On the recordMay 21, 2012
today we are going to turn to a nomination that the Senator from California has just referred to, Paul Watford, to be circuit judge for the Ninth Circuit. I am disappointed that the majority leader has brought this nomination to the floor. The reason I say that is there are at least 10 nominations on the Executive Calendar that might fall into the category of consensus nominees. Six nominees on the calendar had significant opposition in committee and clearly are not consensus nominees. Mr. Watford falls into this category of not being a consensus nominee. I will oppose Mr. Watford's nomination and ask my colleagues to oppose the nomination as well. My opposition to this nomination is based upon substantive concerns that I have regarding Mr. Watford's views on both immigration and the death penalty. Mr. Watford partnered with the American Civil Liberties Union and the National Immigration Law Center in two cases to oppose Arizona's 2010 immigration bill. In the first case, Friendly House, a class action lawsuit, Mr. Watford served as cocounsel for most of the plaintiffs, including the class action representative Friendly House. The Friendly House complaint attacks the Arizona law on a variety of grounds.…





