Barbara Boxer: “Excellent. Mr. President, I am going to speak about the nomination of Janice Rogers Brown. Before I go into the reason I…”

“Excellent. Mr. President, I am going to speak about the nomination of Janice Rogers Brown. Before I go into the reason I hope the Senate will reject this nomination--and the ``reasons'' because there are many--I wish to put into context for my colleagues, and for anyone watching this debate, why the Senate has spent so much time looking at the rules surrounding the nomination and confirmation of Federal judges. It is very clear when you vote to confirm a Federal judge that it is a very important vote. Why is that? It is because these judges really vote on so many issues of importance to us, whether it is our right to vote, our right to a safe workplace, our right to privacy, our consumer rights--it goes on and on--our victims' rights. The fact is, these issues are crucial, and who winds up on the bench on Federal courts is very important to the American people. This is not an abstract debate about Senate rules and procedures; it is really about who sits on the courts, and why is it that for 200-plus years the minority party has had the right to filibuster or delay the vote on nominees who they believe are outside the mainstream--whether that means they are to the far right of the mainstream, as in this particular case, or to the far left of the mainstream.…”