Chris Van Hollen: “I come to the floor to oppose the nomination of Chad Readler to the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals and to urge my…”

“I come to the floor to oppose the nomination of Chad Readler to the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals and to urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to oppose this nomination as well. We have learned that both Senators from Ohio--one a Democrat and one a Republican--had previously proposed mutually agreeable candidates to fill the Sixth Circuit Court position, but despite that prior support, the Trump administration instead nominated somebody who did not have the support from both Senators, which is a device we use to try to encourage nominations that are not way out of the mainstream. We want judicial nominees who are not on the far right nor on any other extreme. Yet this administration decided to ignore that bipartisan support and nominated Mr. Readler for the position on the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals. Mr. Readler, unfortunately, has a record that falls well out of the judicial mainstream. I am very concerned about the kind of judicial reasoning and findings he will make as a member of the Sixth Circuit, if he is confirmed. He has been the Trump administration's point man at the Department of Justice to try to destroy the Affordable Care Act and eliminate the protections the Affordable Care Act has brought to tens of millions of Americans, including protections for people with preexisting health conditions--whether it be a child with asthma, or somebody with diabetes, or anybody who has a preexisting condition health condition.…”