Richard Durbin

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Madam President.

Mr. DURBIN. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent the remaining votes tonight be 10-minute votes.

Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from West Virginia (Mr. Manchin) is necessarily absent.

Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from West Virginia (Mr. Manchin) is necessarily absent.

Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from West Virginia (Mr. Manchin) is necessarily absent.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I have 10 requests for committees to meet during today's session of the Senate. They have the approval of the Majority and Minority leaders. Pursuant to rule XXVI, paragraph 5(a), of the Standing Rules of the Senate, the following committees are authorized to meet during today's session of the Senate: Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs The Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, May 26, 2021, at 10 a.m., to conduct a hearing. Committee on Environment and Public Works The Committee on Environment and Public Works is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, May 26, 2021, at 9:45 a.m., to conduct a hearing nominations and pending legislation. Committee on Finance The Committee on Finance is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, May 26, 2021, at 2:30 p.m., to conduct a hearing on nominations. Committee on Indian Affairs The Committee on Indian Affairs is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, May 26, 2021, at 2:30 p.m., to conduct a hearing. Committee on the Judiciary The Committee on the Judiciary is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, May 26, 2021, at 10 a.m., to conduct a hearing on nominations. Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship The Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, May 26, 2021, at 1:30 p.m., to conduct a hearing. Committee on Veterans' Affairs The Committee on Veterans' Affairs is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, May 26, 2021, at 10 a.m., to conduct a hearing on nominations and pending legislation. Select Committee on Intelligence The Select Committee on Intelligence is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, May 26, 2021, at 2:30 p.m., to conduct a closed hearing. Subcommittee on Strategic Forces The Subcommittee on Strategic Forces of the Committee on Armed Services is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, May 26, 2021, at 4:30 p.m., to conduct a hearing. Subcommittee on National Parks The Subcommittee on National Parks of the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, May 26, 2021, at 10 a.m., to conduct a hearing.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, are we now moving to a cloture vote on Kristen Clarke?

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that there be 2 minutes equally divided for debate in support and opposition to Ms. Clarke.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent to speak for 15 minutes before the rollcall vote.

Mr. DURBIN. Madam President, it was 1 year ago today. It was a street corner in the city of Minneapolis, the corner of 38th and Chicago Avenue. For 9 minutes and 29 seconds, Derek Chauvin, a Minneapolis policeman, knelt on George Floyd's neck. As he knelt on his neck, he stared into a camera with a look that haunts me to this day. Those 9 minutes and 29 seconds took George Floyd's life and changed America's national conversation about law enforcement. Those 9 minutes and 29 seconds sparked a global movement and compelled us to bear witness to the reality of racial injustice in our country. In this Senate we are in a privileged position to face that reality and to continue America's long, sometimes bitter march toward equal justice under the law. That is why I rise today in support of Kristen Clarke's nomination to be Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice. It is worth noting the history of this position. The Civil Rights Division is one of the most important components of the Justice Department. The Attorney General's Office has existed since 1789. The Justice Department itself was not created until after our Civil War. During the days of Reconstruction, after that war, our Nation resolved to take new steps to form a more perfect Union through the 13th Amendment's abolishing slavery, the 14th Amendment's guarantee of due process and equal protection, and the 15th Amendment's protection of all citizens' fundamental right to vote. The Department of Justice was created after the passage of those amendments and entrusted with the responsibility to defend the rights of Americans, particularly the newly emancipated, formerly enslaved Americans. Given the Department's immediate imperative to protect and preserve civil rights, President Ulysses S. Grant appointed Amos Akerman to be the first Attorney General to lead this new Department. Why? He had extensive experience in prosecuting voter intimidation as the U.S. attorney in the State of Georgia. More than 150 years later, the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department now is entrusted with that constitutional responsibility. The Division enforces Federal statutes prohibiting discrimination based on race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, religion, national origin, and citizenship status. And just as President Grant appointed a legal expert with a breadth of experience to lead the newly formed Justice Department in 1870, today, President Joe Biden has chosen Kristen Clarke to take up the mantle as the head of the Civil Rights Division. With her breadth of experience defending the civil rights of all Americans, Kristen Clarke is singularly qualified to lead this Division, particularly at this moment in history. Kristen Clarke will be the first Senate confirmed woman of color to do so--the first. When I listen to the caricatures that are portrayed on the floor of the Senate about this woman, I find it hard to believe they are talking about the Kristen Clarke that we met in open Senate hearings. We know what happened to the Civil Rights Division under President Trump. Under President Trump and Attorneys General Sessions and Barr, the Civil Rights Division was devastated. Over the past 4 years, the Division rescinded guidance protecting transgender students, prohibited the use of consent decrees for local police departments that had engaged in systemic misconduct, and abandoned the prior legal positions supporting Americans' fundamental right to vote. I believe America needs a Civil Rights Division that vigorously defends the civil rights of all Americans. Kristen Clarke is the legal expert we need to restore and reinvigorate the Civil Rights Division. You wouldn't know it from the characterizations on the other side about her experience, but, notably, she is a veteran of two of its sections. She began her legal career defending voting rights in the Voting Section and later prosecuted hate crimes in the Division's Criminal Section. She personally understands the key role the Division's line attorneys play in protecting civil rights. Since leaving the Civil Rights Division, Ms. Clarke has continued defending civil rights in State government and national civil rights organizations. First, Ms. Clarke co-led the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund's voting rights work, litigating voting rights cases under the Voting Rights Act and the National Voter Registration Act. Then she served as a civil rights official for the New York State Attorney General's Office, where she played a key role in launching a religious rights initiative to address faith-based discrimination. When you listen to those assignments and the fact that this woman was chosen to head these divisions, how can it possibly square with some of the caricatures that have been drawn on the floor today about who she is? Most recently, Ms. Clarke was chosen to lead the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Those of us who follow this closely know it is one of the most preeminent civil rights groups in America. During her tenure, the Lawyers' Committee has taken on a huge caseload and doubled in size to address the most pressing civil rights issues of our time, including hate crimes. Here is the part that I want to make a special emphasis on. Both Vanita Gupta and Kristen Clarke have