judge confirmed do the senate don willett doesn't fall far from the tree. mr. willett isn't shy about his radical right-wing views. he has bragged about being the most conservative justice on the texas supreme court. mr. willett believes that judges should be able to easily overturn state and local laws that protect workers, including minimum wage laws and laws that allow workers to unionize. this view is so out of the mainstream that other conservative judges, including chief justice john roberts and judge robert bork have rejected. it he has ruled to limit the rights of same-sex couples, mocked transgender individuals, demonstrated hostility to working women, including pay equity and sexual harassment. he has ruled against efforts are -- against discrimination in the schools. he has a stunning disregard of the issues that impact millions of americans. the truth is that mr. grasz and mr. willett are not unique. they are a few of the many nominees whose records show that they cannot fairly and impartially dispense equal justice under law. right now the g.o.p.-co

steven grasz confirmed, don willett confirmed, and soon we'll add james ho to the list by confirming him to serve on the fifth circuit court of appeals. he's an exceptionally well qualified nominee whose career in public service and the private sector have earned him respect from both sides of the aisle. the former democratic mayor of dallas supported his nomination calling him among the most brilliant appellate lawyers in the united states. when we vote to confirm mr. ho, we'll be adding another fair and impartial judge to the federal bench. by doing so, the senate will take another important step to ensure that the federal judiciary fulfilled its proper role in our constitutional system. each of them will be an asset to our nation's courts. under chairman grassley's leadership, the senate judiciary committee has done outstanding work to move these judicial nominees to the floor. i'm grateful for his efforts and i would urge all of my colleagues to join me in voting to confirm mr. ho soon. now, on another matter, our nation faces myriad threats from around the globe. it's the senate

vote to advance the nomination of another well qualified individual, texas supreme court justice don willett to serve on the sixth circuit court of appeals. justice willett respects the rule of law and foundational legal principles and he will be a strong addition to the fifth circuit. his story is an inspirational one, adopted at a young age and raised by a widowed mother in a town of 32 people. he was the first person in his family to grad yate from the -- graduate from high school. as our colleague senator cornyn said at the judiciary committee committee hearing, his life will reflect the best of texas and the best of america. from these humble beginnings, justice willett has led a remarkable career. after graduating from duke law school he clerked for judge williams. he has now been nominated to the package to join. he spints a short time in private practice before entering public service and then -- and then governor george w. bush's administration as a legal policy advisor. when president bush entered the white house, justice willett joined him as a special assistant to the president.

texas supreme court justice don willett and former texas solicitor general jim ho. these will be the 11th and 12th court of appeals nominees that we will have confirmed this year, a modern-day record. indeed, i looked up just the other day the number of assigned slots on the federal courts of appeals. it's 179, which means the 12 that have been nominated and confirmed this year represent roughly 7% of the appellate bench. that is a powerful accomplishment for the first year of the presidency, a powerful accomplishment for this republican majority in the senate, and a powerful legacy that will extend decades into the future protecting our constitutional rights, protecting the bill of rights, protecting the first amendment, our free speech, our religious liberty. protecting the second amendment, protecting all the fundamental liberties we enjoy as americans. with respect to don willett and jim ho, i have known the both of them for decades. both are close friends. both are brilliant lawyers. both have spent decades earning a reputation as principled constitutionalists

justice don willett and limit debate on james ho. more action on nominations rest of the week. the smart will vote on net neutrality rules. a number of senators commented. >> i ask the quorum call be dispensed with. >> without objection. >> thank you, mr. president. the innovation and innovation driven economy of the united states. chairman of fcc decided to repeal critical consumer protection known as net neutrality. this is a wrong-headed move, misguided and driven by big cable interests that want to gouge consumers and charge them more as they charge for making sure that consumers either pay or have their internet lines slow down. this decision turns the success of what has been an essential 21st century innovation over to those in big corporations, instead of making sure that main street innovators continue to do what they t do best. i don't think the american people want cable companies to be the gatekeeper on the internet. they want to have the fcc continue to playnt a role in making sure that an open internet is there for all, so that small businesses that entrepreneurs,

. >> dana: congratulations to don willett. he was great on twitter for a long time.: k.g. >> kimberly: thank you so much. time for kimberly's royal dues. yes indeed. backed by extreme popular demand. >> greg: no one is demanding it. >> kimberly: i am every day. this is fantastic. prince william, harry attended the last jedi premiere. this is combining royal news with "star wars" news. apparently they are big fancy you can see pictures. look at how cute they are on the red carpet. neither his wife or the fiancee were there. i don't know why. looked like a lot of fun. it was a black-tie gala benefiting the royal foundation charity. apparently there's a rumor that they recorded a scene playing stormtroopers when they visited the set. royal officials are mum. >> dana: kimberly, do you watch "the crown?" >> kimberly: i do sometimes. i need to be more dedicated to it. >> dana: when you have time, you will quite enjoy it. >> greg: why watch it? we beat these people so we don't have to talk about royalty anymore. >> kimberly: you are always trying to ruin my segments. >> gre

