[Senate Hearing 109-205]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
S. Hrg. 109-205
CONFIRMATION HEARING ON THE NOMINATIONS OF RACHEL L. BRAND, ALICE S.
FISHER, AND REGINA B. SCHOFIELD TO BE ASSISTANT ATTORNEYS GENERAL
=======================================================================
HEARING
before the
COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY
UNITED STATES SENATE
ONE HUNDRED NINTH CONGRESS
FIRST SESSION
__________
MAY 12, 2005
__________
Serial No. J-109-19
__________
Printed for the use of the Committee on the Judiciary
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COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY
ARLEN SPECTER, Pennsylvania, Chairman
ORRIN G. HATCH, Utah PATRICK J. LEAHY, Vermont
CHARLES E. GRASSLEY, Iowa EDWARD M. KENNEDY, Massachusetts
JON KYL, Arizona JOSEPH R. BIDEN, Jr., Delaware
MIKE DeWINE, Ohio HERBERT KOHL, Wisconsin
JEFF SESSIONS, Alabama DIANNE FEINSTEIN, California
LINDSEY O. GRAHAM, South Carolina RUSSELL D. FEINGOLD, Wisconsin
JOHN CORNYN, Texas CHARLES E. SCHUMER, New York
SAM BROWNBACK, Kansas RICHARD J. DURBIN, Illinois
TOM COBURN, Oklahoma
David Brog, Staff Director
Michael O'Neill, Chief Counsel
Bruce A. Cohen, Democratic Chief Counsel and Staff Director
C O N T E N T S
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STATEMENTS OF COMMITTEE MEMBERS
Page
Brownback, Hon. Sam, a U.S. Senator from the State of Kansas..... 1
Leahy, Hon. Patrick J., a U.S. Senator from the State of Vermont,
prepared statement............................................. 188
PRESENTERS
Cochran, Hon. Thad, a U.S. Senator from the State of Mississippi
presenting Regina B. Schofield, Nominee to be Assistant
Attorney General, Office of Justice Programs, Department of
Justice........................................................ 6
Grassley, Hon. Charles E., a U.S. Senator from the State of Iowa
presenting Rachel L. Brand, Nominee to be Assistant Attorney
General, Office of Legal Policy, Department of Justice......... 4
Harkin, Hon. Tom, a U.S. Senator from the State of Iowa
presenting Rachel L. Brand, Nominee to be Assistant Attorney
General, Office of Legal Policy, Department of Justice......... 5
Lott, Hon. Trent, a U.S. Senator from the State of Mississippi
presenting Alice S. Fisher, Nominee to be Assistant Attorney
General, Criminal Division, Department of Justice.............. 7
McConnell, Hon. Mitch, a U.S. Senator from the State of Kentucky
presenting Regina B. Schofield, Nominee to be Assistant
Attorney General, Office of Justice Programs, Department of
Justice........................................................ 3
STATEMENTS OF THE NOMINEES
Brand, Rachel L., Nominee to be Assistant Attorney General,
Office of Legal Policy, Department of Justice.................. 8
Questionnaire................................................ 10
Fisher, Alice S., Nominee to be Assistant Attorney General,
Criminal Division, Department of Justice....................... 41
Questionnaire................................................ 42
Schofield, Regina B., Nominee to be Assistant Attorney General,
Office of Justice Programs, Department of Justice.............. 84
Questionnaire................................................ 85
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Responses of Rachel L. Brand to questions submitted by Senators
Cornyn, Leahy, Kennedy, and Durbin............................. 114
Responses of Alice S. Fisher to questions submitted by Senators
Durbin, Leahy, and Kennedy..................................... 139
Responses of Alice S. Fisher to additional questions submitted by
Senators Kennedy and Durbin.................................... 164
Responses of Regina B. Schofield to questions submitted by
Senators Durbin, and Leahy..................................... 174
CONFIRMATION HEARING TO BE ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL FOR THE
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
----------
THURSDAY, MAY 12, 2005
United States Senate,
Committee on the Judiciary,
Washington, D.C.
The Committee met, pursuant to notice, at 4:10 p.m., in
room SD-226, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. Sam Brownback
presiding.
Present: Senators Brownback and Grassley.
OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. SAM BROWNBACK, A U.S. SENATOR FROM
THE STATE OF KANSAS
Senator Brownback. The hearing will come to order. Thank
you all for joining us today for this confirmation hearing
process. Senator Specter has asked that I host and chair this
confirmation hearing and I look forward to the testimony and
the presentations of the various witnesses.
Obviously, by the array of stars we have here supporting
those nominees, these are outstanding, stellar nominees. I
don't know that I have seen a panel quite this powerful
supporting the list of nominees any time that I have chaired a
hearing. So this must be a mighty good group, and I am certain
that it is.
We convene the hearing today to consider President Bush's
nomination of three outstanding individuals to serve as
Assistant Attorneys General at the Department of Justice. The
Department's Criminal Division, Office of Legal Policy and
Office of Justice Programs are critical agencies charged with
everything from prosecution of the war on terror to the
provision of grants to combat drug trafficking and domestic
violence. The President understands the importance of the
missions of these agencies, as shown by the high caliber of
these outstanding women who, if confirmed, would lead them.
Rachel Brand has been nominated to be Assistant Attorney
General at the Office of Legal Policy. Ms. Brand has developed
an extensive record of high achievement. After graduating from
the University of Minnesota and Harvard Law School, Ms. Brand
served as a law clerk to Justice Charles Fried, of the Supreme
Judicial Court of Massachusetts, in 1999. Following her
clerkship, she joined the law firm of Cooper, Carvin and
Rosenthal. Her work there included a variety of trial and
appellate litigation.
In January 2001, she was chosen to serve at the White House
in the Office of Counsel to the President, first as an
assistant counsel and then as an associate counsel. In these
capacities, she has provided legal and policy advice to White
House officials on a wide range of challenging issues.
She left the White House to serve as a law clerk to Supreme
Court Justice Anthony M. Kennedy during the 2002-2003 term.
After her clerkship, Ms. Brand became Principal Deputy
Assistant Attorney General in the Office of Legal Policy at the
Department of Justice. In this position, she has worked to
develop and implement a variety of civil and criminal policy
initiatives, and assisted in supervising all aspects of the
office's work.
Alice Fisher, nominated to head the Department's Criminal
Division, has a distinguished record and a wide range of
experience. She received her B.A. from Vanderbilt and her J.D.
from Catholic University Law School. After law school, she
worked for several years as an associate at Sullivan and
Cromwell, where she represented corporations in civil
litigation, and also represented a death row inmate in a habeas
corpus appeal.
In 1995 and 1996, Ms. Fisher served as Deputy Special
Counsel to the U.S. Senate Committee investigating the
Whitewater Development Corporation and related matters. In that
role, she supported the Senate's investigation and assisted in
drafting the final report.
In 1996, Ms. Fisher returned to private practice, this time
at the law firm of Latham and Watkins. At Latham, she was a
member of the litigation department and the white collar
practice group. Her practice focused on the representation of
corporations in government investigations and complex civil
litigation. In 2001, she became a partner. From 2001 until
2003, Ms. Fisher served as Deputy Attorney General in the
Criminal Division of the Department of Justice, excellent work
there.
Regina Schofield, nominated to head the Office of Justice
Programs, will bring a wealth of experience to the position.
Ms. Schofield graduated from Mississippi College and received
her MBA from Jackson State University. She currently serves as
Director of Intergovernmental Affairs and White House Liaison
at the Department of Health and Human Services. She previously
was Manager of Governmental Relations at the U.S. Postal
Service.
As Director of Intergovernmental Relations at HHS, Ms.
Schofield has been instrumental in advancing intergovernmental
relations with over 562 federally-recognized tribal
governments. She has developed the Department's first
comprehensive tribal consultation policy and has worked to
establish formal mechanisms to create an open door for tribes
regarding the Department's policy and budget process. She has
also worked to streamline the grants process, thereby
increasing public awareness of government-funded programs and
services.
We have a distinguished panel of Senators to introduce, as
well, these nominees. I don't know if anybody has a particular
time commitment that they need to go through. If not, we
usually go from my left to right, unless somebody has a
particular time commitment.
If not, the Honorable Senator Trent Lott will be the first
witness.
Senator Lott. Senator Brownback, at this time I think maybe
I would like to defer. Maybe you could work the other way. I
think the distinguished Whip may have other responsibilities.
Senator Brownback. That is a good thought.
Senator McConnell, we just jumped to the other end of the
table here and we will work from that place.
