Russ Feingold: “the Senate's responsibility to scrutinize and confirm Presidential nominees is an important one, and never more so than…”

“the Senate's responsibility to scrutinize and confirm Presidential nominees is an important one, and never more so than when we are considering who should oversee the agency that, as its name indicates, is designed to protect the country's environment. The individual charged with this responsibility will advise the President on setting the direction for our national efforts to protect the environment. This person will have the power to decide whether to nurture and conserve, or to develop and destroy our Nation's great resources. Throughout my career, I have committed myself to a career of environmental stewardship. I have tried to cast votes and offer legislation that fully reflect and respond to the importance and lasting legacy of America's environmental needs. I thus take this vote very seriously. At the same time, I also have another tradition to defend and uphold. I have committed myself to playing a constructive role with respect to the Senate's duty to provide advice and consent on the President's nominees for Cabinet or other senior executive branch positions. I take that role seriously as well. As the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, Mike Leavitt would be charged with unique and historic responsibilities, which will be as important as they are far reaching. In varying ways, all Americans will be affected by his decisions.”