ms. lynch at that time wasn't high on the priority of the democrat majority, but now i'm pleased that the senate was finally able to come to an agreement on the sex trafficking legislation so that we can turn to the lynch nomination. i voted against ms. lynch in committee and will oppose her nomination again when it's time to vote this afternoon, and i'll spend a few minutes now explaining my reason to my colleagues. this nomination comes at a pivotal time of justice with the department of justice and our country. the next attorney general will face some very difficult challenges from combating cyber crime to protecting our children from exploitation and to help fight the war on terror. but beyond that, the new attorney general has a mess to clean up. the justice department has been plagued the last few years by decisionmaking driven by politics, pure politics. some of these i mentioned before, but i'd like to give you just a few examples. the department's own inspector general listed as one of

in fact, ms. lynch recalls ride ing on reverend lynch's shoulders to their church where students organized peaceful protests against racial segregation. the freedom songs and church music that went hand in hand with those protests undoubtedly made up the sound track of her childhood. as attorney general i'm sure she'll draw upon those childhood experiences and the struggles of her parents her grandparents, her grade grandparents when addressing the current protests over too many young lives lost in our streets. as i said, the judiciary committee was honored to have her father, the reverend lorenzo lynch with us on both days of her hearing in january at the committee markup when her nomination was favorably reported, bipartisan support. he's here to watch these proceedings today. it's clear this undoubtedly proud daughter instilled in his daughter the grace and resilience she has shown over the past six months. and as a senator like all of us i've gotten to meet wonderful people from all walks of life. u

ms. lynch received a vote, and they have in parenthesis "al please go through with it." i guess i was naive in thinking my republican colleagues would treat loretta lynch with the dignity that she and her office deserve. perhaps my mistake was forgetting that for republicans this isn't about loretta lynch. it's about president obama. because republicans will do everything and anything they can to make president obama's life more difficult. they said they would do that when he was elected and they've stuck with it. president obama's cabinet officials have been treated worse than any president in history. today's vote on loretta lynch marks the seventh cloture vote the republicans forced on a cabinet official during the obama administration. forcing cloture, that is terminating a filibuster is something that was rare in the entire history of this country. it was used only in most extreme circumstances. but once ms. lynch was confirmed, five sitting members of the president's cabinet will have bee

in fact, ms. lynch recalls riding on reverend lynch's shoulders to their church, where students organized peaceful protests against racial segregation. the freedom songs and church music that went hand in hand with those protests undoubtedly made up the soundtrack of her childhood. as attorney general, i'm sure she'll draw upon those childhood experiences and the struggles of her parents, her grandparents her great-grandparents when addressing the current protests over too many young lives lost in our streets. as i said, the judiciary committee was honored to have her father, the reverend lorenzo lynch, with us on both days of her hearing in january. at the committee markup, when her nomination was favorably reported, bipartisan support. he's here to watch these proceedings today. it's clear this undoubtedly proud father instilled in his daughter the grace and resilience she has shown over the past six months. and as a senator, like all of us, i've gotten to meet wonderful people from all walks of lives

ms. lynch will become the first african-american woman to hold the post in the united states. 10 republicans joined with democrats today in voting for loretta lynch, joining with all democrats. kelly ayotte, thad cochran, susan collins, jeff flake lindsey graham. orrin hatch, ron johnson, mark kirk, mitch mcconnell and rob portman. just one senator did not vote -- ted cruz of texas. he was on the floor today in opposition to the nomination, but he did not take part in the confirmation vote. ashley parker of "the new york times" wrote "after railing against loretta lynch, ted cruz escapes confirmation vote." "where in the world was senator ted cruz? " he voted against a procedural motion to move ahead. mr. cruz missed her final vote on thursday afternoon. the reason? he had to catch a flight to texas for previous commitments in dallas. he was the only senator to fit the vote. his team on social media and e-mail quickly pushed back against the idea that the senator was shirking his congressional

ms. lynch has said, flat-out that she supports those policies and is committed to defending them in court against any complaint about it. so i think congress has a real role here. we do not have to confirm someone to the highest law enforcement position in america, if that someone has publicly committed to denigrating congress, violating law of congress, violating even wishes of congress and the american people. we don't have to confirm anybody. it's a power congress is given. the president is asserting powers. we will be doing what we have a right to do. i think we should do that. let me know, i'm going to quote -- i was going to say this anyway, but i was pleased that mr. andrew mccarthy, who prosecuted some of the top terrorist cases in america former u.s. attorney, assistant united states attorney, very critical and very strongly of the belief that she should not be confirmed, but he says this: "a vote against ms. lynch's confirmation is not an assessment that she has performed incompetentl