PRESENTATION OF ALICE S. FISHER, NOMINEE TO BE ASSISTANT
ATTORNEY GENERAL, CRIMINAL DIVISION, DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE, BY
HON. MITCH MCCONNELL, A U.S. SENATOR FROM THE STATE OF KENTUCKY
Senator McConnell. Well, far be it from me to turn down
that opportunity. Thank you very much, Senator Lott.
Mr. Chairman, I am thrilled to be here today to introduce
Alice Fisher, the President's nominee to be the Assistant
Attorney General of the Criminal Division at DOJ. Ms. Fisher is
a battle-tested veteran of the war on terror, and with her
confirmation she will once again take up a place on the front
lines of that struggle.
She joined the Justice Department in July of 2001 as Deputy
Assistant Attorney General of the Criminal Division. She was
placed in charged of counterterrorism efforts. Two months later
came September 11. After that horrific day, our Government
responded forcefully and quickly. Ms. Fisher's role was vital
to the fight.
She was responsible for national coordination of the
Government's efforts to stamp out these evil acts, including
all matters related to September 11 investigations and
prosecutions. She coordinated the investigation and prosecution
of international and domestic terrorist groups, terrorist acts
and terrorist financing. She headed up USA PATRIOT Act
implementation and she coordinated the Justice Department's
efforts with the FBI, the Department of Defense, the CIA, the
NIC and the White House.
The man who then held the job to which Ms. Fisher has been
nominated, her old boss, was Michael Chertoff, now, as well
know, the Secretary of Homeland Security. Secretary Chertoff
and Ms. Fisher served together in the Justice Department for
two years. Before their Justice Department service, they were
both partners at Latham and Watkins, and before that Ms. Fisher
and Secretary Chertoff both served as counsels for a U.S.
Senate special committee. Secretary Chertoff, who has worked
closely with her over the years, has called her, quote, ``one
of the best lawyers I have seen in my entire career,'' end
quote.
The Criminal Division of the Justice Department must focus
on matters other than terrorism, of course, and Ms. Fisher is
equally talented to deal with those matters as well. As Deputy
Assistant Attorney general, she headed up efforts to combat
corporate fraud just at a time that the collapse of Enron and
other corporate scandals were front-page news. She supervised
all corporate fraud matters at Justice, including the
securities accounting and health care areas. She participated
in the drafting of Sarbanes-Oxley and worked closely with the
Securities and Exchange Commission on policy issues.
She was born and raised in my hometown of Louisville,
Kentucky, as part of a close-knit family. She has five older
brothers and sisters. Her father ran a chemical plant and her
mother worked the night shift as a nurse. She still has a lot
of family back home in Louisville. In fact, I think both of us
were there last weekend to watch the Kentucky Derby.
She earned her B.A. from Vanderbilt and her law degree from
Catholic University here. Her husband, Clint, also serves our
Nation as Director of Aviation Policy for TSA. She is the
mother of two. You can tell she has been a really busy lady. In
a relatively short time, she has already accomplished a great
deal.
She rose to become a partner in one of America's most
prestigious law firms. She then selflessly chose to forego a
more lucrative career in private practice to serve her country.
Thanks to her, America is a safer place than it was on
September 11. Now, the President has asked her to serve once
more and she has answered the call.
I can't tell you, Ms. Fisher, how grateful we are that you
are answering the call again and I am proud to be here to
introduce you.
Senator Brownback. Thank you.
Senator Grassley.
PRESENTATION OF RACHEL L. BRAND, NOMINEE TO BE ASSISTANT
ATTORNEY GENERAL, OFFICE OF LEGAL POLICY, DEPARTMENT OF
JUSTICE, BY HON. CHARLES E. GRASSLEY, A U.S. SENATOR FROM THE
STATE OF IOWA
Senator Grassley. I am equally proud to introduce a person
that has strong roots in my State, a very young person, Rachel
Brand. She has been nominated to be Assistant Attorney General,
Office of Legal Policy, at the Department of Justice. A very
excellent candidate, and we ought to be delighted that the
President has chosen her for this position.
Rachel and her family have strong Iowa connections. Her
father was born and raised in Iowa. Her mother went to college
in Iowa, and the Brand family lived in Pella, Iowa, for a long
time. Recently, the family has moved to Michigan, but her
father still works for the Vermeer Manufacturing Company in
Pella and she still has much of an extended family remaining in
Iowa.