extensive endorsements from law enforcement organizations. Yet, when they were characterized on the floor of the Senate by their critics, they were characterized as haters of police and law enforcement. It just mystifies me how Senators can come to the floor knowing these organizations and believe that these two women have hoodwinked them into believing that they support law enforcement. The women and men in law enforcement aren't pushed around and aren't easily deceived. They have endorsed these two women, and today we address Kristen Clarke's nomination because of the records they have written, not over a period of days or weeks or months but years and in some cases decades, that they have written. Consider this statement from Sheriff David Mahoney from Dane County, WI, recently stepped down from the National Sheriffs' Association. Let me quickly add, the National Sheriffs' Association is a powerful organization, and it is one that isn't pushed around by any politicians. Sheriff Mahoney wrote--and I want to quote his words after some of the outrageous charges that have been made against Ms. Clarke this afternoon. Sheriff Mahoney wrote: ``Building trust between law enforcement and communities is essential for law enforcement to effectively serve all members of our community. It is with this in mind that I strongly support Kristen Clarke. Ms. Clarke has built trust in every stage of her career.'' Does that sound like someone who wants to defund the police? Do you think that this Sheriff Mahoney from Dane County in Wisconsin would say that about someone who wants to defund police? He went on to say: ``When she was a federal prosecutor as a young attorney, she gained the trust of federal agents and domestic violence survivors and crime victims. When she was the Chief of the Civil Rights Bureau in the New York State Attorney General's office, she built trust among New Yorkers to protect their rights, and with the Lawyers' Committee, she gained the trust of hate crimes victims and survivors.'' She has so many endorsements from law enforcement groups and from prosecutors. I am not going to read them all into the Record. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent to have letters of support for Ms. Clarke printed in the Record

Mr. DURBIN. The point I am trying to make is this: At this moment in history, filling this Division, the Civil Rights Division, on the anniversary of George Floyd's murder on the streets of Minneapolis, we are choosing the first woman of color in the history of the United States to head this Division. It is a historic choice. It shouldn't be trivialized by those who want to paint a caricature of this woman not even close to the truth. It shouldn't be trivialized by ignoring the many endorsements she rightfully received because of her good life's work, having spent her entire career defending the civil rights of all Americans. Ms. Clarke is the right person for the job. President Joseph Biden believes that. The Attorney General believes it, and I believe it as well. At a time when we have seen an appalling rise in hate crimes, we need someone with her experience to head this Division. I urge my colleagues to take note of the continued need for the Civil Rights Division to do its important work 150 years after its creation. Given that need and Ms. Clarke's breadth and depth of experience, I urge all of my colleagues to vote in favor of her nomination. I yield the floor. Vote on Clarke Nomination

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, it is significant that on this day, this anniversary of the death of George Floyd, that we are considering one of the key appointments in the Biden administration to be Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to consider the historic importance of this moment and to support this well-deserving and experienced person to serve our Nation in this capacity. I urge my colleagues to vote aye.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to speak as if in morning business.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, when I listened to the speech by Senator McConnell, the Republican leader, about Afghanistan, it transported me back in history to October of 2002, when I was a U.S. Senator representing the State of Illinois, just days away from a reelection campaign, and we faced a historic vote here in the U.S. Senate. The vote was whether or not we would invade Iraq; whether the United States would give the President the authority to send American forces to Iraq. There were 23 votes against that invasion. I was 1 of them, 22 Democrats and 1 Republican. I can remember that night so well. It was late, past midnight, when the vote was finally taken. But we had previously taken another vote, and although I had voted against the invasion of Iraq, I saw the invasion of Afghanistan as a different story. We believed that Osama bin Laden and al-Qaida, responsible for 9/11, were in Afghanistan. And the story was--the story line, and I bought it completely--if we don't tell people like Osama bin Laden that there is a price to pay for attacking America and killing 3,000 innocent people, who are we, and who will be the next attacker? So I voted. I voted for the invasion of Afghanistan and believed that was the right thing to do at that moment in history. That vote passed unanimously here in the Senate. There was only one dissenting vote in the House of Representatives, Congresswoman Barbara Lee of California. Virtually everyone else--everyone else, both political parties--voted for the invasion of Afghanistan. I will tell you, there was not a single Senator or Congressman who would have stood up that evening on that vote and announced ``I am prepared to vote for the longest war in American history,'' because that is what we ended up voting for. It was our belief that if we came into Afghanistan, we could stop using this country as a haven for terrorism and we could help escort them into the 21st century. Well, after 20 years, after thousands of Americans gave their lives and thousands more were critically injured, after the spending of trillions of dollars in Afghanistan, we learned a bitter lesson. Our willingness was not enough. The people in Afghanistan have to be prepared to embrace change for it to happen. We had to create an army in Afghanistan, a security force. It virtually didn't exist. The warlords had their military, and they were for sale, usually, to the highest bidder. And we were trying to create a national security force. We were trying to create a nation, which was quite a challenge. I am not going to dwell on what happened, the bitter disappointments. But when I hear Senators come to the floor saying, ``Isn't it a shame that we are leaving Afghanistan? They are going to descend into chaos and many, many problems,'' my question to them is: So what would you have us do? Continue with the troops risking their lives in Afghanistan for another 20 years, for another trillion dollars? Not me. I believe we have reached a point where we have to do everything we can to help Afghanistan really progress into the 21st century. Yes, I feel a personal obligation to the men and women who risked their lives for our troops. For those who are opposed to or unaccepting of the notion of refugees coming to the United States, for goodness' sake, let us have the character to stand behind those Afghan men and women who risked their lives for our soldiers and who are now probably marked by the Taliban for death themselves. Yes, I would open our doors to them. They gave their lives for our men and women, and we should never forget it. I hope my friends on the other side of the aisle who have strong feelings about immigration would at least realize that these individuals are critically important to our role in history and our message to the rest of the world when we seek their assistance.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I have 8 requests for committees to meet during today's session of the Senate. They have the approval of the Majority and Minority leaders. Pursuant to rule XXVI, paragraph 5(a), of the Standing Rules of the Senate, the following committees are authorized to meet during today's session of the Senate: Committee on Armed Services The Committee on Armed Services is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, May 25, 2021, at 9:30 a.m., to conduct a hearing on nominations. Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs The Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, May 25, 2021, at 10 a.m., to conduct a hearing. Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation The Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, May 25, 2021, at 3 p.m., to conduct a hearing. Committee on Finance The Committee on Finance is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, May 25, 2021, at 9:30 a.m., to conduct a hearing on nominations. Committee on Foreign Relations The Committee on Foreign Relations is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, May 25, 2021, at 2:15 p.m., to conduct a hearing. Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions The Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, May 25, 2021, at 2:15 p.m., to conduct a hearing. Committee on the Judiciary The Committee on the Judiciary is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, May 25, 2021, at 2:30 p.m., to conduct a hearing. Select Committee on Intelligence The Select Committee on Intelligence is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, May 25, 2021, at 2:30 p.m., to conduct a hearing.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Madam President, if you have been involved in Illinois politics and government in the last 40 years or if you have called my office in Springfield anytime in the last 24 years, there is a good chance you know the fellow I am about to speak about this afternoon. For those who haven't been lucky enough to meet him yet, let me tell you about my friend, one of the best people I have ever known. His name is Bill Houlihan. Bill came to work on my first Senate campaign in 1996, and when we won, I asked him to be my staff director for downstate Illinois--all 96 counties. He has been with me ever since, and now he is State director of the entire State. Whenever I can't attend an event in Illinois, Bill is the person I turn to. I don't have to write any speech for him, and I don't have to check on what he said. People know Bill speaks for me, and I have complete confidence in his judgment and integrity. Everybody seems to know him. Just try going to a grocery store with Bill Houlihan in Springfield, IL. Be prepared for delays as everyone needs to talk to him or to thank him for something that he might have done: Thanks for helping my mom get her Social Security. Thanks for helping my dad with the Veterans Health Administration. Thanks for helping to get that passport so my daughter could go away to school. Thanks for helping the local union get the project that creates the jobs here in our community. Over the years, Bill has helped thousands of people find jobs and provide for their families. He knows about the dignity of work. He does whatever he can to help whomever he can, having no expectation of any recognition. Bill started his professional life in 1981, fresh out of Eastern Illinois University. He was the class president. His first job was with the Illinois Education Association. They sent him into a David-and- Goliath battle scene in Peoria, IL, where they were trying to convince the local teachers to sign up with the IEA. They hired Bill 6 weeks before the crucial election and sent him into Peoria--his first campaign for a union. You see, Bill had worked on political campaigns for his dad, and I will talk about those in a minute. When he got down to Peoria--a place where he had never lived-- everybody knew him, and whenever he went up and introduced himself as Bill Houlihan, they would say: Well, are you the son of Bill Houlihan? He would say: No, I am the son of John Houlihan. Bill didn't understand for a while why he kept getting that question. It turns out that he had exactly the same name as Peoria's longtime and venerable TV weathercaster Bill Houlihan. When, as a young union organizer, Bill showed up, puzzled teachers always said: Are you sure you are not related to Bill Houlihan? Our Bill Houlihan was no TV personality, but Peoria teachers quickly learned that he cared about them and that he knew his stuff. Just as important, he understands how to build political organizations and campaigns and how to use that power to help everyday people. Thank goodness for me he knows how to win. The IEA won the election in a close, upset victory back in the day. It was the first of many election campaign victories for Bill Houlihan. Bill and Cindy, his wife, are the parents of four children, but they did it the hard way--one set of triplets and a bonus baby born 22 months later. Mariah, John, Grant, Neil are all grown up now, but when they were younger, at the start of every school year, their teachers would often ask them: Is Bill Houlihan your dad? That question was followed with the teachers telling stories about Bill and how he had helped them. This young, unknown organizer had become a legend in his own right. These stories were the only way the Houlihan kids learned about what their dad did for a living. He never bragged about himself; he was too modest. Driving around the State of Illinois for over 20 years with Bill Houlihan, I have heard a lot of stories, but I think the thing that impressed me the most was when he talked about his dad--what a remarkable man. I was lucky to know him. John Houlihan was born in a section of Chicago which describes where you might find it. It is called Back of the Yards; that is, the stockyards. In that section of the city, immigrant families got their start and worked in some of the hardest jobs in Chicago. John's father was a slaughterhouse worker. John himself grew up on the South Side of Chicago--in that area--and his dream came true. As an Irish Catholic kid, he was admitted to Notre Dame University. Can I tell you what a big deal that is still today? For the kids in those parishes to consider going to Notre Dame was nothing short of a miracle. So John Houlihan, Bill's father, who was 6 feet 4, incidentally, was going to try out for the basketball team at Notre Dame University, an absolute dream come true. Yet there was an intervening event which the Presiding Officer will appreciate. It was called Pearl Harbor. John Houlihan, Bill's dad, had to drop out of Notre Dame University to enlist in the U.S. Marines. He served in many campaigns. As his 21st birthday approached, his mom and dad sent him a little gift, a belt. It was small enough that it could make it through the mail, and at least he knew they were thinking of him on his birthday. He was embarking on the Battle of Bougainville on his 21st birthday, an island in the South Pacific. A grenade explosion ripped through his left leg in that battle. Lucky for him, he pulled off that belt and applied it as a tourniquet. It saved his life, but it couldn't save his leg. It was amputated at the hip. The Allied forces won that battle, and John Houlihan spent a year and a half recovering in veterans hospitals. He left the Marines with a chest full of medals, including three Bronze Stars, a Marine Corps Medal, and, of course, a Purple Heart. He went back to Chicago with one leg, an artificial leg, and a cane or a crutch. He went to a dance in the basement of St. Gabriel's Catholic Church on the Chicago South Side, and he met his future wife Vernal. They had eight kids together. Bill was the middle child, the fourth of the eight kids. Amazingly, his dad, despite having that devastating injury, wanted to get involved in politics. He moved to Park Forest, IL, just south of Chicago, to raise his family in a larger house, as you can imagine, and decided to run for the Illinois General Assembly in 1964. I have a picture here I am going to show you. This is John Houlihan, Bill's dad, and this is his brother Mike. Bill is over here at the age of 10. His dad was elected to the general assembly. He served with some of the giants of Illinois' political history: my friend Paul Simon, Adlai Stevenson, and Harold Washington. John Houlihan fit right in. As an amputee, at a time before the Americans with Disabilities Act, John Houlihan knew that they would applaud you on Memorial Day and Veterans Day but that it was hard as heck for a disabled vet--really severely disabled like John Houlihan--to get a job. He fought for those disabled vets just like himself, so much so that, when he came to the Illinois General Assembly in Springfield, the Black Caucus invited him to serve as a member. They knew that he appreciated what discrimination was all about. He