandstanding that, frankly, makes Americans scratch their heads and conclude that politicians just don't get it. We should be spending our time on the urgent needs facing our citizens in employment, health care, transportation, and completing our work on putting this Federal budget together. But the majority has decided that this is the most important issue we can discuss for 2 days, and they control the floor.

I wish to talk about four things: The importance of the Senate in confirming judges, the progress we have made in the past 3 years, the success we have had in confirming judges in Washington State, and the job crisis that the majority doesn't want us to discuss.

First, I want to put this discussion in context because the judges who serve on the Federal bench affect the lives and liberties of every American. These are lifetime appointments. This is not just a nomination to a commission or to an ambassadorship. This is a lifetime appointment for a Federal judge whose rulings over the next 30, 40, maybe more years, will have ramifications for every single American.

As Senators, we are elected to serve our constituents. We are asked to confirm judges whose decisions can change U.S. history. They can shape the lives of Americans for generations to come. In addition, we expect Federal judges to provide the proper checks in our system of checks and balances that was outlined in the Constitution. Without it, our system does not function properly. It is our job to ensure that each nominee has sufficient experience to sit in judgment of our fellow citizens; that they will be fair to all of those who come before the court; that they will be evenhanded in administering judges; and that they will protect the rights and the liberties of all Americans.

To determine if a nominee meets those standards, we have to explore their record, ask them questions, and weigh their responses. That is a tremendous responsibility and one that I take very seriously.

In the Senate, we have made great progress in confirming the judges President Bush has nominated. Look at these figures. The Senate has confirmed 168 judicial nominees of President Bush to have come before the Senate. In 3 years, we have only stopped 4-4 people whose records raise the highest questions about their abilities to meet the standards of fairness that all Americans expect.

Let me repeat that: 168 judicial nominees. That is a confirmation rate of 97.7 percent. We have confirmed 168 judges. That is more confirmations than during President Reagan's entire first term. So for this year, we have confirmed 168 judges.

Today, 95 percent of the Federal judicial seats are filled. That is the lowest number of vacancies in 13 years. There are now more Federal judges than ever before.
When it comes to circuit court judges, we have confirmed 29. That is more appeals judges than Clinton, the first President Bush, or Reagan had by this point in their administrations.
I have to point out that while the majority is complaining today about our 98-percent confirmation rate, it was a different story during the Clinton administration. Back then, Republicans used many different roadblocks to stop the confirmation of judges nominated by President Clinton.

During Clinton's second term, 175 of his nominees were confirmed and 55 were blocked from ever getting votes. During those years, the majority used the committee process to ensure nominees they disagreed with never came to a vote. Fifty-five nominations sent over by President Clinton never received consideration. So I think the Senate has a pretty impressive record at this time of confirming judges. That is clear in a 98-percent confirmation rate, and 95 percent of the Federal judicial seats are filled today. It is the lowest number of vacancies in 13 years.

I wish to talk for a minute about the process we use in Washington State to confirm judges. We have worked out a system to ensure Washington judges are nominated and confirmed even when different political parties hold Senate seats or control the White House. For many years, I have worked with a Republican Senator and a Democratic President to nominate and confirm Federal judges. Today, with a Republican President, I am working with my Democratic colleague from Washington State on a bipartisan process to recommend judicial candidates. We developed a bipartisan commission process to forward names to the White House, and it has worked very well. Both sides have equal representation on the commission, and the commission interviews and vets those candidates.

It worked for Senator Gorton-a Republican-and I when we were forwarding names to President Clinton, and it is working for Senator Cantwell and I as we both recommend names to President Bush.

I am proud that during President Bush's first 3 years, we have confirmed two excellent judges through this bipartisan commission process. We confirmed Ron Leighton, a distinguished trial lawyer in Tacoma who is now a U.S. district court judge for the Western District of Washington in Tacoma.

We have confirmed Lonny Suko as a district court judge for the Eastern District of Washington State. He is a distinguished lawyer and U.S. magistrate judge who has earned the respect of so many in his work on some of eastern Washington's most difficult cases.

Currently, we are in the process of getting a nomination hearing and confirmation of Magistrate Judge Ricardo Martinez for a vacancy on the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington.

For over 5 years, he has served as a magistrate judge for the United States. Before that, he was a superior court judge for 8 years, and he was also a King County prosecutor for 10 years.

Judge Martinez has the impressive credential of being named the first drug court judge in Washington State and worked tirelessly to ensure the success of this program which uses treatment services as an alternative to incarceration.

I am looking forward to his hearing and confirmation fairly quickly.

I am here to tell you that in Washington State, we are making real bipartisan progress in confirming judges. It is a process that I believe serves the people of Washington State well.

Mr. ALLARD. Will the Senator yield for a question?

Mrs. MURRAY. I have very little time left, and I want to finish my statement. I thank my colleague.

The time we are spending discussing our 98-percent confirmation rate could be used to address much more pressing issues. The majority is spending 30 hours to talk about four people who already have jobs. I think we should spend that time talking about the 3 million Americans who cannot find jobs.

The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. ENSIGN). The Senator's time has expired.

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I conclude by saying in my home State of Washington, 70,000 people have been laid off. They want this Senate to deal with unemployment insurance extension, which we need to do before we adjourn.