in fact, ms. lynch recalls riding on reverend lynch's shoulders to their church, where students organized peaceful protests against racial segregation. the freedom songs and church music that went hand in hand with those protests undoubtedly made up the soundtrack of her childhood. as attorney general, i'm sure she'll draw upon those childhood experiences and the struggles of her parents, her grandparents her great-grandparents when addressing the current protests over too many young lives lost in our streets. as i said, the judiciary committee was honored to have her father, the reverend lorenzo lynch, with us on both days of her hearing in january. at the c

ms. lynch beginner service as the u.s. attorney for the eastern district of new york in 1990 where she rose quickly to serve as chief of the long island office and then deputy chief of general crimes and chief of intake and arrangements. for 15 years she's been a prosecutor in the u.s. attorney's office for the eastern district of new york and since to attention served admirably as united states attorney for the eastern district of new york. in that position just demonstrated a superior sense of judgment and remarkable legal expertise. ms. lynch is dealt with an impressive array of cases on subjects ranging from civil rights to organized crime to terrorism. these are each issues at our new attorney general have to engage with constantly from day one of her tenure. ms. lynch his experience as a federal prosecutor in new york will undoubtedly serve her exceptionally well in washington. she is extraordinarily well-qualified and i believe she deserves a quick confirmation process. thank you, mr. ch

and yet as ms. lynch sat through her confirmation hearings, i asked over and over again, number one, if she would support the president's illegal and unconstitutional executive amnesty. she said absolutely yes. i asked if there were any limits to this executive amnesty, could the president of united states grant amnesty not just to the 4 million people he has granted amnesty to, but to all 12 million people living illegally in this country. she refused to answer that question. she refused to acknowledge any limits on the president's authority. i posted little harder. -- i'd put a little harder -- i pushed a little harder. i said, could the president -- your theory facing all of this is prosecutorial discretion, the president could decline to prosecute laws. i said, could the next president instruct his or her treasury secretary under the theory of prosecutorial discretion, we will no longer collect any taxes in this country above 25%? she refused to answer this question. now look, i think that is great po

ms. lynch has now been waiting over 50 days. why? what is it about this nominee that causes so much of a problem problem? well nothing came up at the judiciary committee hearing to suggest a problem. yes, she was appointed by barack obama -- wants to be appointed. yes, she has said she will serve this president. but when it came to her personally nothing. in fact, we have this tradition: after the nominee has testified under oath, then experts are brought in. each party can bring an expert in to testify for or against the attorney general nominee. senator patrick leahy the ranking democrat on judiciary said to the assembled group -- i think might have been 10 or 12 of these outside witnesses -- which of you by show of hands objects to the nomination of loretta lynch for attorney general? not a single one raised his hand. none. so even the witnesses that were brought to speak in negative terms all conceded that she should be attorney general. mr. president, that's require. -- that's rare. it's r

ms. lynch at that time wasn't high on the priority of the democrat majority, but now i'm pleased that the senate was finally able to come to an agreement on the sex trafficking legislation so that we can turn to the lynch nomination. i voted against ms. lynch in committee and will oppose her nomination again when it's time to vote this afternoon and i'll spend a few minutes now explaining my reason to my colleagues. this nomination comes at a pivotal time of justice with the department of justice and our country. the next attorney general will face some very difficult challenges from combating cyber crime to protecting our children from exploitation and to help fight the war on terror. but beyond that, the new attorney general has a mess to clean up. the justice department has been plagued the last few years by decisionmaking driven by politics pure politics. some of these i mentioned before but i'd like to give you just a few examples. the department's own inspector general listed as one of th

and yet as ms. lynch sat through her confirmation hearings, i asked over and over again, number one, if she would support the president's illegal and unconstitutional executive amnesty. she said absolutely yes. i asked if there were any limits to this executive amnesty, could the president of united states grant amnesty not just to the people he has granted amnesty to, but to all 12 million people living illegally in this country. she refused to answer this question. she refused to acknowledge any limits on the president's authority. i said, could the president -- your theory basing all of this is prosecutorial discretion, the president could decline to prosecute laws. i said, could the next president instruct his or her treasury secretary under the theory of prosecutorial discretion, we will no longer collect any taxes in this country above 25%? she refused to answer this question. that's great policy, but the way to pass it is pass it through congress and make it a law. [applause] i tried to come up wit

