00:00 Madam President, history was made today with the release of a document by the United States
00:05 Supreme Court.
00:07 Today for the first time in the history of the United States, the Supreme Court has issued
00:12 a code of conduct for Supreme Court justices.
00:17 Most Americans will be surprised to learn that this was the first time this code of
00:22 conduct has been issued.
00:24 That's a fact.
00:27 I know this issue better than most because 11 years ago I wrote to the Chief Justice
00:33 of the Supreme Court, John Roberts, along with several of my colleagues, and told him
00:38 this establishment of a code of conduct for the Supreme Court justices was long overdue.
00:45 After years of refusing to act, a series of scandalous disclosures involving several justices
00:53 on the court, and the Senate Judiciary Committee passing legislation sponsored by Senator Sheldon
01:01 Whitehouse on ethical reform, the Supreme Court has finally responded.
01:10 Today for the first time in history, the Supreme Court of the United States is at least saying
01:16 to the American people, "We hear you."
01:19 And understand that the nine justices on the Supreme Court are members of a democratic
01:25 form of government, not royalty.
01:28 That they should be held accountable as all public servants in the federal government
01:32 are held accountable.
01:33 At a glance, this code of conduct for justices of the Supreme Court is similar to the standards
01:39 that apply to all other lower court federal judges.
01:44 The court's code of conduct sets forth several important canons of conduct, including canons
01:49 on upholding integrity and independence of the judiciary, and avoiding impropriety and
01:54 the appearance of impropriety.
01:58 All of these are important steps, but they fall short of what we could and should expect
02:03 when a Supreme Court issues a code of conduct.
02:07 The court's statement on the code specifically notes, and I quote, "For the most part, these
02:12 rules and principles are not new."
02:16 That's a problem, because the court's previous practices were plainly inadequate.
02:21 The court's new code of conduct does not appear to contain any meaningful enforcement mechanism
02:27 to hold justices accountable for any violations of the code.
02:31 It also leaves a wide range of decisions up to the discretion of individual justices,
02:36 including decisions on recusal from sitting on cases.
02:40 I'm still reviewing the court's new code of conduct.
02:43 For now, I will note that the court's adoption of this code marks a step in the right direction.
02:48 It may fall short of the ethical standards which other federal judges are held to, and
02:53 that's unacceptable.
02:55 And if it falls short, the American people will ultimately have the last word, and the
03:00 integrity of the court is at issue.
03:03 We are going to carefully review this proposed code of conduct to evaluate whether it complies
03:08 with our goal that the highest court in the land not languish with the lowest standard
03:13 of ethics in our federal government.
03:16 But this release today, long overdue, begins a dialogue which could end in restoring the
03:22 integrity of the court, and that is long overdue.
03:26 Madam President, I'd like to speak on a separate topic, totally unrelated.
03:39 After nearly seven years, seven years, six years, eight months, and 21 days of being
03:46 unjustly jailed, former Philippine Senator Leila de Lima was finally released.
03:53 This is a picture of her waving from the window as she was released.
03:56 In a moving interview just after leaving the prison camp, she stood by her defense of democracy,
04:03 human rights, and truth, and reflected on the importance of not succumbing to hate,
04:08 a reminder of courage and grace.
04:11 I welcome her release and urge any and all remaining charges against her be immediately
04:15 dropped.
04:16 I look forward to seeing her soon.
04:18 I hope she can make it to Washington.
04:20 Several senators have followed this case carefully, closely, including the presiding officer.
04:26 We've sent letters.
04:28 We've encouraged her over the years to be strong, and she was.
04:32 Senator Markey was also involved in this effort, and I want to commend him as well.
04:37 You often wonder when you hear about these unjust jailings in lands far away from the
04:41 United States whether there's anything we can do on the floor of the Senate chamber
04:45 that can change history.
04:47 Today, finally, after six years, eight months, and 21 days, history came around for Leila
04:54 de Lima, the senator from the Philippines.
04:58 She's an extraordinary woman who showed extraordinary courage.
05:02 I was glad to plead her case before the American people and to plead it to the president of
05:07 the United States before we met with the Filipino leadership.
05:11 This is an important thing to remember, that each and every one of us have the power to
05:14 speak out for those who are otherwise voiceless.
05:17 She was one, and it ended with good news today.
05:21 Madam President, I ask that the remaining portion of my statement be placed in the record.
05:27 Without objection.
05:28 I yield the floor.
05:29 Thank you.
05:30 [Applause]
05:32 [Silence]
