Criticizes Noriega for campaigning during Hurricane Ike
Cornyn tried to cancel the statewide broadcast of his first TV ad [due to Hurricane Ike], but wasn’t able to keep it from airing in Dallas, Austin and Amarillo today.
Noriega, who was tweaked by the Cornyn camp for not canceling two campaign events as
the storm moved inland, chided Cornyn for broadcasting campaign spots. “They chose to run an ad when 3 million people still don’t have power in the state of Texas,” said Noriega’s campaign.
Cornyn criticized Noriega for stumping in Killeen even as his
Houston district “was pounded by Ike.” Cornyn’s campaign said, “This isn’t a time for gotcha politics. Everyone seems to realize this but Rick Noriega. He and his staff should be ashamed and owe those affected by Ike an apology.”
Noriega’s campaign
responded, “Gotcha politics? Our entire campaign has been evacuated to Austin by Hurricane Ike.” The campaign noted that Noriega, a Texas National Guard officer, reported to Austin’s Camp Mabry Sunday to help with hurricane response support efforts.
Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), was scored by the Washington Post on the percentage of votes on which a lawmaker agrees with the position taken by a majority of his or her party members. The scores do not include missed votes.
Their summary: Voted with Republican Party 93.2% of 322 votes. Overall, Democrats voted with their party 88.4% of the time, and Republicans voted with their party 81.7% of the time (votes Jan. 8 through Sept. 8, 2007).
Source: Washington Post, “US Congress Votes Database”
Sep 8, 2007
Justices should respect law, not impose political agendas
Groups are trying to defeat your nomination because you will not support their liberal agenda. I want judges on the Supreme Court who will not use their position to impose a political agenda on the American people.
I want judges on the Supreme Court who will respect the words and meaning of the Constitution, the laws enacted by Congress. A Supreme Court appointment is not a free ticket to rewrite our laws however you and your colleagues see fit.“
Source: Sam Alito Senate Confirmation Hearings
Jan 9, 2006
Voted NO on confirming of Sonia Sotomayor to Supreme Court.
Yesterday, the Senate Judiciary Committee kicked off the confirmation hearings for Supreme Court Nominee, Judge Sonia Sotomayor. In her opening statement, Judge Sotomayor pledged a "fidelity to the law:"
"In the past month, many Senators have asked me about my judicial philosophy. It is simple: fidelity to the law. The task of a judge is not to make the law--it is to apply the law. And it is clear, I believe, that my record in two courts reflects my rigorous commitment to interpreting the Constitution according to its terms; interpreting statutes according to their terms and Congress's intent; and hewing faithfully to precedents established by the Supreme Court and my Circuit Court. In each case I have heard, I have applied the law to the facts at hand."
Reference: Supreme Court Nomination;
Bill PN506
; vote number 2009-S262
on Aug 6, 2009
Voted YES on confirming Samuel Alito as Supreme Court Justice.
Vote on the Nomination -- a YES vote would to confirm Samuel A. Alito, Jr., of New Jersey, to be an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States.
Reference: Alito Nomination;
Bill PN 1059
; vote number 2006-002
on Jan 31, 2006
Voted YES on confirming John Roberts for Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.
Vote on the Nomination (Confirmation John G. Roberts, Jr., of Maryland, to be Chief Justice of the United States )
Reference: Supreme Court Nomination of John Roberts;
Bill PN 801
; vote number 2005-245
on Sep 27, 2005
Rated 0% by the AU, indicating opposition to church-state separation.
Cornyn scores 0% by the AU on church-state separation
OnTheIssues.org interprets the 2006 AU scores as follows:
0%- 20%: opposition to church-state separation (approx. 232 members)
21%- 79%: mixed record on church-state separation (approx. 79 members)
80%-100%: support of church-state separation (approx. 153 members)
About the AU (from their website, www.au.org):
Americans United for Separation of Church and State (AU) is a religious liberty watchdog group based in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1947, the organization educates Americans about the importance of church-state separation in safeguarding religious freedom.
AU is a nonpartisan organization dedicated to preserving the constitutional principle of church-state separation as the only way to ensure religious freedom for all Americans.
Americans United is a national organization with members in all 50 states. We are headquartered in Washington, D.C., and led by the Rev. Barry W. Lynn, executive director. AU has more than 75,000 members from all over the country. They include people from all walks of life and from various faith communities, as well as those who profess no particular faith. We are funded by donations from our members and others who support church-state separation. We do not seek, nor would we accept, government funding.
