Dick Durbin: “I am glad I heard the comments of my colleague firsthand and I wish to respond to them directly. As of today, Loretta…”

“I am glad I heard the comments of my colleague firsthand and I wish to respond to them directly. As of today, Loretta Lynch, who is the President's nominee for Attorney General, has had her nomination pending before the U.S. Senate for 131 days. How does that compare to previous nominees for Attorney General? It is three times longer than the period of time that Attorney General Ashcroft was pending before the U.S. Senate, 2\1/2\ times longer than the time taken to confirm Attorney General Mukasey, and twice as long as the time taken to confirm Attorney General Holder. Why? In some cases, these nominees had questions that were raised by Members of the Senate--questions about their political views, their background; legitimate questions requiring time to answer. I sat in the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing for this nominee, Loretta Lynch. There were no questions raised of any nature, of any kind, questioning her ability to serve as Attorney General. None. When my colleague from Arizona notes the fact that I have voted against African-American women nominees in the past, it is true. I am not arguing that every Member of the Senate should vote for Loretta Lynch simply because she would be the first African-American woman to serve in that capacity. All I am saying is she deserves the same fair treatment we have given to other nominees for this job. She has now been pending before the Senate longer than any nominee for Attorney General in the last 30 years.…”