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Floor Speech

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Mr. DURBIN. Madam President, in a few minutes, the Senate is going to vote on the confirmation of Judge Nancy Maldonado to serve on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, which the Acting President pro tempore and I know very well.

Since the beginning of the Biden administration, the Senate has confirmed 201 highly qualified, independent, evenhanded judges to the Federal bench. They represent the best of our legal system-- demographically and professionally diverse; they respect the rule of law; they adhere to precedent; and they answer only to the Constitution. We should add another to that list today--Judge Maldonado, an accomplished litigator and distinguished jurist, who will be a great asset to the Seventh Circuit.

She graduated from Harvard College and Columbia Law School. She clerked for U.S. District Judge Ruben Castillo--a retired judge, my friend, and an esteemed jurist in the Northern District.

Following her clerkship, Judge Maldonado spent nearly 20 years at a firm specializing in employment, civil rights, and fraud matters. Throughout her career, she tried several cases to verdict, judgment, or final decision.

In addition, she was appointed by the Cook County State's Attorney's Office to serve as a special assistant, tasked with investigating fraud. From 2019 to 2022, she was appointed by the Illinois attorney general to serve as a consent decree monitor in two matters and as a special assistant AG to investigate consumer fraud. You can draw the conclusion from these appointments that she is trusted by her colleagues to be professional.

In 2022, the Senate confirmed Judge Maldonado on a bipartisan vote-- supported by the Acting President pro tempore and myself--to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. Since her confirmation, she has presided over almost 1,000 cases--that is in a matter of just 2 years--plus has ruled on thousands of motions and has issued approximately 300 substantive decisions.

Notably, Judge Maldonado has never been reversed by a reviewing court in that period of time--nearly 1,000 cases. Despite what her critics have to say, her record is one of the best. It shows she carefully resolves cases in a way that ensures that litigants feel they have been treated fairly.

Once confirmed, Judge Maldonado will be the first Hispanic judge to ever serve on the Seventh Circuit. History will be made.

Judge Maldonado has my strong support and the support of my other home State Senator and good friend, the Acting President pro tempore, Senator Tammy Duckworth.

Judge Maldonado, incidentally, received a unanimous--unanimous-- ``well qualified'' rating from the American Bar Association based on her integrity, professional competence, and judicial temperament. She has broad support across the legal community, from law enforcement to labor unions representing millions of members.

I urge my Senate colleagues to join me in confirming this highly qualified nominee.

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