CONGRESSIONAL DIGEST - Key Persons
Bob Barr represented Georgia ™s Seventh Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives as a Republican from 1995 to 2003. He practices law and runs a consulting firm, Liberty Strategies, in Atlanta, Georgia. He was the Libertarian Party candidate for President in 2008. The following is from a May 25, 2016, letter to Georgia leaders. I write you as a fellow Georgian and voter concerned with improving our voting process. Specifically and respectively, I urge you to take the time to learn more about and support the National Popular Vote (NPV) Interstate Compact. In so doing, Georgia can place itself…
Job Titles:
- Professor and Director of the Constitutional Law Center at Stanford Law School
Job Titles:
- United States Representative, Virginia, Republican
Job Titles:
- Representative
- United States Representative, Virginia, Democrat
Representative Scott, of the Third District of Virginia, was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1992. He served in the Virginia House of Delegates from 1977 to 1982 and in the Virginia Senate from 1983 to 1992. He sits on the House Judiciary Committee, where he chairs the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security. He is also a member of the Budget Committee and the Education and Labor Committee. The following is from the May 3, 2007, House floor debate on H.R. 1592, the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007. Bias-based crimes are…
Job Titles:
- United States Representative, Michigan, Democrat
Charles Grassley was first elected to the U.S. Senate in November 1980. He is chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee. The following is excerpted from Senator Grassley ™s October 5, 2018, remarks during the Senate floor debate on confirmation of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court. One hundred days ago, Justice [Anthony] Kennedy announced his retirement from the Supreme Court. Shortly thereafter, on July 9, the president announced the nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to serve as the newest justice. Judge Kavanaugh has spent 25 years of his career in public service. He spent the last 12 years on…
Chuck Schumer was first elected to the U.S. Senate in November 1998. He has served as the Senate minority leader since January 2016. The following is excerpted from Senator Schumer ™s October 5, 2018, remarks during the Senate floor debate on confirmation of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court. From start to finish, President [Donald] Trump ™s nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court will go down as one of the saddest, most sordid in the history of the Federal judiciary. The well was poisoned from the outset when President Trump selected Judge Kavanaugh from a list…
Job Titles:
- United States Representative, California, Republican
Representative Lungren, of the Third District of California, was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2004. He previously served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1978 to 1988. He was California Attorney General from 1990 to 1998. He sits on the Judiciary Committee, the Homeland Security Committee, and the Budget Committee. The following is from the May 3, 2007, House floor debate on H.R. 1592, the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007.Hate crimes are a serious issue. That's why 45 out of the 50 States have laws against them. That's why we have…
Dianne Feinstein was first elected to the U.S. Senate in November 1992. She is the ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee. The following is excerpted from Senator Feinstein ™s October 5, 2018, remarks during the Senate floor debate on confirmation of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court. This has been my ninth Supreme Court nomination hearing, and I must say, I have never experienced anything like this. Never before have we had a Supreme Court nominee where over 90 percent of his record has been hidden from the public and the Senate. Never before have we had a…
Job Titles:
- United States Representative, Washington, Republican
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- United States Representative, Ohio, Republican
Representative Jordan, of the Fourth District of Ohio, was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2006. He served in the Ohio House of Representatives from 1994 to 2000 and in the Ohio Senate from 2000 to 2006. He sits on the Judiciary Committee and the Small Business Committee. The following is from the May 3, 2007, House floor debate on H.R. 1592, the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007.I appreciate the opportunity to express my opposition to H.R. 1592, the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act. This measure represents an unprecedented departure from…
Job Titles:
- United States Representative, Massachusetts, Democrat
Representative McGovern, of the Third District of Massachusetts, was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1996. He served as an aide to U.S. Senator George McGovern from 1977 to 1980 and as a senior aide to U.S. Representative Joseph Moakley from 1982 to 1996. He is the Vice Chair of the Rules Committee and serves on the Budget Committee. The following is from the May 3, 2007, House floor debate on H.R. 1592, the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007.Some will claim that this law is not needed. Others will claim that it adversely…
Job Titles:
- Representative
- United States Representative, Michigan, Democrat
Representative Conyers, of the Fourteenth District of Michigan, was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1964. He served as a Legislative Assistant to U.S. Representative John Dingell from 1958 to 1961, as a practicing attorney from 1959 to 1961, and as a Referee in the Michigan Workmen's Compensation Department from 1961 to 1963. He is chairman of the House Judiciary Committee. The following is from the May 3, 2007, House floor debate on H.R. 1592, the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007.The hate crimes bill, H.R. 1592, will provide assistance to State and local…
Kamala Harris was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 2016. She served as the attorney general of California from 2011 to 2017. The following is excerpted from Senator Harris ™s October 5, 2018, remarks during the Senate floor debate on confirmation of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court. Given the serious and troubling allegations against Judge Brett Kavanaugh, I am deeply disturbed that the Senate is moving forward with this nomination. When it was announced that the FBI [Federal Bureau of Investigation] could investigate these serious and credible allegations, I had hoped there would be a legitimate investigation….
