A broken tradition

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The current struggle to establish democracy in Iraq reminds us that no society can be either just or prosperous without the rule of law. New and old nations alike need independent and impartial courts as the foundation of government, and civilized nations must vigilantly maintain, not undermine, these institutions.

Today, the Senate Rules Committee will discuss whether the current filibusters of judicial nominations pose a threat to our own independent judiciary.I welcome today's discussion because I believe we need reform: Indeed, senators from both sides of the aisle agree that our process for confirming judges is broken and needs to be fixed.

The American people need the courts to be fully staffed.Our judicial selection process should focus simply on identifying and confirming well-qualified jurists committed to enforcing the law, not their will or agenda.

For too long, this process has been caught in a downward spiral of politics and delay.During the administrations of former Presidents Bush and Clinton, for example, too many appeals court nominees were never voted on at all.

The problem is even worse today.

For months, a bipartisan Senate majority has tried to hold up-or-down votes on a number of judicial nominees.A partisan minority of senators, however, is blocking the Senate from holding those votes. As one leader of the current filibusters has said, "there is not a number [of hours] in the universe that would be sufficient" for debate on certain nominees.

The result: vacant judgeships and empty courtrooms, compelling the U.S. Judicial Conference to declare "judicial emergencies" across the country.People seeking redress for their injuries wait years for their cases to be tried and appealed, while judicial nominees languish in the Senate waiting for an up-or-down vote.The broken confirmation process translates into denial of access to justice in our nation's most important courts.

The use of filibusters -- not to ensure adequate debate, but to block a Senate majority from confirming judges -- is unprecedented and wrong. This indefinite, needless and wasteful delay distracts the Senate from other important business.And it leaves would-be judges in limbo, along with thousands of litigants.President Bush has rightly called the situation "a disgrace."

It doesn't have to be this way. As all 10 freshman senators detailed in a bipartisan letter to Senate leadership on April 30, it is time for a fresh start.The ill will of the past should not dictate the terms and direction of the future. And 12 senators have proposed a bipartisan reform to guarantee full debate on nominees, while ensuring the ability of a Senate majority to hold up-or-down votes. This proposal deserves wide support.