[laughter] >> ms. lynch thank you for being here i will be objective but i am deferential to women named loretta. as is my wife's name way your father lifted you what but his shoulders you were a witness to a moment in history that change america forever. and literally changed your life but no way you could know that. one of those central issues was the right to vote that chief justice robert said sitting in that very same place is from all rights we're now in a unique position 50 years later to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the voting rights act the supreme court in shelby county struck down major provisions of the voting rights act and congress passed on a bipartisan basis is now split along partisan lines if there will be a renewal. we're finding states across the nation better changing the requirements for voting the subcommittee have judiciary i took them to public hearings and ohio and florida with new restrictions placed on voting by the state legislatures thiokol the election officials of both pa

[laughter] spirit congratulations ms. lynch in your historic nomination and your conduct here today. this is were the most important offices to have responsibility in the current attorney general eric holder was under trying circumstances to serve as a lightning rod think it takes strength tuesday composed with your agenda that how you plan to carry forward the issues with respect your privacy and importance civil-rights issue as successful as the attorney-general holder has been but there is a lot of progress to make in this administration i am thrilled that someone has been nominated serving as co-chair of the caucus to play a central role so the importance you would place with federal, state, and local law enforcement with the investment initiative in information sharing and the senator for a cast talking but the victims of child abuse to talk about the partnership undertakings with of local counterparts one of the highest priorities insurers there is collaboration for the needs to fulfill but it is my experience having had

conversations that this has gone on long enough, and they believe that much of the opposition to ms. lynchen about her biography or her record, it's been about having a protest of their anger about the immigration policies coming out of the white house, and their frustration with current attorney general eric holder. i think the votes are there, especially with mark curt jumping in. >> robert, when you say you were talking to republican senators that have the attitude it's gone on too long, does that include republican senators who intend to vote against her? >> there is -- i would call it a charge group of republican senators right now who will vote against ms. lynch, but would like to see this standoff end. but because of pressure from the rural red states, from their constituents who are angry about immigration policy, they will vote no. but they know lynch is qualified, so they're ready to see her get processed through the senate, even if they won't vote for her. >> that's sounding like breaking news of sorts from robert costa, who has great republican sources. >> absolutely. but what

and yet as ms. lynch sat through her confirmation hearings, i asked over and over again, number one, if she would support the president's illegal and unconstitutional executive amnesty. she said absolutely yes. i asked if there were any limits to this executive amnesty, could the president of united states grant amnesty not just to the 4 million people he has granted amnesty to, but to all 12 million people living illegally in this country. she refused to answer that question. she refused to acknowledge any limits on the president's authority. i posted little harder. -- i'd put a little harder -- i pushed a little harder. i said, could the president -- your theory facing all of this is prosecutorial discretion, the president could decline to prosecute laws. i said, could the next president instruct his or her treasury secretary under the theory of prosecutorial discretion, we will no longer collect any taxes in this country above 25%? she refused to answer this question. now look, i think that is great po

. >> the bottom line is ms. lynchnot seem to commit to a new independent way of running the department. >> on this vote the ayes 56 and nay 43 and it's confirmed. >> reporter: lynch has been confirmed in her post the first african/american to do so nick with al jazeera, washington. >>> staying in the u.s. in the city here demonstrations have continued over the death of an african/american man in police custody, a preliminary autopsy shows 27-year-old freddy gray died of a spinal injury. his death comes as tensions remain high over police treatment in the u.s. gabrielle alexander reports. >> reporter: the protests continue here in baltimore, several hundred protesters have been out for several hours here in front of one of the police stations in the city and they have been calling for things like no justice no peace, calling the name of freddy gray i'm going to step out of fra you can get a sense of the scene here there are people who are very angry and want answers on what exactly happened to freddy gray when he was i

