Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I rise today in strong opposition to the nomination of Lawrence VanDyke to a Nevada seat on the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record a number of letters and other documents relevant to Mr. VanDyke's nomination following my remarks. Mr. VanDyke's temperament and integrity have been called into question by his colleagues and the American Bar Association, which rated him ``Not Qualified'' for the Federal bench. Mr. VanDyke's record, including his opposition to rights of LGBT individuals and commonsense gun control, is far outside the mainstream. First, I want to discuss concerns raised by Mr. VanDyke's colleagues regarding his temperament, competence, and work ethic. The American Bar Association interviewed 60 of Mr. VanDyke's colleagues, including 43 lawyers, 16 judges, and one other individual who have worked with Mr. VanDyke in the four States where he has worked and who are ``in a position to assess his professional qualifications.'' In its letter to the committee, the ABA reported that Mr. VanDyke's colleagues described him as ``arrogant, lazy, an ideologue, and lacking in knowledge of the day-to-day practice including procedural rules'' and stated that he ``has an 'entitlement' temperament, does not have an open mind, and does not always have a commitment to being candid and truthful.'' As Montana's solicitor general, Mr. VanDyke's coworkers raised similar concerns.…”