accepted the invitation as an honor. Years later, when his son Bill Houlihan was working in that same Illinois State Senate, the Black Caucus asked that he be assigned to them as a staff member because they knew of his reputation--Bill Houlihan's reputation--for being willing to fight for the underdog. John Houlihan served in the general assembly for 8 years before turning his full attention to veterans' rights. He served with the Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs, the Veterans' Administration here in Washington, and the Cook County Veterans Assistance Commission. His young son Bill was watching him throughout this life experience, and I know he came to appreciate his dad's courage and determination that he was going to build a family and build a life despite his serious disability. He also knew what it was like for his dad. I remember his dad, a World War II vet. We look today to amputees who have the good fortune, thank goodness, of modern prosthetics, even computer-driven devices to help them lead as normal a life as possible. That wasn't the luck of the World War II vets. They were given some crude artificial legs, and they did their best. I can still picture Bill's dad John--one-legged man, lumbering around life with this big, wooden leg of his that he would just swing forward as he made it with his cane and made his life despite that handicap. Bill's mom was a big influence on him as well. She might have been quieter than his dad but just as strong. Think what kind of woman it was who would marry John Houlihan, quickly returning from war, trying to make a life. Vernal Houlihan was a kind, generous woman. No matter how tight money was, there was always room for one more place at the Houlihan dinner table. Bill Houlihan is just like both his parents, the same courage and determination and the same sense of caring. The heart of every congressional office is something called casework, helping constituents untangle redtape caused by government bureaucracy or to help solve everyday problems in their lives that mean the world to them. Bill Houlihan may be the only State director in this Senate who still does casework along with his colleagues in addition to all his other duties. I can't count the number of people whose burdens have been made lighter by Bill Houlihan. He logs every call he receives, and his day doesn't end until he returns every call. He treats every person with dignity, compassion, and respect, and he always makes time for them. When we would drive around the State, thousands and thousands of miles, it reached the point where people would call him in his car. The phone never stopped. Many times I said to Bill: Why don't you pick up on that when we get back to Springfield tomorrow? No, he said. I knew he was going to call, this buddy of mine. He calls me every day. He just wants to chat for just a few minutes. I will be done, Boss, in just a minute. And he would take the call. Many people called him just to hear his friendly voice. He has fans the likes of which I wish I had some days. A lot of chiefs of staff would think twice about that approach to the job but not Bill. That is just who he is. Our office in Springfield is located in the same block as Abraham Lincoln's home. That neighborhood is part of the National Park Service. When Bill walks down the block, he greets every park ranger by name, and they know him by name. It is like that wherever we go. Illinois is filled with young leaders all over the State--women and men, Black White, and Brown--who didn't know they could be a leader until they met Bill Houlihan. He is one of the best talent scouts and coaches I have ever known. He boosts the confidence of everyone who works for him or with him. He crisscrosses the State of Illinois in his dark-blue minivan; they call it the Houli-van. The miles he puts on that van every year might take him to China or the Moon. He knows every mile marker on every highway in our State by heart. He has, at last count, 47,000 contacts in his Palm Pilot--yes, he still has a Palm Pilot--and I think he knows 20,000 of those telephone numbers by heart. He has an encyclopedic mind for names, numbers, election results, sports stats, history--everything--and he shares everything he has learned with anyone who might benefit from his knowledge. In between organizing for the IEA and joining my staff, Bill worked as a legislative director the Illinois Senate Democrats and downstate director for Senator Carol Moseley Braun, the first woman of color to serve in the Senate. One of these pictures here is the early days when he was just getting started as an organizer, hair much darker than it is today. Now, let me show you a more recent appearance. This is Bill. He is speaking at the Women's March in Springfield in 2017. Usually, he is very soft-spoken, until he gets in front of a microphone, and that is when he turns up the volume. Oh, there is one other time he turns up the volume. If he is watching his Fighting Irish play football and they score a touchdown, Bill will let out a scream that will rattle the windows. Always, always Bill Houlihan is the voice for people whose hopes and needs aren't heard enough within the halls of the Senate or the halls of power. He is a voice of compassion, encouragement, wisdom, and decency. Loretta and I are lucky to call Bill and Cindy some of our best and dearest friends. So it is hard to say, but this is his last week on the job with the U.S. Senate. It hurts to lose a man who has given me such a big part of his life. It is going to take its toll on my office, my politics, and my life, but I can guarantee you that I will be calling Bill just as often as I always have. He may not be on the payroll, but I know he will take my call. Bill and Cindy want to move on to the next chapter in their lives. That is understandable. I am sure it is going to include some traveling and special time with their kids and grandkids. Bill, God bless him, just volunteered again to once again become the chairman of the Sangamon County, IL, Democratic Party--a post he held years ago. Above all, I know that Bill will continue to help everyone he can in every way he can because that is who he is and always has been. Bill, I hope you are watching--Cindy too. Thank you. I couldn't have done it without you. Loretta and I wish you and Cindy and your whole family good health and happiness in all the years to come. I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from Washington (Mrs. Murray) is necessarily absent.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from Massachusetts (Mr. Markey) is necessarily absent.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, it has been my good fortune to serve in the U.S. Senate for several terms and in the House before. I can remember this Chamber from my first visit when I sat in that Gallery as a college student and watched the proceedings of the U.S. Senate, and I can remember so many historic days that I have been blessed to have a front-row seat to observe great memories. But in addition to those great memories, there is one sad memory--no, it was more than sadness; one memory that brings sadness and anger--and it is related to January 6 of this year. I remember that day so well. The Vice President of the United States, Michael Pence, was presiding over the U.S. Senate. We were counting the electoral votes to determine the official outcome of the previous election. The President of the United States, Donald Trump, was holding a rally near the White House, not far from Capitol Hill. The demonstrators who came to his rally then marched on this Capitol, and what transpired after that was historic and shameful. I remember the moment when the Vice President of the United States was spirited off that platform, yanked by his arms out that door. Clearly his security detail felt that his life was in danger, and they removed him. I remember a member of the Capitol Police coming, standing on the podium in front of the Senate, and saying that we should remain in our seats, that this was going to be a safe place, this room, the Senate Chamber. Then they started bringing in the staff, who were gathered around the Chamber, to stand along the walls because of the safety of this circumstance. So we knew there was something happening in the Capitol. Minutes later, just minutes later, that same Capitol policeman announced: ``Evacuate this room