and yet as ms. lynch sat through her confirmation hearings, i asked over and over again, number one, if she would support the president's illegal and unconstitutional executive amnesty. she said absolutely yes. i asked if there were any limits to this executive amnesty, could the president of united states grant amnesty not just to the people he has granted amnesty to, but to all 12 million people living illegally in this country. she refused to answer this question. she refused to acknowledge any limits on the president's authority. i pushed a little harder. i said, could the president -- your theory facing all of this is prosecutorial discretion, the president could decline to prosecute laws. i said, could the next president instruct his or her treasury secretary under the theory of prosecutorial discretion, we will no longer collect any taxes in this country above 25%? she refused to answer this question. that's great policy, but the way to pass it is pass it through congress and make it a lot. -- a la

ms. lynch, she will get in there.ake a little vacation and look at washington dc for a little while. that's all. host: larry and indiana. caller: this is just another extension of the obstructionism of the republicans, they had when they read in the minority. i feel they need to get over themselves, allow her to come up for vote. do their job because they are not doing their job. thank you. host: more of your calls in a minute. "washington times" just below the fold -- which nomination fight turns nasty. turning up the heat, even when gop leaders said that they were close to a resolution. white house press secretary josh earnest said the delay and confirming ms. lynch is evidence of the difficulty that the president faces in working with congress. he accused six term senator chuck grassley of having misled the white house over ms. lynch. the sad part, i think is that senator grassley particularly in his home state of iowa, has cultivated a reputation as somebody who is true to his word. i think the only conclusion i c

members of his party will vote no on ms. lynch but hope yes that she will squeak through."s playing with fire here pamela? >> i don't think they are only supplying with fire. they are playing with justice. they understand and know that she's well qualified. that's why they hope she gets confirmed because justice demands that they confirm her. here they are saying we want to play it safe and we want to play to our constituents but who are they really? these are obstructionist ak tactics. if they are republicans that adhere to the law, we are really abiding to the law that they say they add here to they would not play top cop. loretta limplg loretta lynch has a history of not playing politics. she will prosecute those republicans that break the law and those democrats that break the law. she's a lover of the law and defends the constitution and deep within their hearts they know that and know that the tactics that they are using are the ones that accused the democrats of using a couple years ago. justice demands for them to do this. if they do nothing else to give loretta lyn

but last night, a spokeswoman told politico, "senator menendez looks forward to voting in favor of ms. lynchhen her confirmation vote comes to the floor." now, that would be 50 votes for miss lynch. a tie that vice president biden could break. but this afternoon, illinois republican mark kirk had this to say. >> loretta did a very good job with me and because she was so good on this subject, i'm going to vote for loretta lynch's confirmation. >> that's 51 votes. senator mcconnell get out your calendar. set a date for a vote because it's time -- past time for loretta lynch to be confirmed. joining me now is joe madison. thank you for being here joe. >> thank you. >> will senator mcconnell drag this out any longer or is he out of excuses? >> he's out of excuses. we know it would take now probably 15 minutes to take that vote. actually, they could take the vote before they leave for the easter recess, reverend sharpton. >> well, they left last friday but back on the 13th a monday i think they can do it right then. but let me ask you this joe. senator kirk has a tough re-election next year but t

ms. lynch deserves a timely vote such as every other attorney general nominee of every other president has received. she was reported out of the senate judiciary committee on february 26 in a bipartisan vote nine democrats three republicans voted for this presidential nominee. she has now been pending on the senate calendar right here for 46 days, 46 days on this calendar and not one word has been spoken on this floor in derogation of this fine woman and this fine nominee. the last seven attorney general nominees combined, all seven of them had to wait on the senate floor for a total of 24 days. seven nominees, 24 days. loretta lynch, 46 days. the senate has confirmed other nominees while the human trafficking bill,. there is no procedural obstacle. while that bill has been pending the senate has voted on nominees for the instant secretary of transportation the assistant secretary of commerce, thrift investment board and today will vote on a federal judge. i should say monday we voted on a fede

ms. lynch's nomination to the passage of the trafficking bill the republican majority has no one to blame but itself. they're right. what's the point of linking this confirmation to an unrelated bill jonathan? >> right, well it's what we've been seeing for the last six years. a war against the president. this is a proxy war against president obama and trying to take him down or limit his ability, once again. what's really funny here is the republicans on capitol hill really hated the current occupant -- really hate the current occupant of the attorney general's office, eric holder. and when he announced his resignation, you know he took away -- holder took away a lot of their anger. now, you've got loretta lynch, who all they have to do is confirm her and their number one enemy would be gone or i should say, number two, would be gob. and instead, eric holder the person who they would love to leave the attorney general's office, is still there. and yet, as congressman jeffries pointed out, loretta lynch is imminently qualified. and the key thing congressman jeffries pointed out is that she

