Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I take no joy today in rising to urge my colleagues to join me in voting no on the cloture of the nomination of Aurelia Skipwith to serve as Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. To my disappointment and dismay, Ms. Skipwith has not provided information pertaining to her activities at the Interior Department that was requested by Senate Democrats during her nomination process. Despite my repeated requests for this information since August-- requests made twice in writing and twice in person during her nomination process--Ms. Skipwith has refused to produce information that is routinely provided by other nominees. She even suggested--get this--that I file a Freedom of Information Act request for the basic information I seek. I worry, once confirmed, Ms. Skipwith's forthrightness will only worsen, which will severely impair our ability to conduct meaningful oversight over the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Ms. Skipwith's lack of candor has elevated questions that already existed about her qualifications, her commitment to environmental conservation, and whether she can ethically lead the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. I believe it is irresponsible to confirm a nominee given these serious outstanding issues. I urge my colleagues to join me in voting no on cloture. I thank the Presiding Officer. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Wyoming.”