as fast as you can. As quickly as you can, move off this scene and go to another place.'' I never thought that I would see that in the U.S. Capitol Building, nor in the Chamber of the U.S. Senate, but it was a reality. As we quickly moved out through the exits, all the Senators and staff, I remember looking out the window and seeing hundreds of people descending on the Capitol. That was the snapshot in my mind as we quickly escaped the danger in the U.S. Capitol Building. We know at the end of the day that at least five people lost their lives. We know that 140 law enforcement were assaulted by this mob who tried to take control of the Capitol during the electoral college count. Of course, there is ample historic evidence of what happened-- videotapes galore, videotapes from every angle, information gathered. That is why I was skeptical when they suggested creating a Commission to chronicle what happened on January 6. We saw it. We lived it. America watched it, many times on live television. The videotapes have been played over and over and over again to dramatize what was happening as people were spraying so-called bear spray in the faces of law enforcement, beating them with poles, crashing through the windows of the Capitol and breaking down the doors to come inside. We know what happened after we evacuated this Chamber. The mob took over. Oh, they had their glory as they were taking pictures of one another going through our desks here, acting like this was a holiday and that they were somehow patriots in that shameful moment. I questioned whether we needed a Commission to establish this. It is there. But then last week, there was a vivid reminder that, despite reality and despite the evidence, there are people who want to rewrite history. Let me note one in particular. Congressman Andrew Clyde, Republican of Georgia, at a House Oversight Committee hearing on the January 6 riot, said that the House floor was not breached, that supporters of former President Donald Trump who stormed the Capitol behaved ``in an orderly fashion.'' Congressman Clyde went on to say that if you looked at the videotapes, you could see that ``there was an undisciplined mob. There were some rioters, and some who committed acts of vandalism.'' Then he went on to say: Watching the TV footage of those who entered the Capitol, and walk through Statuary Hall showed people in an orderly fashion staying between the stanchions and ropes taking videos and pictures, you know. That is what the Congressman said. He said: If you didn't know that TV footage was a video from January the sixth, you would actually think it was a normal tourist visit. End of quote from Congressman Clyde. This is a quote from Congressman Paul Gosar, Republican from Arizona. The law enforcement officials in the Capitol were ``harassing peaceful patriots.'' So far, more than 440 people have been charged by our government with participating in this attack, 440 of Congressman Clyde's orderly tourists. Many have ties to rightwing extremist groups, the FBI said. They recounted that five people died in the events that led up to the attack. It is outrageous. We know President Trump and his followers have been pursuing the Big Lie when it comes to the results of the election. The President has finally embarrassed even some Republican followers with his extreme statements in that regard. But now his loyalists are turning on the facts and the videotapes and the reality of January 6. This has to come to an end. The truth has to prevail. This Commission, which I understand Senator McConnell has now said he opposes, is absolutely necessary--a bipartisan Commission to establish once and for all what did occur, as if we have to, but we do. Otherwise, Congressman Clyde, Congressman Gosar, and others will set out to rewrite history and blame other forces for being at work that day. I join Senator Schumer in calling for the creation of this Commission and demanding a vote on the floor of the U.S. Senate for its creation so that we can establish once and for all what did occur on January 6 and must never happen again Endless Frontier Act Mr. President, years ago, I traveled to Israel with then-minority leader Senator Harry Reid. We met with Shimon Peres, and something happened that I have never forgotten. Senator Reid asked: ``What do you see as the greatest threat in the world to the United States?'' That was just a couple of years after 9/ 11 when that question was posed. I thought Peres might cite terrorism or loose nukes. Instead, he said without hesitation: ``China. Don't you see that?'' Economically, strategically, diplomatically, China was already focused like a laser on advancing its position as the world's most powerful nation, and that was 16 years ago. Five days ago, China launched a spacecraft safely and landed it on Mars, becoming only the second nation in history, after the United States, to land on the Red Planet. In 1957, at the height of the Cold War, the Soviet Union became the first nation to launch an Earth-orbiting satellite into space. That launch shocked the world and caught us off guard. Our response was an unprecedented commitment to reclaim America's dominance in the world as a leader in scientific and technological discovery and innovation. The effort became known as America's Sputnik moment. Twelve years later, America put a man on the Moon. You might say that now, instead of a Sputnik moment, America is going through a Zhurong moment. That is the name of the Chinese Mars rover, Zhurong. Let me be clear. While China is our fastest growing competitor, the United States has lost some ground globally as many nations recognize the importance of R&D investments to their industrial innovation and competitiveness. In 1960, just 3 years after Sputnik launched, the United States accounted for approximately 69 percent of the world's R&D funding. By 2018, 58 years later, this percentage had dropped from 69 percent to 28 percent. Others were joining in the pursuit of technology and innovation at a record clip. The question is, Can we come together, as Americans did in the last century, to make investments in science, technology, and competitiveness to guarantee that America's economy remains the world's largest and most innovative? Some Members of Congress and the Senate--and we have heard their speeches on the floor--say: Go slow. No hurry. Well, I think they are committed to a solid second-place finish for the United States of America, and I don't want to be a part of it. The Endless Frontier Act, which we are going to consider, gives us a reason for hope. It is broad-based. It is bipartisan. It shows leadership by Majority Leader Chuck Schumer; Senator Todd Young, Republican of Indiana; along with Commerce Committee Chair Maria Cantwell of Washington and Ranking Member Roger Wicker of Mississippi. Like America's response to Sputnik, the new era of scientific and technological discovery will be driven by seed money from the Federal Government, but this effort is not limited to government spending. America is home to the world's best research colleges and universities and laboratories, like the Argonne National Lab in my State of Illinois. They are part of this effort too. We will harness the combined efforts of America's best scientific and technological minds in the public sector and the private sector. The Endless Frontier Act and broader competitiveness package represent the largest investment in U.S. science and technology since the Apollo era. It will authorize more than $100 billion over 5 years to support breakthrough scientific discovery and technological innovation in 10 key areas vital to building an innovation economy for the 21st century and creating good jobs in the process. These key areas include fields such as advanced energy, semiconductors, artificial intelligence, biotechnology and genomics, quantum computing, robotics, materials science, disaster prevention, and, of course, cyber security. If you need a reminder of why it is urgent that we improve U.S. cyber security, look at how the ransomware attack last week by Russian cyber criminals on a major American oil pipeline caused long gas lines and panic buying throughout the eastern half of our country. Investing strategically in these 10 key innovation areas will enable the United States to protect America's position as a leader in the global economy and protect our national security. It will