Senate Proceeding on Jul 22nd, 2009 :: 3:18:50 to 3:42:25
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3:18:42 to 3:19:06( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: quorum call: a senator: madam president? the presiding officer: the senator gram gram i mr. graham: i ask permission to terminate the quorum call. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. graham: i ask to be recogniz for 30 minutes, but i don't think i will take nearly that long. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. graham: thank you, madam president.

3:18:50 to 3:42:25( Edit History Discussion )
Speech By: Lindsey Graham

3:19:07 to 3:19:27( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: i train take the floor to inform my colleagues on how i intend to vote on the supreme court nominee judge sotomayor. i understand the path of least resistance from anytime you're in a minority party and you lost the election,

3:19:28 to 3:19:49( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: but i feel compelled to vote yes and i feel this vote for me and, quite fnkly, for the cntry in this case. why do i say that? elections have consequences. i told judge sotomayor in the hearing that if i had won the election, even though i wasn't running, or senator mccain, she would probably have not been chosen by a republican.

3:19:50 to 3:20:10( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: we would have chosen someone with a more background, someone like roberts or miguel estrada. she is definitely more liberal than a republican would have chosen, but i elections have consequences and it's not like we hid from the american people

3:20:11 to 3:20:31( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: campaign that the supreme court selections were at stake. both sides openly campaigned on the idea that the next president would be able to pick some judges for the supreme court. that was known to the american people and the american people spoke.

3:20:32 to 3:20:52( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: now, in that regard having been one of the chief supporters of senator mccain and one of the chief opponents of then senator obama, i feel that he deserves some deference on my part when it comes to his first selection to the supreme court. under our constitution i or no

3:20:53 to 3:21:16( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: other senator would be bound by the pick of a president. but when you look at the history of this speaking, great deference has been given to that selection by the united states senate. while i'm not bound to vote for judge sotomayor, it would be the path of least political resistance for

3:21:17 to 3:21:38( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: i choose to vote for judge sotomayor because i believe she is well qualified. we're talking about one of most qualified nominees to be selected for the supreme court in decades. she experience. 12 of those years she was on second circuit court of appeals.

3:21:39 to 3:22:00( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: i've looked at her record closely. i believe that she follows president dent. that she has not been an -- precedent. that she has not been an activist judge in the sense would make her disqualified in my view, left of center reasoning, but within t mainstream. she has an outstanding background as a lawyer. she s a prosecutor for four

3:22:01 to 3:22:23( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: years in new york, record of academic achievement is extraordinary. coming up from tough circumstances. being raised by a single mother. going to princeton, being picked as the top student there, doing a -- an e

3:22:24 to 3:22:45( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: school, has a strong work ethic, that all and it's just not my view that her legal reasoning was within the mainstream. she received the a.b.a., american bar association's, highest rating as well qualified. and the reason i mention that i don't feel bound by the

3:22:46 to 3:23:06( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: rating, but durin alito-roberts -- alito, roberts confirmation for the supreme court, i used that as a positive for both of those nominees. file as a republican, i c't use it -- i feel republic time and not the other. i feel that she received the highest rating at the american bar association makes a

3:23:07 to 3:23:27( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: difference to me. her before, is something that every amican should be proud. -- proud of. and if her selection to supreme court will inspire young women, particularly latino women to seek a career in the law, that is a

3:23:28 to 3:23:48( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: and i hope it will. on balance i do believe that the court will not change in terms of ideology with her selection. justice souter, who i r an individual, has been far more liberal than i prefer in a judge. and i think that judge sotomayor will not be any more liberal

3:23:49 to 3:24:10( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: than him. and on some issues, quite frankly, may be more balanced in her approach, the war on terror and potentially the second amendment. time will tell. i'm not voting for her believing i know how she will decide a case. i'm voting for her because i find her to be well qualified.

3:24:11 to 3:24:32( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: elections matter, and the people who have served alo her side fo many years find an extraordinary woman in judge sotomayor and i confirm their findings. now, what standard every senator in this body at the end of the day has to decide how to give their advice and consent.