. >> ari, what impact does the delay have on the justice department which ms. lynch is supposed to lead? >> well it obviously holds her back from being able to exercise any authority. so even though preparations are being made in that department the chief spokesman there for eric holder recently departed to join the clinton campaign there was an expectation that the incoming attorney general if confirmed would bring in that person, their own choosing. they would make decisions about enforcement priorities. eric holder has done a lot in the so-called smart on crime initiative to change certain enforcement priorities with regard to nonviolent drug charges. those kind of things take time. none of that can start as long as this person is being held up. and as you mentioned on the program before there are now on record a public 51 votes for her confirmation. >> right. >> so this is not a situation where the senate is leaning against someone, which is their constitutional right, and they can hold the vote. this is a situation where apparently you have someone who is suppor

ms. lynch noting that her father's 83rd birthday was just last week.o expressing her excitement to begin her new job after five months of waiting to be confirmed as our nation's attorney general. so we'll continue to follow the reaction to this historic moment after she was approved by a 56-43 vote and the confirmation delayed, as mentioned, some five months. we'll keep an eye on all the developments there, but quite a speech from our new attorney general loretta lynch. we'll be right back. but now you can give them even more when you save with sentry® fiproguard® plus. with sentry® fiproguard® plus, your pet is just as protected against fleas and ticks as with frontline® plus. because sentry® fiproguard® plus has the same active ingredients but costs less than vet prices. and saving money helps you buy... (laughs happily) more tennis balls. sentry® fiproguard® plus - available at these retailers. we were below the 88th southern parallel. we had traveled for over 850 miles. my men driven nearly mad from starvation and frostbite. today we make history.

it's an opportunity to have a new tone set at the justice department if they move forward, because ms. lynch has credibility in that area. but i think at the end of the day, the anger and frustration, many of us share and understand it. but the bottom line is we want to see change not just to vent an emotional reaction. people calming down and nothing changes. yes, we need calm but we need for real peace. there's a difference between peace and quiet. quiet means shut up and suffer. peace means let us learn to calmly deal with these situations but deal with them we must. >> nationwide, people are very used to turning to you and expecting to hear from you as an activist, as a national activist on those issues when there is a family that needs somebody who knows how to articulate their concerns and turn them to a constructive purpose. i think the country sort of e expects that from you. what is less known about what you do is that in these circumstances, very frequently you are there to try to turn otherwise potentially violent or violent anger into activism. how do you do that? looking at the

ms. lynch's confirmation vote. no purpose. >> maybe. or maybe it's helpful to the democrats in 2016. >> feeling like a kanye moment here. they never loved us right? # sisters for loretta lynch. this is really -- they don't care right -- about black women voters. we are going to turn out. it will be retribution, right? she's being held hostage for their political gain. but also at a moment where they are holder haters right? >> eric holder. >> right. here you have a woman who is going to continue the work of eric holder on policing, on immigration, on other things. so there is concern about that. for us to think they can't multi task if they can't multi task they need to go home. so this is really an interesting moment. i think when women are going to turn out in record numbers, when black women repeatedly turn out in record numbers, they are going to have a problem. >> matt eric holder's name has been brought to the table. the republicans say this is about a human trafficking bill they want to go first. sometimes y

>> ms. lynch could, at this point, go right there on campus and stand where fortitude stands.itome, she truly encompasses and em blazes about tenacity about understanding that you stand up when everyone else is sitting down. and she continues to stand. >> it really is stunning. it could have been a moment of celebration, but it turned into a social movement. you don't want all them mad. not a good place to be politically politically. thank you to paul et walklet walker. >>> up next, shh. senator rand paul has something to say. you show up. you stay up. you listen. you laugh. you worry. you do whatever it takes to take care of your family. and when it's time to plan for your family's future we're here for you. we're legalzoom, and for over 10 years we've helped families just like yours with wills and living trusts. so when you're ready start with us. doing the right thing has never been easier. legalzoom. legal help is here. push your enterprise and you can move the world. but to get from the old way to the new, you'll need the right it infrastructure. from a partner who knows

