Political Quotes

“this morning, the Senate narrowly invoked cloture on the nomination of Justin Walker to the DC Circuit. Within the week, the Senate is expected to confirm, by the thinnest margins, both Judge Walker and a separate nominee, Cory Wilson, to the Fifth Circuit. That fills the final two available seats on the circuit courts. In one case, there isn't a vacancy yet, but he is preemptively filling it. This will complete Leader McConnell's rush to pack our appellate courts with President Trump's nominees. I want to speak about this because I have had more experience on nominations, only because of tenure, than anybody else in this body. I note that both Judge Walker and Judge Wilson are partisan ideologues who have given no indication that they will leave their politics outside the courtroom. This has become par for the course under this President--choosing nominees not for their judicial qualifications and in spite of their political leanings but because of those partisan leanings. Extreme partisanship has become a qualifier, not a disqualifier. It is a prerequisite. My Republican friends may consider these confirmations a great achievement; however, I fear that the damage left in the wake of their effort--to the courts, to the Senate, to the country--is going to remain with us for years to come after most of us have probably left this body. Let us consider the backdrop in which we consider these nominees.…”