It has been responsible for the investment of hundreds of millions of dollars. It has created tens of thousands of jobs in American communities since 1993.

One of the frustrating things for investors is that it has been reauthorized on a temporary basis, currently set to expire in September.

I think we have to make it permanent if we want it to work, and most of us want it to work.

Senator Patrick Leahy and Senator Judd Gregg were instrumental in securing this support.

the American people finally have heard from Judge Sotomayor, and I appreciate your opening statement yesterday.

There is not one law for one color and another. There's not one law for rich and a different one for poor. There is only one law.

There's not one law for one color or another. There is not one law for rich and a different one for poor. There's only one law.

If the States had the capacity to deal with this issue, that's the preferred route.

I think it's important for the Federal Government to speak to this issue as a priority.

I would just say, therefore, that when we now carve out a different class of people that may also deserve that kind of protection, we need, and owe it to the American people and to our legal system, to explain why these cases are such…

We need this protection, we deserve this justice.

We did pass the Federal hate crime legislation in 1968 in the wake of the assassination of civil rights icon Martin Luther King.

I'm proud to be a co-sponsor of the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2009.

There are programs that provide and authorize grants to help State, local, and tribal law enforcement officials.

Probably 90-plus percent of criminal prosecutions in America are done by our States and local governments. They do a pretty good job.

I implore this Committee to pass this legislation for those who are vulnerable.

I think the recent events we've seen in this country show that these vicious crimes are a continuing problem.

The Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act has been pending in the Senate for more than a decade.

The legislation has been stalled far too long and it's time to act.

I commend Senator Kennedy for his leadership in this effort over the years.

There are States that do not have hate crime statutes.

On June 24, 2009, Senator Leahy introduced the Crime Victims Fund Preservation Act of 2009, of which I am a cosponsor.

We owe it to the memories of Officer Stephen Johns, the murdered guard at the museum, and Matthew Shepard and so many others.

I think we have to strengthen the hand of law enforcement to respond to these very vile threats and vile crimes.

that struck a devastating blow to the credibility of Federal law enforcement and undermined the people's faith in our system of justice.