3:24:33 to 3:24:53( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: one of the things that i chose not to do was to use senator obama's standard when it came selecting -- casting my vote for judge somayor. if those who follow the senate will recall senator obama voted against both alito and roberts and he used the rationale that they will well qualified, that

3:24:54 to 3:25:14( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: they were extraordinarily gifted when it came to being able to intellectually gifted, but last mile of confirmation when it came to judge roberts was the heart. because the 5 cases that kind of change society, you have to look to see what's in a judge'seart. then and now i totally reject that.

3:25:15 to 3:25:36( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: if the united states senate tries to have a confirmation press where we explore another person's heart, i think we're going to chill out p wanting to become judiciary. who would want to come before the senate and have us try to figure out what's in your can you imagine the questions we would be allowed to ask? i think it would have a

3:25:37 to 3:25:58( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: tremendous chilling effect on the future recruitment of qualified candidates to be judges. and let me say this -- judge sotomayor agreed wit senator kyl that trying to find out what's in the judge's heart is probably not a good idea. he also indicated that

3:25:59 to 3:26:19( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: philosophy -- judicial philosophy were outcome to determine judge ato. if i learned her standard that her philosophy is different than mine, and her ideology was different from mine, she not dare to get the vote and not

3:26:20 to 3:26:42( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: one would con i reject that because it is not in the long-term use for the senate or the judiciary. i went by the standard that has stood the test of time. the qualification standard. is this person qualified to sit on the court? are they a person of charkt do they present an -- character?

3:26:43 to 3:27:04( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: do they present an extraordinary circumstance having something about their life that they would be there was a time in this country where a justice like justice ginsburg, who is clearly left of center received 90-something votes from this body. there was a time where a conservative judge like justice

3:27:05 to 3:27:26( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: scalia received 09 votes from this -- 90 votes every democrat who voted for justice scalia w extremely qualified, talented man who was qualified for the job who had a different philosophy from the democrats. for somebody who voted for ginsburg, you had to know what

3:27:27 to 3:27:48( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: you were getting, someone talented, extremely well qualified, extremely smart and general counsel for the aclu. you had to know what you were getting, but you had to undersnd thatresident cl right to make that decision. what happened to those days? i would argue to my democratic colleagues and i'm sure that republicans have made our fair share of mistakes when it comes

3:27:49 to 3:28:10( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: to judges, but this effort not too far in filibustering -- of filibustering judges, declaring we're on the judiciary, has really hurt this body and in my opinion t of this -- the politicalization of this body has to stop for the

3:28:11 to 3:28:32( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: good of the senate and for the good of america. what am i trying to do today? i'm trying to start over. the political golden rule is to do on to others as they did unto you. the actual golden rule is do unto others as you would have them do unto you. i hope to get back to a traditional sense of what the senate has been all about.

3:28:33 to 3:28:53( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: that brings me back to the recent past. this body blowing up. our democratic colleagues were filibustering presidential -- president bush's nominees for the appellate court and e supreme court in a fashion never known by the body. there was an effort by frustrated republicans to change the rules so that all you needed

3:28:54 to 3:29:15( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: was a majority vote to get on the bench, the supreme court. in this body for a couple hundred years had not gone down that road. a gang of 14 was created. seven republicans and seven democrats better way. tried to get the senate back to a more reasonabl and what we did, seven democrats and seven republicans, we said

3:29:16 to 3:29:36( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: that filibusteri only be done in an extraordinary circumstance. and we lt that up to the members of the body, but we were focusing on someone who was clearly out of the mainstream when it came to and if you look at judge sotomayor's record for 17 years,

3:29:37 to 3:29:58( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: it is left of stpherbgs but not a record of someone -- left of center but is not o is wearing the robe, but under the robe is an activist. an extraordinary circumstance would be somebody clearly not qualified, a pick political in nature a well, am glad to say that coll side and the republican side who were part of that group and are

3:29:59 to 3:30:21( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: still here did not see an extraordinary circumstance. senator sessions who did aery fine job in this hearing. he has acknowledged there is stphog extraordinary about this nominee for the republican party to try to block her through filibustering. i think that is a correct assessment. but then it comes down to your individual vote.

