Durbin Delivers Remarks During Senate Judiciary Committee Executive Business Meeting

Durbin Delivers Remarks During Senate Judiciary Committee Executive Business Meeting

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, delivered remarks during today's Senate Judiciary Committee executive business meeting where he spoke on President Trump's extreme and unqualified judges. During his opening statement, Durbin first reflected on the anniversary of September 11^th. The Committee voted on the nominations of Joshua Dunlap, nominated to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit;Eric Tung, nominated to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit; William Mercer, nominated to the U.S. District Court for the District of Montana; and Stephen Chad Meredith, nominated to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky.

"This 24th anniversary brings to mind that fateful morning when I was in the Capitol building. I was in a meeting with then-Senator Daschle. We looked out the window, down the Mall, [and] saw black smoke billowing from the Pentagon, realizing something terrible had happened beyond what we had seen on television in New York. It was just minutes until someone knocked on the door and said, 'vacate the building. We think we are under attack'… Today there is a much different attitude toward security and safety on Capitol Hill, but even more important as far as I'm concerned is what happened that night when members of the Senate [and] House-Democrats [and] Republicans, spontaneously gathered together on the steps of the Capitol [to sing] God Bless America. It was a moment I will never forget, it really reflected an effort to bring the nation together at a time when there was no other way to really solve this problem," said Durbin.

Durbin then spoke on the precedent Senate Republicans created when they blocked U.S. Attorneys on the floor during the Biden Administration.

"Let me call to mind that in April of 2021, Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas, a member of this Committee, announced he would block U.S. Attorney nominees on the floor from any state represented by a Democrat on this Committee. He held these nominees for eight months. He finally lifted his hold in December of 2021, only to block attorneys on the floor again for months beginning in February of 2022. The one that most of us remember was much more current, when then-Senator Vance, now Vice President, announced he was going to 'grind the Department of Justice to a halt' by requiring long roll calls on every U.S. Attorney nominee of Joseph Biden. At that point, we had [confirmed] 68 of the 93 U.S. Attorney positions in the Biden Administration... Over 18 months, Senator Vance held to that position that he would not allow a U.S. Attorney to be considered by voice vote or unanimous vote on the floor… To say that holding U.S. Attorneys on the calendar is unprecedented, it was done twice by members that we know personally and that is what we are dealing with now... The good news is, I hope, [based] on the conversation I had this morning with my colleagues, there is a conversation to find a bipartisan way out of this mess. That is the best outcome we could hope for-if we can come together [as] both political parties and agree on moving forward."

Video of Durbin's opening statement is available here.

Audio of Durbin's opening statement is available here.

Footage of Durbin's opening statement is available here for TV Stations.

The Committee also considered Joshua Dunlap, who is nominated to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. At his nominations hearing, Durbin asked Mr. Dunlap about his testimony in support of a Maine bill that would have made it more difficult for minors and incapacitated people to access abortion care. When Durbin asked him whether a minor who is sexually assaulted should be forced to give birth if her parents do not consent to her having an abortion, Mr. Dunlap dodged the question by saying, "My personal policy preferences…are not relevant to the work I would do."

Durbin also spoke about Eric Tung, nominated to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. As recently as this year, Mr. Tung stated that he subscribes to originalism and that there is no constitutional right to abortion, marriage equality, or the right to engage in private, consensual conduct. Durbin noted that "Mr. Tung has suggested turning back the clock on to a time when the government could criminally prosecute consenting adults for what they do in the privacy of their bedrooms."

During the executive business meeting, Durbin also spoke on and opposed the nomination of William Mercer to serve as a judge on the U.S. District Court for the District of Montana. While serving as a member of the Montana House of Representatives, Mr. Mercer opposed a bill designed to end Montana's three-year statute of limitations for civil lawsuits by sexual abuse victims.

Durbin spoke on the nomination of Stephen Chad Meredith to serve as a judge on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky. Durbin stated that Mr. Meredith insulted women everywhere when he argued, in court, that doctors should be required to provide certain information to female patients because these women "don't understand" their own medical needs.

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