and yet as ms. lynchfirmation hearings, i asked over and over again number one, if she would support the president's illegal and unconstitutional executive amnesty. she said absolutely yes. i asked if there were any limits to this executive amnesty, because the president of the united states -- could the president of united states grant amnesty not just to the people he has granted amnesty to, but to all 12 million people living illegally in this country. she refused to answer this question. she refused to acknowledge any limits on the president's authority. i said, could the president -- your theory facing all of this is prosecutorial discretion, the president could decline to prosecute laws. i said, could the next president instruct his or her treasury secretary under the theory of prosecutorial discretion we will no longer collect any taxes in this country about 25%? she refused to answer this question. that's great policy, but the way to pass it is pass it through congress and make it a lot. [applause

ms. lynch has been waiting 156 days for her confirmation. she's somebody who got bipartisan support in the senate judiciary committee. she got that bipartisan support because she is a career prosecutor with a reputation of fairness and toughness. she's prosecuted terrorists. she's prosecuted white-collar criminals. she's prosecuted public officials who didn't keep the public trust. she's done all of that with professionalism, with dignity and with the interests of the american people at heart. that's what makes her the right person to lead the department of justice over the course of the next two years or so and we continue to believe that republicans should stop for partisan reasons, preventing her from getting the vote she deserves. we're confident if she's given the vote she will be confirmed. reporter: so is it partisan politics? votes they haven't put to the floor, do you think race is a factor or not a factor? secretary earnest: in answering your first question, you have to ask senator mcconnell why she hasn't been given the vote she c

rachel reports they are near a deal to confirm ms. lynch.onathan i -- jonathan weisman covers this for the new york times. thank you for joining us. where are we as far as the nomination? guest: we haven't really moved anywhere but it is really not about the nomination. it is about a bill not relevant on that to -- relevant to that on human trafficking and language on abortion about money collected as fees from that human trafficking bill could be used. there is very specific language that republicans have put in about not using that money in any way to get abortions for these women. who are brought in as humanly trafficked. until they can work that out, they cannot get to the lynch nomination. it looks like they are getting close to a deal. i expect there will be announcement today that the human trafficking law will be unstuck. there will be a vote in the senate and then they will take up the lynch nomination. host: when it comes to the human trafficking bill, what issues have to be resolved? guest: there was a procedure. the human traffic

ms. lynchas an outstanding choice who should not have had any trouble getting confirmed five months ago. instead, lawmakers have used the opportunity of her nomination to excerpt length late testify leverage and score political points. the confirmation battle for the past several years have harmed the country. we have no doubt that highly qualified potential nominees decided against pursuing or accepting government jobs because they did not want to subject themselves to the broken process. >> just underlying that sentence by the way. continue reading. but underline that sentence. why would highly qualified people want to quit their jobs and put their family and their reputations through the meat grinder that washington, d.c. requires you to unnecessarily? >> absolutely nothing wrong with this candidate. there is everything right about her. a return to good order in the senate should mean that presidential nominees obtain speedy confirmations, except in rare and exceptional circumstances. that h

ms. loretta lynch and vice president of the united states, joe biden. [applause] >> hey, everybody.ding and thinking as a young lawyer the majesty of this place and how much we all rely on it for all of our basic rights and protections. and your whole family is here today. i hope you will forgive come as we used as the innocent, a point of personal privilege, but i'm so happy to meet you dad. bad, stand up. i want everybody to see you. [applause] chairman leahy come as you know, this is the man who never thought -- in the face of oppression and prejudice. and so many people, reverend so many people come not only in your home state of north carolina and throughout this country, oh you so much for not just your wisdom but the physical courage it took back in those days to speak out as you did. at baptist minister who always talk his children that anything is possible. think about that. a lot of us tell our children that, but in the face of jim crow in north carolina, raising a lovely, bright young woman as well as her brother, saying anything, anything is possible and the truth of the

ms. lynch's confirmation is not an assessment that she has performed incompetently or un-ethically in a prior government position. it is a vote against the president's blatantly unconstitutional policy and against mrs. lynch's support of that policy. senators are bound by oath to uphold the constitution. ms. lynch's prior laudable record has a federal prosecutor cannot overcome her commitment to violating the constitution. requestings "we have a right to assert that. we're paid to make decisions about that. and i think mr. mccarthy is correct. congress was given certain powers as a coequal branch of government not only to protect the congress as an institution but to restrain other government branches from overreaching. and one of those powers is the senate's power to confirm or not confirm, and this check on executive powers can be used as congress sees fit. but, it should not be abused, as the president should not use his nominees to abuse the constitution or to advance an unlawful agenda. the attorney general is the top law enforcement officer in the country. this is not a tra -- tradition

