Chuck Schumer: “Even on the issue of judges, and my colleague is exactly on point, with all these other problems we have, to talk about…”

“Even on the issue of judges, and my colleague is exactly on point, with all these other problems we have, to talk about four judges sounds like a totally misplaced priority. No one puts it better than he. I ask one other question about another point. To solve the problem of the judges, when we are not able to come together, it would seem to me, and I ask my good friend from Nevada to comment, it is not that we need more talking. The other side will spend 30 hours talking about this, or now maybe 15 because of my friend from Nevada and his astute parliamentary request. Do you think they will say anything new? We have heard the arguments over and over and over and over and over and over again. No one is going to be educated about this. We all know their viewpoint. It seems to me, and I ask my colleague this question, what we need on judges is not more speeches telling us what our colleagues on the other side of the aisle think--Lord knows we know that. We do not agree, but we know--but, rather, the President and the leaders of the Senate and the Judiciary Committee, sitting down with our side, and asking, Could we come to some agreement on who the judges ought to be? There is the constitutional role of advice and consent which has existed in this country for a very long time, and I tell the Senator as the ranking Democrat, I am never consulted about judges in New York. By the way, in New York we are filling all the vacancies because we have come to an agreement.”