3:30:22 to 3:30:42( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: i have tried to indicate the best i can that i desire as a senator to find a new way to start over and get back to senate its approach when it comes to confirmation. having said that to my colleagues who v understand your concerns, and there are things about this nominee that are troubling.

3:30:43 to 3:31:03( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: the speeches. the speeches that she has given in the past are troubling because i think they embrace identity politics, something i don't embrace. the wise latina comment that's become now famous that she believes more often than not that a wise latina woman with her background and experience would reach a better conclusion

3:31:04 to 3:31:24( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: than a white male. we had a long discussion about how that does not sit well with most amerins, and that is not what we want to be expressed by people trying to become supreme court nominees. but having said that, do we want to exclude from consideration people with edgy?

3:31:25 to 3:31:46( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: do we want milk toast nominees who are afraid to speak their mind and to disagree with their fellow citizens? i think not. her speeches, while troub have to be looked at in terms of her recd. and when you look at this 17-year record, you will someone who has not carried out that speech. and i will take her at her word.

3:31:47 to 3:32:07( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: she rejected this idea of picking winners and losers and was very mainstream in her understanding of the role of a judge. understood the difference between a policy-maker and a judge. i will take her at her word. i cannot understand her heart anymore than she can understand mine. the speeches are troubling, but

3:32:08 to 3:32:28( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: i guarantee you, i made some speeches that are probably troubling to people on the other side. i hope they would look at everything i've done,ot just the speeches i may have given. her time as a lawyer -- they vs. important to me. during the alito and roberts hearings, they were really pushed hard about some legal

3:32:29 to 3:32:49( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: memos they wrote for ronald reagan espousing conservative thought and how that made them dangerous. how dare you write a memo about the civil rights act that somebody on the other side may disagree with. well, lawyers who advocate positions chilled in terms of picking

3:32:50 to 3:33:10( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: their clients if they hope to be a judge. the worst thing we could do is take a position, their clientele, and hold it against them for being a judge. she was a board member of the puerto rican legal defense fund. so people say we shouldn't talk about her time as a lawyer, even mention that organization.

3:33:11 to 3:33:33( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: i do not believe that at all. because when i'm looking at this nominee, i'm looking at every aspect of their life. and during her time as a board member, the board and the organization advocated positions i think that are out of the mainstream, that i don't agree with, but certainly are legitimate positions to take.

3:33:34 to 3:33:54( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: like taxpayer-funded abortion. i cannot disagree with her more. i don't think most americans want their taxpayer dollars to be used to fund abortion. the puerto rican appeal defense fund argued to the court that if you do not allow abortion for poor women, it is a form of dred scott-kind of oppression. well, i couldn't disagree more.

3:33:55 to 3:34:16( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: but that's disagreeing with me is okay. now what i hope will happen in the future is if a skefrbgt gets in the white house and -- if a conservative gets in the white house and we picked someone on the other side of that case, you will have the i do. being aggressive advocateor

3:34:17 to 3:34:37( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: causes i disagree with doesn't disqualify you from being a judge if otherwise you've demonstrated the capability. the advocacy rol of a lawyer is unique. i have represented people who i disagree i have represented accused of child molesting. i've been a cminal defense lawyer. there's nothing more noble in

3:34:38 to 3:34:58( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: our st eupl system than making the government prove their case regardless of how you feel about the defendant. so, the fact that she was an advocate choosing causes i don't agree with does not, in my opinion, disqualify her. because when i look at her record, i did n

3:34:59 to 3:35:19( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: who was continuing to be a lawyer for the puerto rican legal defense fund. the law. temperament -- those members who li a bully judge, and i know it when i see it. i don't mind being pressed. i don't mind being challenged. i don't mind being i

3:35:20 to 3:35:43( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: i just don't want to be belittled in front of my clients for no good reason. there were some things said about judge sotomayor, anonymous comments from lawyers who were asked by the you rate the temperament of people in the second circuit, and judge sotomayor had some things said that were, quite frankly, disturbing. but i looked at the other part

3:35:44 to 3:36:05( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: of the record, the people who had served with her as a prosecutor, defense attorneys who wrote on her behalf, people who served with her on court, and i found on balance that her temperament does not disqualify her. and quite frankly i somebody that a lot of people from different background admire.