So we would extend a warm welcome to Rachel's husband,
Jonathan Cohn; Rachel's mother and father, Ruth and Ivan Brand;
Rachel's sister, Deborah Hansel, and her brother-in-law, Neil
Hansel, and her niece, Megan Hansel.
Rachel received her bachelor's degree in political science
from the University of Minnesota-Morris and graduated with high
distinction and honors. While in college, I first got to know
Rachel because she interned in my Washington, D.C. office in
1995. She did a very great job for me at that time, and as
often happens we Senators realize that a lot of people who are
interns in our office have a very good future and this proves
to be true in the case of Rachel.
Rachel, after college, got her law degree, cum laude, at
Harvard Law School. In law school, Rachel excelled and was the
deputy editor-in-chief of the Harvard Journal of Law and Public
Policy. After law school, she clerked for Justice Charles
Fried, of the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts.
Following her clerkship, Rachel was employed briefly as
general counsel to the Elizabeth Dole for President Exploratory
Committee, then joining the firm of Cooper, Carvin and
Rosenthal, specializing in trial and appellate litigation.
In January 2001, after a short stint as associate counsel
to the Bush-Cheney transition team, Rachel joined the Office of
Counsel to the President, first as assistant counsel, then
associate counsel. In the Office of Counsel to the President,
she provided legal and policy advice to White House officials
on a wide range of issues.
She left that position to serve as law clerk for Associate
Justice Anthony Kennedy during the 2002-2003 term of the
Supreme Court. In July of 2003, she became Principal Deputy
Assistant Attorney General of the Office of Legal Policy. Here,
she worked to develop and implement a variety of civil and
criminal policy initiatives, assisting in supervising all
aspects of the office's work. In March 2005, she became Acting
Assistant of the Office of Legal Policy.
This brief review of her background shows that she is
uniquely qualified for the position of Assistant Attorney
General of the Office of Legal Policy. She is a very
intelligent individual, an excellent attorney and, of course, a
very young age that we would all be jealous of. Rachel has
remarkable accomplishments. She has an outstanding record, too,
of public service. I know that Rachel will do a good job
anyplace she goes, so I highly recommend her to this Committee
and ask my colleagues to support her nomination.
Thank you.
Senator Brownback. Thank you, Senator Grassley.
Senator Harkin.
PRESENTATION OF RACHEL L. BRAND, NOMINEE TO BE ASSISTANT
ATTORNEY GENERAL, OFFICE OF LEGAL POLICY, DEPARTMENT OF
JUSTICE, BY HON. TOM HARKIN, A U.S. SENATOR FROM THE STATE OF
IOWA
Senator Harkin. Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to join with my
colleague, Senator Grassley, to give my support to Rachel
Brand, the nominee to head the Department of Justice's Office
of Legal Policy.
Rachel, as has been said, is a native of Pella, Iowa, known
to many of you probably for its windows and doors, but known to
the rest of us for the most beautiful tulips in Iowa, strong
families and smart people.
I will not go through all of her accomplishments. Senator
Grassley did that, I think, quite effectively. All I would add
is he mentioned a young age. Everything that Senator Grassley
said Rachel Brand did--she did all that by the age of 32. It
kind of puts a lot of us to shame. We wonder what we did with
our time when we were young. It just shows you she has a great
work ethic.
Also, I must admit I went a step further about Rachel and I
took my inquiries on Rachel back to the source in Pella. I
asked the sheriff. Rachel's very proud uncle, Marvin Van
Haften, who now heads the Iowa Office of Drug Control Policy,
confirmed for me that his niece is indeed a fine, upstanding
citizen, growing up in Iowa, as well as not surprisingly a
straight-A student. Of course, Mr. Van Haften was the former
sheriff of that county for a long time. I would also like to
join with Senator Grassley in welcoming Rachel's parents and
some other family members here today who still live in Pella.
The Office of Legal Policy is one of the offices in the
Department of Justice that not many people know about or
understand. However, given that the office essentially handles
policy changes for the Department of Justice, it is one that
has a tremendous responsibility in shaping how we go forward in
our fight against terrorism.
