February 2, 2005

Gonzales Nomination Sends Mixed Message to Those Fleeing Tyranny

Reid spokeswoman Fabiola Rodríguez-Ciampoli released the following statement today in response to Sen. Mel Martinez’s floor statement:

“Today on the Senate floor, we heard a message from Sen. Mel Martinez about Judge Alberto Gonzales. It is true that Judge Gonzales’ story represents the American Dream. His family, like many Hispanic families, came to America looking for a better future for their children and put their faith on the promise of fairness, justice and freedom that our country represents. But we cannot forget that many Hispanic families, including Sen. Martinez’s, came to this country fleeing regimes where torture is practiced and tolerated.

“We cannot tell those who have come to America escaping torture and abuse, that Judge Gonzalez is ‘one of us’ and then turn a blind eye to the torture policies that he helped shape and that have cast a dark shadow on America’s beacon of freedom. These practices have diminished our moral standing in the world.

“It is our hope that through the debate and our public condemnation of those policies, such abuses will never again be tolerated by our government”.

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