. >> this is a hit for texas supreme court judge don willett who the senate confirmed to the fifth courts very amusing. he is famous for having a twitter account with 100,000 followers. it is funny, it is witty. democrats tried to use that against him and tried tott discourage him from using it anymore. my plea to him is, don't stop! we need more laughter in this political age. paul: he is not as funny, though, as judge freeman. james. [laughter] >> i don't think i can pass that bar. i'm -- it's not funny, i'm very happy, i'm giving a hit to the u.s. consumer who is pulling the u.s. back toward normal u.s.-style growth, a big increase in consumer spending in november versus a year ago. so atlanta fed now saying another quarter over 3% growth, it's looking like a great economy. paul: kate? >> this is a hit for ajit pai who moved to repeal net neutrality. it's easy to understand, we are just going back to the model of regulation of the internet that brought us google and amazon and reigned for 20 years. and special points to pai for doing this with a happy warrior mentality amid death thre

people like don willett, on the 5th circuit now, he's going to rule many times not in favor of donald. it's a shame that i think in the five knee jerk hysteria against trump in some cases, including in the willett confirmation process people just focused on whether his tweets were funny. as opposed to what is his judicial philosophy. there's direct there, i'm glad to see the direct is withdrawn. i hope more direct wraurn in it the future. >> for conservatives, this is a winning year, michael? >> yeah, that said, i don't have to take a blow. >> you don't have to, but i'm saying you will. critics of executive power of the kind that donald trump want to excerert, you'll be happy if breaks what he does. >> donald trump was not the first to desert congressional power or pushing that. we've been making the same criticisms of the last administration. >> when you saw peterson testify, so often, patronage, like the worst in new york city politics. forget about matt noyes. he acted like he couldn't spell it, okay? i think that's a pretty good civics lesson to see what's been going on in broad d

don r. willett of texas to be the circuit judge of the united states court of appeals of the fifth circuit be brought to a close? the yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule. the clerk will call the roll. vote: vote: the presiding officer: are there any senators in the chamber wishing to vote or change their vote? if not the yeas are 50, the nays are 48 and the motion is agreed to. the clerk: nomination, the judiciary. don r. willett of texas to be a circuit judge, united states court of appeals for the fifth circuit. mr. wyden: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from oregon. mr. wyden: i ask unanimous consent to vacate the quorum call. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. wyden: mr. president, thank you. i think we're going to be joined here in a few moments with our colleague, the senior senator from illinois, senator durbin, who for years and years has been leading the fight for the dreamers, for the young people affected by daca. he may be tied up for a bit, but i want

justice don willett and limit debate on james ho. more action on nominations rest of the

the clerk: nomination, the judiciary, don r. willett of texas to be circuit court judge, united states court of appeals for the fifth circuit. mr. schumer: madam president? the presiding officer: democratic leader. mr. schumer: i ask unanimous consent the quorum be dispensed with. the presiding officer: the senate is not in a quorum call. the senator is recognized. mr. schumer: well, madam president, as you know, last night a democrat won in the state of alabama for the first time in a quarter century. last night's election of doug jones was not only the repudiation of a candidate unfit to serve in this body, it was an affirmation of a candidate who represents the very best of public service. i read doug jones' bio. one story stands out in my mind. as a second-year law student, doug jones skipped class to attend the trial of the klansman ring leader of the 1963 bombing of the 16th street baptist church, an event as we all remember shook the coninsurance of our country and launch -- conscience of our country and helped launch a movement

the clerk: nomination, the judiciary, don r. willett of texas to be a circuit judge united states court of appeals for the fifth circuit. mr. mcconnell: i send a motion to the desk. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: cloture motion, we, the undersigned senators, in accordance with the provisions of rule 22, do hereby bring to a close debate on nomination of don r. willett to be arc circuit judge united states court of appeals to the fifth circuit signed by 17 senators as follows. mr. mcconnell: i ask consent that the reading of the names be waived. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. mcconnell: i move to proceed to ledges -- legislative session. the presiding officer: the question is on the motion. all those in favor say aye. all those opposed, say no. thethe ayes appear to have it. the motion is agreed to. mr. mcconnell: i move to proceed to executive session to consider calendar number 535. the presiding officer: the question is on the motion. all those in favor say aye. all those opposed, say no. the a