3:36:06 to 3:36:28( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: ken starr, one of the strongest conservatives in the country found her to be a kwaoul tpaoeud person. louis freeh, the f.b.i., someone who came and vouched for her character and her qualities as a person. so when i look at the record, the anonymous comments by lawyers who were asked by federal legal service did not

3:36:29 to 3:36:52( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: win the day, nor should they have. now, i don't know what's a for this country when it comes to picking supreme court i don't know what openings may occur and when they will occur. i that elections have to matter,

3:36:53 to 3:37:14( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: that i don't want to invalidate elections by disagreeing with someone who i ran against or opposed politically. because when the election is over, everything has to change to some extent. i'm not bound to agree with

3:37:15 to 3:37:36( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: every pick of president obama. but when it comes to trying to show some deference, i will. i will try to do better than he was able to do for president bush. i don't want to turn confirmation of judges to special interest groups on the

3:37:37 to 3:37:59( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: left or the right and that's where we're headed if we don't watch. special interest groups are important. they have their say. they have every right to have their say. but we can't make every supreme court vacancy a battle over our culture.

3:38:00 to 3:38:21( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: i am trying to start over. i've only been here one term plus a few but since i've been here, i've been worried about where this country's going when it comes to judges. i happen to be here at a time when we're about to change the rules of the senate in a way that they have never been done in 200 years.

3:38:22 to 3:38:43( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: i was new to the body, but i was understanding of the law and how our system works well enough to know that i did not want to be part of that. i hadn't been here long, but i understood what would happen to this country if we had changed the rulesf the senate, even though people felt frustrated

3:38:44 to 3:39:04( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: and now as a member of the minority, i promised president obama that i will look hard at his nominees. i will try to help him where i can. but i will not abandon the right to say no extraordinary circumstance a nominee that i think will be bad

3:39:05 to 3:39:26( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: for the country and will dramatically change the power of a branch of the government -- the supreme court -- that is very important t american. as to my colleagues who find a different decision on the republican side, i can understand andppreciate why

3:39:27 to 3:39:47( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: you did not giving your confirmation vote to judge sotomayor. but i'm trying to look beyond this moment, look to the future, and come up with a reason to support her that will create a that will help the judiciary,

3:39:48 to 3:40:08( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: the senate and the country as a whole. senator sessions did an outstanding job. senator leahy did a very, very good job. pe her at the hearings, but she is limited, like every nominee in terms of what she can say. and o

3:40:09 to 3:40:29( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: sotomayor. she's one year older than i am. i grew up in the deep south. i'm the first person in my family to go to college. and i lost my parents when i was in college and had sister to raise. she grew up in the bronx, came

3:40:30 to 3:40:51( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: to this country from puerto rico. her mother joined she lost her dad when she was very young. her mother sotomayor and her brother und difficult circumstances. her brother is a doctor.

3:40:52 to 3:41:13( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: she has been able -- judge sotomayor -- to excel academically and reach the highest rung of america's legal system, and that, to me, is a hellf a story. nobody in my family ever expected me to be a united

3:41:14 to 3:41:34( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: states senator, including myself. only in america can these things so, i choose to vote for judge sotomayor, looking at her from the most optimistic perspective, understanding i could be

3:41:35 to 3:41:56( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: but proud of the fact that my country is moving in the right direction when anybody and everybody can hit it out of the park. i would not have chosen her if i had made this choice as president, but i understand why president obama did choose her,

3:41:57 to 3:42:20( Edit History Discussion )

Lindsey Graham: and i'm happy to vot i yield back. the presiding officer: the