William H. Frist: “in a few moments, we will vote on the confirmation of Justice Janice Rogers Brown to serve on the U.S. Court of Appeals…”

“in a few moments, we will vote on the confirmation of Justice Janice Rogers Brown to serve on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit. Justice Brown is a highly qualified nominee. She is kind. She is smart. She is thoughtful. She has endured a protracted and often bitter nominations process with grace and dignity. I look forward to her confirmation to the Federal bench in just a few short minutes. It has been a long road to get to this point. Justice Brown was nominated by the President of the United States in July 2003. She has endured 184 questions and nearly 5 hours of debate in the Judiciary Committee hearing, two committee votes--both of which were favorable to Justice Brown's nomination--and one failed cloture vote despite majority support among the Members of the Senate. She also answered over 120 written questions and sat down for countless meetings with individual Senators. In all, we have debated Justice Brown for over 50 hours on the Senate floor. Now, after 2 years, Senators will finally be able to fulfill their constitutional duty of advice and consent on the President's nominee. Janice Rogers Brown will finally get an up-or-down vote. She will finally get the courtesy and the respect she deserves. During this 2-year process, Senators on the other side of the aisle have leveled harsh and I believe unfair attacks against Justice Brown.…”