Job Titles:
- Representative
- United States Representative, Texas, Republican
Representative Smith, of the Twenty-First District of Texas, was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1986. He served in the Texas House of Representatives from 1981 to 1982 and as Bexar County (Texas) Commissioner from 1982 to 1985. He is the Ranking Minority Member of the Judiciary Committee. He also sits on the Homeland Security Committee and the Science and Technology Committee. The following is from the May 3, 2007, House floor debate on H.R. 1592, the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007.I oppose this bill, H.R. 1592, for three reasons. First, the bill…
Job Titles:
- Representative
- United States Representative, Colorado, Democrat
Representative Udall, of the Second District of Colorado, was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1998. He served in the Colorado House of Representatives from 1996 to 1998. He serves on the Committee on Science and Technology, where he chairs the Science, Space, and Aeronautics Subcommittee. He also sits on the Armed Services Committee and the Natural Resources Committee. The following is from the May 3, 2007, House floor debate on H.R. 1592, the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007.In my view, an act of violence against one person is an act of violence…
Job Titles:
- United States Representative, Indiana, Republican
Representative Pence, of the Sixth District of Indiana, was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2000. He was a practicing attorney from 1986 to 1991, President of the Indiana Policy Review Foundation from 1991 to 1993, a radio broadcaster on Network Indiana from 1992 to 1999, and a public affairs television host from 1995 to 1999. He sits on the Judiciary Committee and the Foreign Affairs Committee, where he is the Ranking Minority Member on the Subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia. The following is from the May 3, 2007, House floor debate on H.R….
Mitch McConnell was first elected to the U.S. Senate in November 1984. He has served as Senate majority leader since January 2015. The following is excerpted from Senator McConnell ™s October 5, 2018, remarks during the Senate floor debate on confirmation of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court. It was 88 days ago that President [Donald] Trump announced his nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to fill the current vacancy on the Supreme Court. Judge Kavanaugh is a nominee of the very highest caliber, a brilliant legal mind and an accomplished jurist with a proven devotion to the rule of…
Susan Collins was first elected to the U.S. Senate in November 1996. She is chair of the Senate Special Committee on Aging. The following is excerpted from Senator Collins ™s October 5, 2018, remarks during the Senate floor debate on confirmation of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court. The president nominated Brett Kavanaugh on July 9. Within moments of that announcement, special interest groups raced to be the first to oppose him. A number of senators joined the race to announce their opposition, but they were beaten to the punch by one of our colleagues, who actually announced opposition…
Job Titles:
- Representative
- United States Representative, Wisconsin, Democrat
Representative Baldwin, of the Second District of Wisconsin, was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1998. She served on the Dane County (Wisconsin) Board of Supervisors from 1986 to 1994 and in the Wisconsin Assembly from 1992 to 1998. She is a member of the Energy and Commerce Committee and the Judiciary Committee. The following is from the May 3, 2007, House floor debate on H.R. 1592, the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007.The House today has a historic opportunity to expand upon the principles of equal rights and equal protection embodied in our…
Ted Cruz was first elected to the U.S. Senate in November 2012. He served as the solicitor general of Texas from 2003 to 2008. The following is excerpted from Senator Cruz ™s October 5, 2018, remarks during the Senate floor debate on confirmation of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court. It now appears that tomorrow, Judge Brett Kavanaugh will become Justice Brett Kavanaugh. It is worth pausing for a moment to reflect why that is of such great consequence for our country. In recent decades, the courts have seized more and more policymaking authority, have intruded into the authority…
Job Titles:
- Professor, Stanford University
Job Titles:
- Professor, Stanford University Law School
Michael W. McConnell is the Richard and Frances Mallery Professor and Director of the Constitutional Law Center at Stanford Law School. He is also a Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution. From 2002 to 2009, he served as a Circuit Judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. He has held chair professorships at the University of Chicago and the University of Utah, and visiting professorships at Harvard University and New York University. The following is from œShould We Abolish the Electoral College? dated August 31, 2016, reprinted with permission from Stanford magazine, published by Stanford Alumni…
Job Titles:
- Eric Stein Distinguished University Professor of Law
- Professor, University of Michigan
Richard Lempert is the Eric Stein Distinguished University Professor of Law and Sociology Emeritus at the University of Michigan. He chaired the Sociology Department at the University from 1995 to 1998. From 2012 to 2013, he was a visiting fellow in Governance Studies at the Brookings Institution. From 2008 to 2011, he served as chief scientist in the Human Factors/Behavioral Sciences Division of the Science and Technology Directorate in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. From 2002 to 2006, he was Division Director for the Social and Economic Science at the National Science Foundation. The following is from œTwo cheers…