John Sarbanes: “first I want to say to the former chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee--for 17 days, from January 3 until January…”

“first I want to say to the former chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee--for 17 days, from January 3 until January 20--the very able and distinguished Senator from Vermont, I commend him for the hearings he held on the nomination of John Ashcroft to be the Attorney General of the United States. I had the opportunity to watch some of the hearings. I followed them in the press. I think the able Senator from Vermont conducted a very comprehensive, very careful hearing with respect to former Senator Ashcroft. I think he is much to be commended for doing an outstanding job. He obviously took very seriously the responsibilities of the Senate with respect to its constitutional advise and consent role. I thought a major effort was obviously made to hear from all sides on this important question. It meant going late into the evening on more than 1 day. But I thought it was a model of how hearings ought to be conducted. It was not pro forma. It really probed deeply into some very basic and fundamental questions, and I, for one, want to express my very deep appreciation to the Senator from Vermont for the way he planned and conducted those hearings. The Senate is in his debt.”