November 20, 2008 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S10697 

NATO relationship as well. European 

militaries understand the value of 

what we can do, and what protections 

we can afford them. TED saw this, he 

knew what the results would be, and he 

shouldered the burden, fought the 

fight, and dragged the system into reality. 

I have had the pleasure of helping 

TED raise money for his conservation 

efforts on the World Famous Kenai 

River. I have been fortunate enough to 

join him on the river. I had the even 

greater fortune to win his annual tournament a couple times. Some rivers are 

just lucky for some fisherman, and 

while I might wish my lucky river is a 

little closer to home than Kenai, AK, 

being lucky on a river famous for its 

prize salmon is not so bad. And what he 

is doing for that river, his conservation 

efforts, is remarkable. I have noticed a 

difference between my first visit and 

my last. 

My wife Joan and I wish TED and his 

wife Catherine the best. God Bless. 

f 

NOMINATION OF ERIC HOLDER 

Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I want to 

speak about some of the things we have 

seen recently in the press about the 

President-elect nominating Eric H. 

Holder, Jr. to be Attorney General. 

Eric Holder would make an outstanding and historic nominee if President-elect Obama were to choose to 

nominate him. Mr. Holder would be the 

first African American to be nominated 

and confirmed to serve as Attorney 

General, the highest ranking law enforcement officer in the country. But 

far more important than that, he 

would be as qualified a person as could 

be found in either party in this country. 

Over the last 8 years, political manipulation and influence from partisan 

political operatives in the White House 

have undercut the Department of Justice and its mission, severely undermined the morale of its career professionals, and shaken public confidence 

in our Federal justice system. We need 

the new Attorney General to be a person not only of integrity and experience, but also somebody who can inspire the thousands of hard-working 

prosecutors, agents and employees who 

do their best every day to enforce the 

law and promote justice without regard 

to partisan politics. We need an Attorney General in the mode of Robert H. 

Jackson, and Eric Holder fits that 

mold. 

Investigations by the Judiciary Committees of the Senate and House and by 

the Department of Justice’s own inspector general have substantiated 

some of our worst fears. As you go 

around the courts in this country, we 

now see a corrosive situation in which 

defendants routinely question whether 

Federal prosecutions are politically 

motivated; not whether the law was 

broken but whether political considerations determined whether the prosecution would be brought. Great damage has been done to the credibility 

and effectiveness of the Justice Department. 

I have known Eric Holder for years. 

If he is President-elect Obama’s selection to be the next Attorney General, 

he will bring the kind of leadership, 

temperament, experience, and judgment we need to restore the rule of law 

and rebuild the reputation of the Department of Justice so it is worthy of 

its name. 

In October, before the results of the 

current election were known, I wrote 

with Senator SPECTER about the kind 

of person who should be appointed the 

next Attorney General of the United 

States. Eric H. Holder, Jr., surely fits 

the bill. The next Attorney General has 

to understand our moral and legal obligations to protect the fundamental 

rights of all Americans. The Attorney 

General must ensure that the Department of Justice is working to uphold 

the Constitution and the rule of law, 

not working to circumvent them in 

order to promote the President’s political agenda. 

We need an Attorney General who realizes that no one is above the law. The 

Attorney General is not above the law 

and no Member of this body, but especially the President of the United 

States, is above the law. 

I know Mr. Holder appreciates and 

respects the work and commitment of 

the thousands of men and women who 

work at the Justice Department in 

their dedication to enforcing the law 

and promoting justice. They know him 

from his days at the Public Integrity 

Section, from his time as a U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, from 

his years as the Deputy Attorney General, the second highest ranking official in the Department. I think this 

choice would be welcomed by career 

professionals and prosecutors at the 

Department of Justice. He can do a 

great deal to restore morale as well as 

the rule of law. 

His career has been one of ‘‘firsts’’. It 

would be fitting for him to become the 

first African American nominated and 

confirmed to serve as the Attorney 

General of the United States. 

Shortly after his graduation from Colombia Law School, he joined the Department of Justice as part of the Attorney General’s honors program. He 

was assigned to the newly formed Public Integrity Section in 1976. He worked 

there for 12 years investigating and 

prosecuting corruption. While at the 

Public Integrity Section, Mr. Holder 

participated in a number of prosecutions and appeals involving such defendants as the State treasurer of Florida, a former Ambassador to the Dominican Republic, a local judge in 

Philadelphia, and assistant U.S. attorney in New York City, an FBI agent, 

and a capo in an organized crime family. 

After a dozen years as a prosecutor, 

one of the best there was, President 

Ronald Reagan nominated him to be an 

associate judge on the Superior Court 

of the District of Columbia. When Ronald Reagan nominated him to be a 

judge, he was easily confirmed, and he 

served in that position for 5 years. He 

left the bench—becoming, incidentally 

again, the first African American U.S. 

attorney for the District of Columbia. 

