Patrick Leahy

These delays are not helping the Department of Justice restore its rightful reputation.

It is absolutely unacceptable that this is the only human rights case that has been filed by the DOJ.

The failure to prosecute those guilty of torture, genocide, and other war crimes makes it more likely that such crimes will be repeated.

By ensuring these human rights violators are punished, we send the message that the United States is not a safe haven for abusers.

We need to make sure that these cases are aggressively and proactively investigated and prosecuted.

Justice delayed is often justice denied, so district courts must be able to process cases in a timely manner.

The Federal Judgeship Act of 2009...would fulfill that responsibility.

Now is the time to act, and I commend Chairman Leahy for his leadership on the issue.

I have always found in Government that inertia is a lot easier than initiative, and we will work for initiative.

I have a very real concern about that. I make the argument that this Committee has jurisdiction over that and we should be discussing it.

I begin with the idea that we Americans have a right to know what our Government is doing.

We regarded the OPEN FOIA Act, which you, Chairman Leahy, and Senator Cornyn introduced earlier this year, as a much needed first step toward reining in this alarming trend.

I do want the ability of courts to review, and that is why I will keep pushing on the State Secrets Act that we have pending right now before the Committee.

I think this has been broadly implemented. I am hesitant to say 'fully implemented.'

How do we make sure that we have got it right in the law? How do we keep the pressure up?

I think the key to all of this is training, training, training, as well as getting broad-based support within each agency.

I once told the Director of the CIA, William Casey, when he came up about the third time in 2 weeks to the Congress to say, 'I know I was supposed to have told you about' whatever the issue was, 'and now that it has been in the press, I…

For the first time, there will be a woman as Chair of the Committee, Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas.

I know my discussions with him when he was in the Senate and my discussions with him since he became President tell me that.

I think we are starting to see the results of that training and trying to inculcate these ideas, and I think we are making progress every day.

I am delighted to see you here. You are a true daughter of rural America.

I do want to commend both Tom Harkin and Saxby Chambliss for the way they have switched hats back and forth.

Senator Leahy and I sent a letter to the President along with 14 of our colleagues urging him to conduct a thorough review of U.S. policy in cluster munitions.

The improvements that have been proposed by Senator Feingold and by Senator Leahy are so important.

Minimization procedures are supposed to protect the constitutional rights of all of us.