Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I rise today to discuss the impeachment of Judge Thomas Porteous and specifically to offer my thoughts on the Articles of Impeachment. First, let me say as a general matter that when we as a body consider the nomination of a Federal judge, we do so with the hope and expectation that the individual being considered will uphold the law and treat people appearing in his or her courtrooms with fairness and impartiality. The lengthy record presented by the House managers demonstrated that Judge Porteous has had an ongoing pattern of conduct that does not comport with the trust that the Senate placed in him when it confirmed Judge Porteous as a U.S. district court judge in 1999. The managers also presented sufficient evidence for me to vote in favor of each of the Articles of Impeachment. Because of the lengthy, ongoing, and egregious nature of the judge's conduct, I also voted to disqualify Judge Porteous from any future Federal office. The most compelling evidence presented for each article was as follows: Article I--The record demonstrated that Judge Porteous, while presiding as a U.S. District Judge, denied a motion to recuse himself in the case of Lifemark Hospitals of Louisiana, Inc. v. Liljeberg Enterprises, despite the fact that he had a corrupt financial relationship with the law firm representing Liljeberg Enterprises. The record also demonstrated that Judge Porteous engaged in corrupt conduct after the Lifemark v.…”