That is the largest U.S. Attorney’s Office in the country. While in that post, 

he oversaw prosecution of a powerful 

Democratic Congressman. 

Four years later he was nominated to 

the important post of Deputy Attorney 

General. I worked with the then-chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Senator Orrin Hatch to report 

his nomination favorably to the Senate. I was disturbed that an anonymous 

Republican hold delayed consideration 

of his nomination for 3 weeks. But 

when that hold was lifted and we had a 

vote—open, in the daylight—all 100 

Senators voted to confirm Eric Holder 

to be the Deputy Attorney General of 

the United States. He became the first 

African American in the history of the 

Department to achieve that high position and later served briefly as the Acting Attorney General. 

But, notwithstanding my friendship 

with Mr. Holder, notwithstanding my 

friendship with the President-elect, 

should he be nominated, Mr. Holder 

should be voted for or against on his 

merits. His race will be a historic footnote, but that is not what should make 

the difference. 

Whoever is nominated to the position 

of the chief law enforcement officer of 

this country should be considered on 

his or her merits. And what wonderful 

merits he has. He has prosecuted highlevel public officials and organized 

crime; developed comprehensive programs to combat domestic violence, 

child abuse, violent crime; revitalized 

programs to assist crime victims. He 

has helped guide the Department’s efforts in the criminal prosecution of 

corporations, health care fraud, computer crimes, software piracy, helped 

develop a community prosecution 

model. He has served in nearly every 

level of the Department of Justice he 

would lead. That is what makes him 

qualified. 

We need an Attorney General, as 

Robert H. Jackson said 68 years ago 

about the Federal prosecutor, ‘‘who 

serves the law, not factional purposes, 

and who approaches his task with humility.’’ That is the kind of prosecutor 

Eric Holder always was, and that is the 

kind of Attorney General he would be. 

This is very personal to me. I consider the 8 years I spent as a prosecutor 

in Vermont after returning from law 

school one of the best opportunities I 

ever had to serve the public. 

I came close to serving in that area 

in the Federal Government. The thenAttorney General had invited me in to 

talk and to encourage me to come to 

the Department of Justice. He had reviewed my grades, he had reviewed 

where I was in the Georgetown Law 

Center, and he talked to me about coming in to the Department. I said to 


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S10698 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE November 20, 2008 

him, ‘‘Mr. Attorney General, tell me 

again how the Department of Justice 

works. Are you free of political influence from the White House?’’ I remember him saying, and I can see his eyes 

today as he looked me straight in the 

eye and said, ‘‘I have told the President 

that neither he nor anyone from the 

White House can interfere with prosecutions. We will make those determinations here in the Department of 

Justice based on the facts and the 

law.’’ I remember even at that time I 

thought if I was ever a prosecutor, that 

is the kind of prosecutor I would want 

to be. And this Attorney General whom 

I talked with did exactly that. When a 

person who was key to the election of 

the President of the United States had 

committed a crime, this Attorney General prosecuted that person. This was 

particularly significant because that 

Attorney General was Robert F. Kennedy. The President of the United 

States was his brother, John F. Kennedy. But he said: We will protect the 

integrity of the Department of Justice. 

I want to see that again. I had that in 

my mind when I was a prosecutor. I believe strongly that we need to enforce 

the law with neither fear nor favor 

when. There is no question in my mind 

that Eric Holder would do that. 

I think of the thousands of men and 

women who work for the Department 

of Justice, some of the finest people 

you will ever see anywhere, many I 

have known for decades. For most of 

them, I have no idea what their political allegiances are, whether they are 

Republicans or Democrats or Independents. But I know one thing about every 

single one of them: they are the best of 

the best. They deserve, as an Attorney 

General, the best of the best. 

I commend President-elect Obama 

for considering Eric Holder for this position. He is a public servant who has 

broad support within the law enforcement community and on both sides of 

the aisle. I was pleased to see that the 

initial reactions of Senator HATCH, 

Senator SESSIONS, and Senator 

COBURN—all Republican members of 

the Senate Judiciary Committee—and 

many others, were to acknowledge his 

public service, his integrity, and good 

qualities. Mr. Holder should have the 

support of Senators from both sides of 

the aisle if the President-elect chooses 

to nominate him. I can assure you if he 

is nominated that the Senate Judiciary 

Committee will hold prompt and fair 

nomination hearings. 

I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum. 

The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. 

SALAZAR.) The clerk will call the roll. 

The legislative clerk proceeded to 

call the roll. 

Mr. GREGG. I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call 

be rescinded. 

The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without 

objection, it is so ordered. 