ms. loretta lynch and vice president of the united states joe biden. [applause] vice president biden: i first stepped into this room during the nixon administration. i remember walking into this building and inking about the majesty of this place and how much we rely on it. for all of our basic rights and protections. your whole family is here today. i hope you will forgive as we used to say in the senate a point of personal privilege. i am so happy to meet your dad. dad, stand up. [applause] this is a man who never thought it paid to be silent in the face of oppression and prejudice. so many people, so many people not only in your home state of north carolina and into the country ou so much, not just for your wisdom but the courage it took back in those days to speak out as you did. a baptist minister who always thought his children that anything is possible. think about that are in a lot of his teller children that, but in the face of jim crow in north carolina, raising a lovely bright young woman as well as her brother and saying anything, anything

ms. leonhart: i certainly doms. leonhart:. mr. lynch: under the department of homeland security regs and statutes what we're talking about here is solicitation of prostitution it is clearly within the definition of human trafficking. yet the dea is charged -- i know we were down in central america recently and that is a big part of the dea's mission, to combat human trafficking. we actually give grants to the department -- to the dea and to the fbi and the state department as part of trafficking victims protection act and the violence against women act. we give grants to your agencies to prevent human trafficking prevent prostitution. yet the very people, the very departments that are getting this money are in this case engaging in human trafficking. it brings me back to the of believability of what has happened here. -- the on believability of what has happened. under the factors that we use in determining discipline, one of the factors is the seriousness of the offense and whether the offense is indirect fire relation of the agency po

lynch: okay, great. ms. leonhart and mr.horowitz, in the attorney general's memo are all department personnel dated april 10, 2015, subject prohibition on solicitation of prostitution. it says that solicitation of prostitutes creates a greater demand for human trafficking victims and a consequent increase in number of miners and adult persons trafficked into commercial sex slavery. do you agree with that? do you agree with that assessment? mr. horowitz: i certainly think it raises the risks. miss leonhart: i certainly do. mr. lynch: and also under the department of homeland security regulations and a couple of the statutes we have, what we're talking about here is solicitation of prostitutes for 15 to 20 parties at its codefendant definition of human trafficking, and yet the dea is actually charged, i know that mr. farenthold and myself and mr. issa were down in central america recently, and that's a big part of the epa's mission is really to combat human trafficking. we actually give grants to the department, to the dea int

ms. leonhart: the system in place is a three-tiered system. mr. lynch: you're not answering my question. how do you hold people accountable when you cannot discipline them when they do like -- we have 15 to 20 sex parties. 15 to 20. we've got all these allegations. a lot of these agents admitted to prostitution. to soliciting prostitutes, having sex with prostitutes. we don't know their ages because there's nothing disclosed here. we have them taking weapons. we've got foreign individuals, parts of terrorist groups, complicit in this. we have national security at risk. and you don't have the ability to discipline these people. when i came to this hearing, i thought my problem is that we weren't disciplining these people. the problem here now after hearing you testify, even though you said you were not happy, even though you said you were very disappointed, this is a prostitution ring. 15 -- they are using taxpayer money to solicit and pay for prostitutes. and you're very disappointed? you're not happy? i think we are at different levels here. and i find

ms. hahn: i ask unanimous consent to insert my colleague from massachusetts's, representative lynch's remarks into the record. the chair: that will be covered under gentlelady. the gentlelady reserves. the gentleman from michigan. >> i recognize recognize the gentleman from louisiana for one minute. >> i rise in support of this amendment to ensure that congress funds important infrastructure projects. the trust fund takes in enough revenue to provide the necessary maintenance of our harbor, ports and channels. expenditures has failed to keep up. this amendment will keep us on schedule to hit the harbor maintenance target authorized by law in the water resources reform and development act. this provides dredging and maintainance for critical ports and channels through the country. these funds have been used to provide needed dredging at the lake providence harbor and ensure that the black river and the jay bennett johnson waterway remain open to transportation and commerce. i urge my colleagues to support this amendment and keep our nation's critical arteries open for business. i yield back. t