reinvigorate and expand our industrial and manufacturing base, and it will create a stronger middle class in our country. The Endless Frontier Act will also strengthen the security of essential supply chains and our ability to solve disruptions caused by crises. Remember those fearless doctors and nurses working in COVID-19 wards last year, when they had to dress in garbage bags because of a nationwide shortage of PPE? A nation as wealthy and powerful as ours should never be caught so dangerously unprepared. This bill will make sure that we aren't. Here is another cautionary tale about supply-line disruption. In Belvidere, IL, which is in the northern part of our State, workers at the Stellantis plant are proud of their work assembling Jeep Cherokees. In late March, that plant was forced to shut down because of a global shortage of microchips. The plant is scheduled to reopen as soon as the end of this month. But late last week, the company announced that the plant will be forced to shut down one of its two production lines in late July, again because of microchip shortages. As many as 1,600 employees could be laid off. You can't build a prosperous economy and stable middle class if you can't secure your supply lines. We know that American workers can build cars and trucks for the future because they are already doing it, and they are going to be launching it in many places around our Nation. Just this week, President Biden visited an electric vehicle assembly plant in Michigan. And they are doing it today as well in Normal, IL, where a company called Rivian--remember the name: R-I-V-I-A-N, Rivian-- repurposed and expanded a former Mitsubishi assembly plant to produce the company's first assembly plant for electric cars and trucks. Is this going to work? Will it actually have a demand for electric vehicles? Remember this one too. Amazon has already ordered 100,000 delivery vans from this plant. By the end of the year, Rivian expects to employ 2,500 people at the Normal assembly plant, 2,500 workers in good- paying, middle-class jobs in America. The Endless Frontier Act and President Biden's American Jobs Plan provides the leadership and resources to make sure that America remains the world leader in the 21st century. On another critical issue, let me say that we need to get serious when it comes to combating intellectual property theft and counterfeiting. The previous administration's policies were haphazard. We can do better. The Endless Frontier Act will impose tough sanctions on entities that violate U.S. intellectual property and trade protections. I am working with Senator Cassidy, a Republican from Louisiana, and others on a bipartisan bill that provides additional safeguards to combat the sale of counterfeit goods, especially on the internet. As I said, the Endless Frontier Act and competitiveness package will invest more than $100 billion over 5 years to support breakthrough technologies. Now, $100 billion is a big investment, but it is dramatically less than what China is now spending in the same areas. And it is far less when adjusted for inflation than what we spent on the race for space. If we contributed the same share of our GDP to science and technology today as we did in the early 1960s--1 percent of our overall economy-- we would have to spend $900 billion, not $100 billion, in this effort. My support for the Endless Frontier Act builds on my commitment to securing steady, predictable funding increases for so many research Agencies of the Federal Government but especially for NIH. They provided the lifesaving vaccines that allow us to take off our masks and resume our lives. Monday, I went out to NIH with several of my colleagues. Senator Blunt led a group from the Appropriations Committee. We met with NIH Director Francis Collins, Dr. Anthony Fauci, and scientists who are working on breakthrough discoveries. It was 6 years ago that Senator Roy Blunt, Republican from Missouri, and I made an informal pact. We worked together to increase the NIH budget by 5 percent a year over and above inflation. With the help of Senator Patty Murray and Lamar Alexander, we increased the NIH budget more than 40 percent. Because of those modest investments and the genius of NIH-funded researchers, we have a real chance of developing better treatments and cures for terrible diseases, including cancers, sickle cell, and Alzheimer's. The race for the future isn't an either-or deal--either we invest in science or breakthrough technologies. We have to invest in both. I will continue to work with Senators from both parties to preserve steady, predictable funding increases for research. No one bill will safeguard our national security or resolve all of our outstanding issues with China. We still have a lot of work to do, both in Congress and diplomatically. We still have to strengthen our immigration system so that America continues to welcome immigrants who want to put their genius to work for the good of America, as Nikola Tesla and Albert Einstein did in the last century, as did Katalin Kariko, the Hungarian-born Nobel laureate whose NIH-funded research paved the way for today's COVID vaccines. Strengthening America's role as a global leader in science and technology is an essential piece of our effort to preserving our leadership in the world. For that reason, I support the Endless Frontier Act, and I urge my colleagues to do the same.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I have 10 requests for committees to meet during today's session of the Senate. They have the approval of the Majority and Minority leaders. Pursuant to rule XXVI, paragraph 5(a), of the Standing Rules of the Senate, the following committees are authorized to meet during today's session of the Senate: Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs The Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, May 19, 2021, at 2:30 p.m., to conduct a hearing on nominations. Committee on Environment and Public Works The Committee on Environment and Public Works is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, May 19, 2021, at 10 a.m., to conduct a hearing. Committee on Finance The Committee on Finance is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, May 19, 2021, at 10 a.m., to conduct a hearing. Committee on Foreign Relations The Committee on Foreign Relations is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, May 19, 2021, at 9:45 a.m., to conduct a hearing. Committee on Foreign Relations The Committee on Foreign Relations is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, May 19, 2021, at 9:45 a.m., to conduct a hearing on nominations. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs The Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, May 19, 2021, at 2:30 p.m., to conduct a hearing. Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship The Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, May 19, 2021, at 2:30 p.m., to conduct a hearing. Committee on Veterans' Affairs The Committee on Veterans' Affairs is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, May 19, 2021, at 3 p.m., to conduct a hearing on nominations. Subcommittee on Strategic Forces The Subcommittee on Strategic Forces of the Committee on Armed Services is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, May 19, 2021, at 4:30 p.m., to conduct a hearing. Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and Consumer Rights The Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and Consumer Rights of the Committee on the Judiciary is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, May 19, 2021, at 2:30 p.m., to conduct a hearing.