On the recordJune 17, 2013
I am pleased to rise today to strongly support the confirmation of Kenneth Gonzales for U.S. district judge for the District of New Mexico. Mr. Gonzales is an exceptional nominee with an impressive range of legal experience and expertise. He was unanimously confirmed by the Senate as the U.S. attorney for the District of New Mexico in 2010. But he is more than just his resume, remarkable as it is. He is also an inspiring American story. Mr. Gonzales grew up in the Pojoaque Valley in the northern part of our State. He was the first in his family to graduate from college. With the help of scholarships and grants, he received his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of New Mexico, a school that I am proud to call my alma mater. After graduating he was a law clerk to New Mexico Supreme Court Justice Joseph Baca, and he worked as a legislative assistant for Senator Jeff Bingaman. He began his career as a Federal prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of New Mexico in 1999, prosecuting a wide range of Federal offenses, including narcotics and violent crime cases. He holds the rank of major as a judge advocate in the U.S. Army Reserve, which he joined in September 2001. He has provided critical legal assistance to hundreds of active and retired soldiers and spouses, both here and overseas.…