s/loretta lynch, fiscal general (nat up) dijo hoy que baltimore es un smbolo de los problemas que se viven en todo el pas. pero recalc que ms muchas personas. anoche no se vio nada de la furia y el caos que azot la ciudad el lunes. en lugar de ms de 200 arrestos, el martes hubo 35. en vez de ms de 20 policas heridos, anoche solo fue uno y las calles no fueron iluminadas por llamas como el lunes cuando sucedieron ms de un centenar de incendios. aun as el miedo de algunos persiste. s/ georgina guzmán, residente de baltimore "hay muchas cosas feas que se ven y uno tiene miedo de salir afuera" por ahora en baltimore las escuelas volvieron a abrir sus puertas y la orquesta sinfnica de la ciudad ofreci un concierto gratuito (nat up), porque dijo los residentes necesitan algo de msica. s/ randy serrano, @randytelemundo se hubiera esperado miles de fanáticos aquí en camden yardsen un día normal. como aquí ot negocios baltimore hasentido el golpe ecómico tras las protestas y un en casa después de cierta hora. blanca --un nuevo reporte indica que los altos costos de vivienda en california esta dejando a muchos residentes en la pobrez

lynch, the gentleman from georgia, the ranking member on the subcommittee for security. >> thank you. i want to thank mr. cummings for allowing me to go in his place. ms. leonhart how do you hold people accountable if you are not able to discipline them? >> the system in place it's a three-tiered system. there's the inspectors who -- >> you're not answering my question. basically, very briefly because i only have a couple minutes, how do you hold people accountable when you cannot discipline them when they do -- okay so we got 15 to 20 sex parties. 15 to 20. we've got all these allegations. a lot of these agents admitted to prostitution to soliciting prostitutes, having sex with prostitutes. we don't know their ages because nothing has been disclosed here. we have them taking weapons. we've got foreign individuals, parts of terrorist groups complicit in this. we've got national security at risk. you don't have the ability to discipline these people. you know, when i came to this hearing, i thought my problem was that we weren't disciplining these people. i think the problem here, now after hearing you testify, even though you've said you were not happ

lynch mob, but what people want is information about it. and they've had it for 11 days. this timeline i want to get back to though ms. aston, because really it comes down to what happened in the van. there's going to be a suspicion that what happened in the van was an extension of what happened before the van. but what do you believe needs to be asked, ms. aston? >> well what needs to be asked is what happened before the van or in the van. because some people saying -- some witnesses in the community are saying they saw one officer put their knee in his back. and then some people are saying that they saw him being drug in a rough way in a manner into the van. and he was limp at that time. so the injury could have come before and then some more injury could have come after he got in the van. and based on the description of the inside of the van he could have been rocked around. and talking to other people who've been in the van, you know you can get rocked around pretty good if you're not tied or concealed in a certain kind of way in the van in the metal containers they have them in. >> 42 minutes between when he was

ms. lynch's nomination. why then is the majority leader determined to make her wait until after the trafficking legislation? why? we're now spending the first two weeks of the current work period finishing two matters: human trafficking and her nomination. these two matters could have been completed months ago. everyone is aware of what's transpired with the human trafficking bill, but it's sufficient to say the republicans tried to pull a fast one on the american people. republicans attempted to broaden a decades-old precedent that traditionally prevents federal funds from paying for abortion except in the case of rape, insist and the life of the mother at risk commonly known as the hyde language. republicans want to change it to apply to nontaxpayer dollars. it was a failed ploy and it is no surprise that the republicans are scrambling to save their necks after trying to dupe american women. my republican colleagues appear to be close to seeing why on human trafficking and there seems to be a path forward

i had the opportunity to meet with ms. lynch in early december. she impressed me with her passion for upholding the rule of law and her belief that law enforcement could be a partner in building stronger and more cohesive communities. i talked to her about how the justice department could play a role in supporting ethnic diversity in communities like detroit and flint and other communities across michigan. she understands the devastating effect that racial profiling has had on the relationship between the police and the public and i'm pleased to learn of her support for police body cameras and so many other policies that would help in that regard. in addition she understands the threat posed by those who would intimidate americans from participating in elections. i regret that loretta lynch has not yet been granted the opportunity to play her role in promoting access to the polls and preventing groups from being disenfranchised. i regret that our f.b.i. with all it must do for the safety and security of americans does not have a permanent attorney