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. Madam President, yesterday marked the deadline for filing personal income taxes in America. I am sure many people spent the past weekend surrounded by 1099 forms and shoe boxes full of receipts, hoping to claim a well-deserved tax refund after a year of financial stress due to the pandemic. That is another reason why the American Rescue Plan that Congress passed earlier this year was such a major accomplishment. It included, that plan, included the largest, single-year tax cut for middle- and low-income earners in the history of the Nation. Let me repeat that. This year's American Rescue Plan included the largest, single-year tax cut for middle- and low-income earners in America's history. But for a privileged few, those tax cuts are pennies compared to the deductions they enjoy every year because of Republican tax proposals, proposals like the Trump tax plan that Republicans signed into law in 2017, just 4 years ago. Over the next few years, it is estimated that more than 80 percent of the benefits from this Trump tax plan will go exclusively to the top 1 percent of American earners--the top 1 percent. It is nothing more than welfare for the wealthiest. Perhaps the most egregious aspect of the Trump tax plan is the billions of taxpayer dollars it will give to the world's wealthiest individuals and corporations over the next decade. We are already feeling the devastating impact this corporate giveaway has had on America's economy. Listen to this now, if you just turned in your taxes. Last year, 55 of the largest companies in America paid zero--zero dollars in Federal taxes despite making more than $40 billion in profits. Forty billion dollars in profits; zero taxes. It is a glaring example of the imbalance in our tax system. I don't think there is any rational explanation for having schoolteachers and janitors pay more in taxes than the largest corporations, but it seems the folks on the other side of the aisle disagree. When Senator McConnell met with President Biden last week, he said that raising taxes on corporations--the same corporations that paid zero last year in taxes--is a ``red line'' when it comes to funding the President's infrastructure package. That means Senator McConnell, the Republican leader in the Senate, would rather cut taxes for the ultrawealthy than repair America's crumbling roads and bridges. Did you see that picture in the news? Of the bridge? I think it was in Tennessee, on one of the interstates. It cracked so badly, they had to close it, close an interstate bridge. We remember just a few years ago in Minnesota, an interstate highway collapsed, taking American lives. It can happen and will continue to happen unless we do our part. That is not just bad policy; it is dangerous. I guess this is the picture that I brought to show what was happening with this bridge in Tennessee. You can see the crack in the steel girders there and the reason they closed the bridge. God forbid some other bridge is in that same shape and we haven't discovered it or we won't discover it soon enough. We need to put some money in our infrastructure. We count on it every day. People rely on the safety of these bridges and other facilities, and it is our job to make sure they are kept up. That is not just bad policy, saying no tax increases for corporations if it means paying for infrastructure that way; it is dangerous. Take a look at what happens when we fail to adequately invest in our infrastructure. That photo tells it all. A ``structural crack'' they called it. That was found in a bridge in Memphis, TN, last week. Tens of thousands of vehicles drive over that bridge every day. It connects commuters and commercial traffic between Arkansas and Tennessee. If not for a scrupulous engineer who caught the crack, local authorities said it would have led to a ``catastrophic'' result. Luckily, the catastrophe was averted. But now the people of Memphis and across America have a different problem. Repairs take time. That means the economic damage caused by the bridge's closure is going to last for months. And it means that shipping and transportation networks will have to reroute for the foreseeable future. So it has a national impact on the economy, one bridge. Is this what we have come to in terms of infrastructure in America? Are we supposed to accept bridges hanging by a thread? This closure happened the same week that cyber criminals shut down one of the largest petroleum pipelines in the United States. Did you see the newscast? Did you see the lines of people and their panicked buying? They didn't know if there would be enough gas to get to work, to get the kids to school, or in emergencies, so they went and filled their tanks, and we had a real mess on our hands. We saw the chaos that was created by that ransomware attack: cars lining up in every direction; people actually filling--and this is dangerous--plastic bags with gasoline. While it may have been a bridge in Memphis or a pipeline on the east coast last week, what is next? According to the American Society of Civil Engineers, 43 percent of our public roadways are in poor or mediocre condition. Maybe that just means potholes and banging up your car or slowing down the traffic, but it could be worse. All of these signs point to the same conclusion: We are living on borrowed funds from a previous generation. We are using the infrastructure that they paid for because we don't want to create our own infrastructure. Cutting corners is simply not an option. That is exactly where we are going to end up if Senator McConnell's redline becomes the standard for deciding if we have infrastructure. And it is predicated on a failed economic theory. The Republican approach--the so-called aptly named Laffer curve-- believes if you just cut taxes on the wealthiest people, that will take care of the whole economy. Everybody is going to get well if the wealthiest have more money. I don't buy it. It is time to wake up from the trickle-down fever dream. Look at where 50 years of cutting taxes on the extra-wealthy has brought us: bridges on the verge of collapse; pipelines held for ransom; the most unequal economy since the Gilded Age in American history. The economic consensus is clear: Tax cuts on the wealthy have never created jobs. They have never boosted economic growth. They just boost the banks accounts of the people who already have it. The benefits rise all the way to the top of the economic ladder and stay there. If we want to rebuild America, we need to invest in America. To do that, we need the wealthiest Americans and massive corporations to step up and pay their fair share. If you think you paid your fair share or more yesterday, how about the corporations that paid zero on $40 billion of profit? President Biden understands this. Tha is why he has proposed the American Jobs Plan. It is going to grow our economy by putting millions of people to work rebuilding roads and bridges, like the Hernando de Soto Bridge. And it would make our crucial infrastructure more resilient to 21st-century threats like ransomware and cyber criminals. President Biden also has a plan to pay for these investments, unlike the Trump tax plan. To start, the President's plan would raise hundreds of billions of dollars by holding tax cheats accountable and rolls back the tax breaks that encourage corporations to ship jobs overseas. This is something that boils my blood. Here is a corporation--and many of them have been located in my State--doing well, making a handsome profit, and expanding their business. They sit down with their counsel, lawyers, and come up with a brandnew idea: Well, let's just move our headquarters out of the United States, out of the State of Illinois, and put it in some foreign country. Think of how much we will save by not paying our fair share of taxes in the United States. We get all the benefits in this country. We use its infrastructure. We locate here. We actually live here. But we take a post office box in some faraway place and skip paying taxes to America. What a grand idea that is for some. For me, it is just deception and fraud. The only people who would see their taxes increase under President Biden's proposals are those making over $400,000 a year. Now, if you are making over that amount of money and don't want to announce it publicly, but you are sick and tired of Durbin's speech, get up and leave at this point. But if you are making under $400,000 a year, stick around because President Biden has made sure these tax increases will not affect you. Let me put it another way. We can fund President Biden's infrastructure plan without raising a single tax on actual working families in America. How about that? Frankly, it is about time we balance the scales of our tax system. During the pandemic, how did the richest 1 percent of Americans do? What was their struggle during this crisis? They saw, the 1 percent, saw their net worth increase by $4 trillion--not a bad year. If we want to get serious about creating jobs in America, everybody has to do their part. And this isn't just about rebuilding our country. It is the next century of global leadership at stake.

