On the recordFebruary 17, 2012
today we turn to the nomination Jesse M. Furman, to be U.S. district judge for the Southern District of New York. Mr. Furman was reported out of the Judiciary Committee last fall by voice vote. When we considered his nomination last year, a few items of concern were raised. These issues included writings he made while in college on gun control and an amicus brief he drafted opposing a religious club's access to school facilities for meetings. Based on his hearing testimony and responses to written questions, I was willing to allow Mr. Furman's nomination to move to the full Senate for consideration. In the interim, conditions have changed which require me to give a closer scrutiny to Mr. Furman's record and to the confirmation process in general. Generally, I am willing to give the President's nominees the benefit of the doubt when the nominee on the surface meets the requirements I have previously outlined. But as I indicated over the past few weeks, we are not operating under normal circumstances. The atmosphere the President has created with his disregard for Constitutional principles has made it difficult to give his nominees any benefit of the doubt. Given that I did have some doubts about Mr. Furman's record, I oppose his confirmation.
