Judicial excellence means that a Supreme Court justice must have a sense of the values from which our core of our political- economic system goes. In other words, we should not approve any nominee whose extreme judicial philosophy would undermine rights and liberties relied upon by all Americans.

Businesses want to offer solid, affordable health insurance to their employees, but it is getting harder to find every year.

Judicial excellence requires candor before confirmation. We are being asked to give the nominee enormous power.

Before we decide to trust you with this power, we ask you to stand before the public and explain your views. Justice may be blind, but it should not be deaf.

Whether interpreting the Constitution or filling in the blanks of a law or a regulation, every word of the court's opinion can widen or narrow our rights as Americans and either protect us or leave us more vulnerable to any winds that blow.

We need to fight the plague of the uninsured the way we have fought other threats to our way of life and our basic values.

I will vote my hopes and not my fears