Mr. DURBIN. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. DURBIN. Madam President, very shortly, we will be voting on the Kristen Clarke nomination to the Department of Justice. This week is an apt time to start the discussion about her nomination because it marks the anniversary of two of the most important Supreme Court decisions in the history of America. The first is the infamous Plessy v. Ferguson decision in 1896, wherein the Supreme Court established a standard of separate but equal. That was the standard that was used to justify-- legally justify--racial discrimination throughout America. Sixty years later, in the landmark decision of Brown v. Board of Education, the Supreme Court unanimously--unanimously--rejected that shameful document and blazed a trail for the modern civil rights movement. This year, 2021, the Senate has a chance to continue America's long march toward equality and racial justice by confirming principled, experienced leaders to the Department of Justice. The Senate should work expeditiously to consider and confirm these nominees. We have already confirmed Attorney General Merrick Garland, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco, and Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta. The next one in the order of the administration's priority on hiring in the Department of Justice is Kristen Clarke. President Biden has nominated her to lead the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division. Ms. Clarke is the right person to restore credibility to the Civil Rights Division. Under the previous President, the former Attorneys General Sessions and Barr, that Division was warped into a target and a tool to discriminate against marginalized Americans. During that previous administration, the Division rescinded guidance that strengthened protections for transgender students. They prohibited the use of consent decrees with local police departments that engaged in systemic misconduct. And they abandoned the longstanding principle of defending Americans' right to vote. Now we have an opportunity for a course correction in the Civil Rights Division by confirming a proven civil rights leader to head that Division. As a former trial attorney in the Division's Voting Section and as a prosecutor in its Criminal Section, Ms. Clarke has clearly played in the big leagues. She personally understands the role that the Division's line attorneys play on a day-to-day basis. Ms. Clarke knows that these career attorneys must be independent from political pressure in order to carry out the mission to defend the civil rights of all Americans, and her diverse background as a legal expert will serve her well. As the former codirector of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund's voting rights group, Clarke confronted assaults on voting rights and ballot access, like those we are seeing in State legislatures across America today. As the former chief of the New York Attorney General's Civil Rights Bureau, she helped establish the Office of Religious Rights Initiative, defending the First Amendment rights of workers throughout the State. You would find it hard to believe about Ms. Clarke and the issue of freedom of religion, based on some of the earlier statements made on the floor, and to then learn that she established the office's Religious Rights Initiative in New York. Today, as the president and executive director of the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, Ms. Clarke has spearheaded new initiatives to address civil rights issues created by new technologies. She is singularly qualified to head the Civil Rights Division at this moment. She brings with her a wealth of expertise and experience needed to lead this Division at this moment in history. She also boasts broad, enthusiastic support from the law enforcement community. If you were on the floor and heard the statement previously made by the senior Senator from Utah, you would find it hard to believe that law enforcement would support this woman. Some of the things they say about her in criticizing her record suggest that those in the law enforcement community are her natural enemies. The opposite is true. Throughout her decades of civil rights work--20 years of working in civil rights that included several years as a prosecutor--she has partnered closely with law enforcement. Many of them have publicly endorsed her, and I will get to that in a moment. Yet, if you were to listen to the arguments from the other side of the aisle--and we heard them in committee--you would think this amazing woman must be so gifted that she can engage in the practice of law for 20 years in the same theater, including with law enforcement leaders from all over America, and somehow they never caught on to the fact, according to them, that she was virulently against law enforcement. In fact, they came out and said the opposite. She was fair. She was objective. She was a good partner in trying to resolve difficult issues. They would have us believe that she has this mystical power to take people in law enforcement and delude them because secretly she is a radical, a Socialist radical. Not true. The partnership she has had with law enforcement began when she prosecuted hate crimes in the Civil Rights Division, and it continues to this day through her work on the Lawyers' Committee James Byrd Jr. Center to Stop Hate. This center provides community resources, training, and support for law enforcement to better identify, investigate, prosecute, and report hate crimes. In each of these roles throughout her history as a professional prosecutor at the highest levels in the United States of America, Ms. Clarke has earned the respect and trust of members of law enforcement, reflected in their strong support for her nomination. Listen to some of the groups that openly support her and then reflect on some of the charges that were just made against her on the floor by the Senator from Utah. She has support from the Major Cities Police Chiefs Association. She has the support of the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives. She has the support of Women in Federal Law Enforcement; the Hispanic American Police Command Officers Association; over 40 prominent police chiefs and sheriffs; and Sheriff David Mahoney, who just this month stepped down as president of the National Sheriffs' Association. Ms. Clarke's critics would come to the floor and have you believe she has deluded all of them. She has deceived all of them. Despite the work they have done with her, she secretly can't stand them. Well, it is not true. And it is not true, and they know it. I think the Senators on the other side of the aisle should know it as well. Ms. Clarke has the support of a bipartisan group of former Justice Department officials who wrote to the committee and said: ``Ms. Clarke's experience, in addition to her high character, make her a superior choice to lead'' the Civil Rights Division. People who worked with her have endorsed her for promotion. Although Ms. Clarke's record demonstrates that she has devoted her life to advancing the civil rights of all Americans, in recent weeks, she has been the target of an incredible amount of baseless, vitriolic attacks. I don't understand what is going on around here sometimes when I look at these nominations and wonder how people like her--Kristen Clarke, Vanita Gupta, and others--really enrage people on the other side of the aisle, to the point where organizations are making concerted efforts to really twist and distort their life's work, their values, and the talents that they bring. Listen to one of these attacks that was just made again on the floor of the Senate. The attack is that she personally defended Mumia Abu- Jamal, who was convicted in 1982 of the murder of a Philadelphia police officer named David Faulkner. The attack is missing one key point. Ms. Clarke never--never--worked on the Abu-Jamal case. You wouldn't know that from the charges made. But perhaps the most vicious attack against her is the false accusation of anti-Semitism. Now, I am not Jewish, and the Senator who suggested that she was anti-Semitic in some of the things that she had said and done is not Jewish either, but those who are of the Jewish faith have considered the charges made against her. Let me tell you what they found. They found these accusations couldn't be further from the truth. Ms. Clarke has spent much of her career defending the rights of Jewish Americans. At the New York State attorney general's office, she repeatedly defended Jewish employees' right to observe the Sabbath in the workplace. Does that sound like someone who is negative on the issue of freedom of religion or anti-Semitic? She has also been at the forefront of confronting the growth of anti- Semitic hate and harassment online through her work with the Lawyers' Committee. For instance, she helped shut down a virulent White Supremacist and anti-Semitic website called Stormfront. Several Jewish groups have emphatically denounced the baseless attacks, which continue to be made, even to this day, against this woman. Notably, the Union for Reform Judaism, the Nation's largest Jewish denomination, wrote to the Judiciary Committee to voice unwavering support for Ms. Clarke's nomination. Let me tell you what they said. ``We've heard the voices who have hurled accusations of antisemitism at Ms. Clarke, and we reject them. They do not comport with the career and record of the colleague we have worked with throughout her career.'' These attempts to smear Ms. Clarke's record are a last-ditch effort to discredit a nominee with exemplary qualifications. The bottom line is this: Ms. Clarke is the right person to lead the Civil Rights Division. It is a difficult assignment. At any time in our history, it is difficult, probably more so today than ever. She is the person for the job. At this moment in history, our country needs her combination of expertise, experience, skills, and thoughtfulness to ensure the Civil Rights Division will again work for all Americans. If she is confirmed to be part of Merrick Garland's team at the Department of Justice, Ms. Clarke would certainly make history, being the first Black woman confirmed by the Senate to lead the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division--the first. I look forward to supporting her nomination on the floor, as we continue this process, and I urge all of my colleagues to vote to discharge her nomination from committee and ultimately confirm her to this critical position at the Justice Department. My assignment on the Senate Judiciary Committee is a challenging one. The committee is evenly divided 11 to 11. There are some of the fiercest and strongest partisans from the other side of the aisle as part of this committee structure. I marvel sometimes at things that are said in the committee. When I look at the evidence--certainly when it comes to Ms. Clarke, her actual life, her career, her experience, and what she has done--it belies some of the baseless criticism that is made. I just wonder, What is it about this woman that drives some Members into a rage? I have met her. I have heard her questioned in the committee. I believe she has proven throughout her life that she is the right person to move up into this critical position at this moment in history. I yield the floor.

Mr. DURBIN

Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from Michigan (Ms. Stabenow) is necessarily absent.