In our continuing war on terror, balancing how to
effectively fight terrorism within our criminal justice system
and within our Constitution continues to pose new and difficult
challenges that will fall squarely upon the person who heads
this office. In selecting Rachel Brand, I believe the President
has made a good choice to lead the Department in making those
good balances between our Constitution and our criminal justice
system and fighting terrorism. He has made a great choice and I
join with my colleague in hoping that the Committee will
confirm her rapidly.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Brownback. Thank you, Senator Harkin. We appreciate
that support.
If any of you, after presenting, need to leave for other
meetings, it certainly is understood.
Senator Harkin. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Brownback. Senator Cochran.
PRESENTATION OF REGINA B. SCHOFIELD, NOMINEE TO BE ASSISTANT
ATTORNEY GENERAL, OFFICE OF JUSTICE PROGRAMS, DEPARTMENT OF
JUSTICE, BY HON. THAD COCHRAN, A U.S. SENATOR FROM THE STATE OF
MISSISSIPPI
Senator Cochran. Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to be here this
afternoon to introduce Ms. Regina Schofield to the Committee
and to recommend her confirmation as an Assistant Attorney
General for the Office of Justice Programs at the United States
Department of Justice.
Ms. Schofield was born and raised and educated in
Mississippi. We have a number of mutual friends in Franklin
County, Mississippi, which she still claims as home, and she
comes highly recommended to me by them.
She received a bachelor's degree in business administration
from Mississippi College and a master's degree from Jackson
State University. She began her career in Government serving as
Deputy Director of the Office of White House Liaison in the
U.S. Department of Education. She later served as Manager of
Government Relations at the United States Postal Service.
In February 2001, Ms. Schofield became White House liaison
to Secretary Tommy Thompson at the Department of Health and
Human Services. In less than two years, she became Director of
the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs at HHS, where she was
the principal adviser to Secretary Thompson on the impact of
Department policies on State, local and tribal governments.
As Assistant Attorney General, Ms. Schofield would be
responsible for the overall management and oversight of the
Office of Justice Programs. Ms. Schofield has proven that she
has the talent, the experience and the capability to serve with
distinction as Assistant Attorney General in the Department of
Justice. I urge the Committee to recommend her confirmation by
the Senate.
Senator Brownback. Thank you very much, Senator Cochran.
And now the Honorable Trent Lott.
PRESENTATION OF REGINA B. SCHOFIELD, NOMINEE TO BE ASSISTANT
ATTORNEY GENERAL, OFFICE OF JUSTICE PROGRAMS, DEPARTMENT OF
JUSTICE, BY HON. TRENT LOTT, A U.S. SENATOR FROM THE STATE OF
MISSISSIPPI
Senator Lott. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, Senator Brownback,
for allowing us to appear before you and the Judiciary
Committee today in support of these very fine nominees. It is a
great pleasure to join my senior colleague from Mississippi in
endorsing the very fine nominee, Regina Schofield, to be
Assistant Attorney General of the Department of Justice.
I would like to ask that my entire statement be made a part
of the record as I have it prepared.
Senator Brownback. Without objection.
Senator Lott. I want to extend my congratulations to the
other nominees today. These are three very fine, very
impressive, young people that will be going to the Justice
Department in very critical positions and I am convinced they
will do a magnificent job. In fact, the quality of these women
probably will begin to straighten out the Justice Department in
a way it has never experienced before. So I congratulate them.
I am very proud to sit here and listen to their records of
achievement and their work in the administration, or
administrations, and to congratulate their families who are all
here today. I know their families are very proud of them.
I won't repeat what is in the resume of Ms. Schofield.
Senator Cochran did a very fine job of that. I am very proud of
her background, being from Bude, Mississippi. It is a long way
from Bude, Mississippi, to Washington, D.C., and the Justice
Department. In fact, if I gave you a map, you probably couldn't
find it, but you have got some areas in Kansas pretty far out
at the end of the road, too. It is a lot of beautiful people,
and I know that community is very proud of Regina and her
achievements.
She has done a good job everywhere she has been. She has
worked hard. She obviously has outstanding managerial skills
and it is evidenced by not only her education and her work in
different roles in the administration, at the White House, at
HHS and the Department of Education, but she also served on
multiple boards and commissions. She serves on the Board of
Visitors of the College of William and Mary, where she oversees
he school's budget. She also serves as a member of the Board of
Trustees of the American Council of Young Political Leaders, an
organization dedicated to developing the leadership potential
of emerging leaders in politics and government.
