Majority Leader Schumer Floor Remarks On Moving Forward More Of President Biden’s Qualified Nominees

Washington, D.C. –  Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) today spoke on the Senate floor regarding the need to continue confirming more of President Biden’s qualified nominees. Today the Senate will vote on a motion to discharge Lisa Cook from the Banking Committee. Below are Senator Schumer’s remarks, which can also be viewed here:

Today, the Senate will continue its work of advancing President Biden’s well-qualified nominees.

Last night, I filed cloture on five additional nominees, and this morning the Senate will vote on a motion to discharge Ms. Lisa Cook from the Banking Committee.

As a reminder, a motion to discharge is necessary in this Congress whenever a nominee receives a deadlocked vote in committee. So the steps we are taking later today are exceedingly important, but frankly it’s unfortunately that they’re necessary at all.

Not very long ago, a nominee of Ms. Cook’s qualifications would have sailed towards final confirmation with bipartisan support: she serves on the advisory board of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago and is a professor of Economics at Michigan State.

Coming from humble beginnings in rural Georgia—where her family fought back against racial segregation—she would be the first Black woman ever to sit on the Federal Reserve Board of Governors. She is truly historic in addition to being deeply qualified.

For as much as Republicans talk about inflation, it is bewildering and totally discrediting for them to reflexively oppose a qualified nominee like Ms. Cook, precisely tasked with helping the Fed hold down costs and maintain strong employment. Nevertheless we will move forward with her nomination today with a motion to discharge.

The bottom line is this: the Fed is not a political institution, Ms. Cook’s position is not a political role, and for Republicans to obstruct her nomination purely for political purposes is deeply troubling and hurts our efforts to lower costs for American families. 

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