TRIBUTE TO SENATORS 

JOHN SUNUNU

Mr. GREGG. Mr. President, a large 

number of very special and extraordinary individuals will be leaving the 

Senate at the end of this session, many 

friends and many people I have admired for a number of years and had 

the privilege to serve with. I wished to 

speak specifically to one, and that is 

my colleague from New Hampshire, 

JOHN SUNUNU. 

JOHN is the youngest Member of the 

Senate. He came here as the youngest 

Member, and he is still the youngest 

Member after 6 years, but he is one of 

the most accomplished and capable 

people in the Senate, one of the brightest, as we all know, and also one of the 

people who brings the most common 

sense to issues. Time and time again, I 

would come to the floor, and this was 

throughout his term but especially 

during the last few months when he 

was in a very challenging election, and 

there would be votes being cast that 

were very difficult political votes, 

votes which, when you cast these 

votes, most people knew they were not 

going to be understood and, in many 

instances, they were going to be misinterpreted or subject to misrepresentation but votes which were necessary 

to cast in order to preserve especially 

the fiscal responsibility of this Government. JOHN SUNUNU never backed away 

from any of those votes. He always cast 

the difficult vote, knowing in many instances that politically it was going to 

be characterized in a way which might 

hurt him; votes, the basic purpose of 

which, in most instances, were to protect the taxpayer, keep the size of Government under control, and be a force 

for a better country and for more individual rights. He understands as well 

as anyone in this body the basic values 

of making Government live within its 

means, of having a government which 

people can afford but is still compassionate and accomplishes the goals of 

delivering adequate services. He has 

worked very hard in order to pursue 

those goals. 

He also brought to the body a unique 

sense of humor, New Hampshire humor, 

quiet, witty, and comfortable with 

himself but also willing to make fun of 

himself, and an essential common 

sense, which I like to think is characteristic of New Hampshire, and also 

an integrity, a commitment to public 

service for the purposes of public service—the fact that he was here not to 

benefit himself in any way but simply 

to do what he felt was right in order to 

make our Nation better and make New 

Hampshire better. He served New 

Hampshire for 12 years, both in Congress and in the Senate. 

As I mentioned, he is the youngest 

Member of the Senate and his service is 

hardly completed, I hope. His opportunities are virtually limitless because 

his abilities are limitless. He has talent 

and capability, intelligence, drive, the 

personality to pretty much do whatever he wants as he moves forward. 

He also has one other resource which 

is very special and that is his wife and 

family. Kitty is an exceptional individual. Kathy and I have come to enjoy 

not only working with JOHN and Kitty 

but getting to know them as friends, as 

fellow travelers. Kathy has been 

through many years being a political 

wife, and she has put up with a lot of 

ups and downs. She and Kitty naturally 

bonded, as they understood the importance of what we do. Kitty is an individual who brings a smile whenever 

you see her because she is a person 

filled with good will to everyone. Their 

children, Grace and Charlie, John 

Hayes, great kids, very enthusiastic 

people, a wonderful family. That family is a tremendous support to JOHN, 

and he is a tremendous support to 

them. That unit, as it moves forward, 

will always be successful. 

It is obviously with great regret that 

I look on JOHN’s leaving the Senate. 

His talent will be lost here, and it will 

be a loss to the body. He is a special individual who had a special group of 

skills that uniquely worked for the 

benefit of New Hampshire and the people of New Hampshire. I hope he will 

stay engaged. 

Kathy and I wish him and Kitty and 

their children the best of luck as they 

go forward and that the road always 

rises to meet them. 

I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum. 

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The 

clerk will call the roll. 

The legislative clerk proceeded to 

call the roll. 

Mr. HARKIN. Mr. President, I ask 

unanimous consent that the order for 

the quorum call be rescinded. 

The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without 

objection, it is so ordered. 

f 

EXTENSION OF MORNING 

BUSINESS 

Mr. HARKIN. Mr. President, I ask 

unanimous consent that the period for 

morning business be extended to 3 p.m., 

with Senators permitted to speak for 

up to 10 minutes each. 

The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without 

objection, it is so ordered. 

f 

HEALTH CARE REFORM 

Mr. HARKIN. Mr. President, we do 

not intend to wait until the new Congress convenes in January to begin 

work on health care reform legislation. 

The fact is, health care reform was one 

of the signature changes promised by 

President-elect Barack Obama during 

the campaign. This legislation is too 

important and too urgent to put off 

until tomorrow, to wait until the new 

President and the new Congress are 

sworn in. 

I applaud both Senator BAUCUS, Chair 

of the Finance Committee, and Senator 

KENNEDY, Chair of the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, for plunging right into the ambitious and historic task of creating a 

comprehensive health care reform bill. 


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