So in view of her history of service, certainly it is no
surprise that she would receive this nomination. I am convinced
she is going to do a wonderful job, particularly working in the
Office of Justice Programs. And I must say I am very proud of
the record of achievement and all that she has done in her very
young life, and so I congratulate her and thank her for her
dedication. I know she will be confirmed and will do a
wonderful job at the Department of Justice.
Senator Brownback. Thank you very much, Senator Lott. Thank
you both, and all the Senators for presenting here today and
introducing these nominees.
We will now call up the three nominees, if they would come
forward--Rachel Brand, Alice Fisher and Regina Schofield.
We need to swear you in, if you would, ahead of time, so if
you would please stand and raise your right hand. Do you swear
that the testimony you will give to this Committee will be the
truth, the full truth and nothing but the truth, so help you
God?
Ms. Brand. I do.
Ms. Fisher. I do.
Ms. Schofield. I do.
Senator Brownback. Thank you. You may be seated.
Well, this is quite a panel, ladies. I am looking forward
to the testimony. We will start with Rachel Brand, if we could
go with you first. If you have a full statement, we can put it
into the record. That will be great. I would invite you if you
have any family members here to introduce them. To me, this is
a family obligation. You are the point person, but there is a
whole bunch of troops behind you and I would like to recognize
and thank them as well. So if each of you could do that, then I
will have some questions after your testimony.
Ms. Brand.
STATEMENT OF RACHEL L. BRAND, NOMINEE TO BE ASSISTANT ATTORNEY
GENERAL, OFFICE OF LEGAL POLICY, DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Ms. Brand. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I do not have a full
statement, although I do look forward to taking your questions.
I have some thank yous, though, and some acknowledgements.
I thank you for chairing this hearing so late on a
Thursday. I know you have got a lot else on your plate with
everything going on in the Judiciary Committee right now. I
would like to thank the President and the Attorney General for
their confidence in me through this nominations. I would like
to thank Senators Harkin and Grassley for being here. It is a
real honor for me to have the support of both of my home State
Senators from Iowa.
And, finally, I would like to acknowledge my family,
especially my parents, Ruth and Ivan Brand, who have been
introduced, and my husband, Jonathan Cohn.
Senator Brownback. Could we have them stand if they are
here--have the parents stand, and husband?
[The individuals stood.]
Senator Brownback. Great. Thank you very much for being
here.
Ms. Brand. I also have three other family members from out
of town. My aunt Beckie and my cousin Katie drove from Michigan
yesterday, and my sister-in-law Erica Cohn is here from New
York, and so I thank them.
Senator Brownback. You have got to stand, too. If you are
going to drive that far for this, we want to see you.
[The individuals stood.]
Senator Brownback. Thank you very much for being here.
Ms. Brand. And I have a number of other friends here, too,
and I thank them all for being here. My siblings, Deborah,
Thomas and Andrew, couldn't be here today, but I thank them for
their support, as well, and I look forward to taking your
questions.
[The biographical information of Rachel Lee Brand follows.]
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Senator Brownback. Good. We will have a few as we go along.
Ms. Fisher.
STATEMENT OF ALICE S. FISHER, NOMINEE TO BE ASSISTANT ATTORNEY
GENERAL, CRIMINAL DIVISION, DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Ms. Fisher. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for chairing this
hearing. I, as well, would like to thank the President and the
Attorney General for having confidence in me for this position,
and thank Senator McConnell for that very nice opening
statement.
I would acknowledge my family members that are here--my
mother, who is the mother of six--I was the baby--who taught me
the work ethic by working the night shift while raising six
kids, and my husband, Clint Fisher, who also works for the
Government at TSA, and my two little boys, one of which is
already asleep, a 3-year-old--that is probably why we aren't
hearing him right now--Luke, and my son Matthew.
Senator Brownback. Very good. We won't ask the father and
the two children, but the mother, if you could stand, we would
love to recognize you, if that would be possible.
[Ms. Biedenbender stood.]
Senator Brownback. Thank you for being here.
Do you have a statement, any comments?
[The biographical information of Alice S. Fisher Brand
follows.]
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Ms. Fisher. No, but I look forward to your questions,
Senator.
Senator Brownback. Ms. Schofield.
