Mazie Hirono

Is temperament also an important trait for us to consider?

Are credibility, character, and candor of a nominee things for us to consider in your job interview?

This process of advice and consent is really a job interview, certainly not a criminal trial.

My colleagues on the other side are accusing the Democrats of some sort of political conspiracy

This moment has become a crucible. It's a test of our progress. Do we start by believing victims of sexual assault and treating them with dignity or don't we?

The President admits on tape to assaulting women. He separates children from their parents. He takes basic healthcare protections from those who need them most.

Does character matter? Do our values, our real values about what is right and what is wrong and about whether we treat our fellow human beings with dignity and respect, do they matter anymore?

The prosecutor should know that sexual assault survivors often do not remember peripheral information, such as what happened before or after the traumatic event.

We all know that the prosecutor, even though this clearly is not a criminal proceeding, is asking Dr. Ford all kinds of questions about what happened before and after, but basically not during the attack.

The Roberts Court is already heading toward--they are much more oriented toward protecting corporate interests over individual rights.

I think there is a pattern of that kind of decisionmaking by Judge Kavanaugh.

I could see him as the leader of the 5-to-4 that would enhance Presidential powers.

If Judge Kavanaugh is confirmed, we will have the most pro-Presidential-powers Supreme Court in the modern era.

There are hundreds and hundreds of cases that States have passed that limit the woman's right to choose.

I think it was so fundamental that he mischaracterized or misstated the issue.

Nothing about us without us.

President Trump chose Brett Kavanaugh to break the tie.

So, do you believe that a Justice should be able to make it easier to overturn or even--overturn even well-established Supreme Court precedent by simply giving notice that he or she has concerns about that precedent?

I am particularly troubled that the five Justices in Janus claimed, 'It did not matter that public sector unions have relied on the Abood case for decades.'

The Supreme Court, as Justice Kagan put it, has been 'weaponizing the First Amendment in a way that unleashes judges now and in the future to intervene in economic and regulatory policy.'

The Janus decision is important here because it shows your nomination fits in a larger campaign that groups like the Federalist Society and the Heritage Foundation have been waging for decades.

I am particularly sorry that he singled out one of our colleagues on this side and accused him of conduct unbecoming a United States Senator.

By what right, by what authority can Mr. Burck possibly designate a document as 'committee confidential'?

I completely agree with you. I concur with what you are doing, and let us jump into this pit together.

I wanted to set the record straight on a matter that was brought up late last night with regard to me and my questioning of Judge Kavanaugh and his relationship to Judge Kozinski.