STATEMENT OF REGINA B. SCHOFIELD, NOMINEE TO BE ASSISTANT
ATTORNEY GENERAL, OFFICE OF JUSTICE PROGRAMS, DEPARTMENT OF
JUSTICE
Ms. Schofield. Thank you, Senator Brownback, and thank you
again for chairing this meeting. We really appreciate it. I
want to thank the President and Attorney General for their
support in my nomination, and I appreciate Senators Cochran and
Lott on their support. Bude is a long way from here, so I do
appreciate it.
I want to introduce my husband, Steve, and my son, Samuel,
and my mother- and father-in-law, Bob and Doris Schofield, who
had a very harrowing experience on I-95 today. So I appreciate
them being here.
Senator Brownback. If you can stand, please do it, from
that harrowing experience.
[The individuals stood.]
Senator Brownback. Thank you for being here.
Ms. Schofield. I appreciate the support of my friends today
and there are a lot of them here today. So thank you.
[The biographical information of Regina B. Schofield
follows.]
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Senator Brownback. Good. Thank you all very much.
The questions I have are not tough ones to drill you. We
have heard the support from home State Senators, and the
backgrounds each of you have are outstanding qualifications. I
would, though, like to go down the bench and as you look at the
place you have been nominated to, what is it you see as the top
issue or issues that you are going to be confronted with in
working there?
I know you are not in the position yet. I don't know of any
opposition to any of you going into these positions, so I think
it clears through pretty quick, although strange things happen
around here. What do you see as the top issues you are going to
be confronting?
Ms. Brand?
Ms. Brand. Thank you, Senator Brownback. The Office of
Legal Policy handles an extraordinarily broad range of issues,
ranging from everything from tort reform to drug policy and
terrorism. But the top priority of the Department of Justice,
writ large, is the war on terrorism, and so that has been my
focus as the Principal Deputy Assistant AG over the last couple
of years and it will continue to be my primary focus going
forward. There is a lot of legislation on the table this year
and the threat of terrorism is not receding, so that will
continue to be my top priority.
Senator Brownback. Ms. Fisher?
Ms. Fisher. Thank you, Senator. As well, for the Criminal
Division the top priority remains terrorism and protecting our
homeland. I had the opportunity, as you know, to work at the
Department in the terrorism area for two years, and I look
forward to working side by side with those very dedicated
career people that work night and day combating terrorism. So I
look forward to getting back with them. It is in my heart and I
look forward to that.
My other priorities would obviously continue to be
corporate fraud and white-collar fraud. That continues to be a
priority of the Department, as well as obscenity, child
pornography and computer crimes, the whole range of computer
crimes that are just rampant through our Nation right now.
Whether it is drugs on the computer, obscenity, child
pornography, we need to find better, effective ways to deal
with these crimes. Guns and drugs, public corruption--these are
also things that the Criminal Division is very focused on.
Senator Brownback. Ms. Schofield?
Ms. Schofield. Thank you, Senator Brownback. If confirmed,
I would continue to advance the mission of the Office of
Justice Programs and support the President's and the Attorney
General's initiatives on DNA. There are some issues dealing
with serving victims of crime. That is an issue that is very
close to my heart and I would work tirelessly to support our
local law enforcement, State and local law enforcement
agencies.
Senator Brownback. Ms. Brand, in the war on terrorism, it
goes on and just today a group of us put in an immigration bill
because one of the concerns that a lot of people have, and
realistically, that we have got people coming over that seek to
do us harm. A lot of people enter the United States legally
each year and a lot of people enter illegally.
The PATRIOT Act has had a lot of controversy, it seems,
surrounding it. What is your take of its effectiveness in the
war on terrorism, not the legal--and there have been a number
of hearings held on that--but the effectiveness of what the
PATRIOT Act has done to date?
Ms. Brand. Thank you. Alice is certainly in a good position
to answer this question, as well, having worked in the Criminal
Division following 9/11. But we have seen in a number of cases
the effectiveness of many of the provisions of the PATRIOT Act,
particularly the provisions dealing with information-sharing
between the criminal justice field and the intelligence field.
The PATRIOT Act took down the wall, so to speak, that
divided those different elements of the Government prior to the
PATRIOT Act. Those provisions of the Act were used in the
Lackawanna 6 investigation, the Portland 7 investigation, the
Virginia jihad investigation, and others, and have really
become part of the way of effectively doing business in
combating terrorism now.
Many of the Act's provisions also help us in the war on
violent crime. There is, for example, a provision, Section 212,
that allows Internet service providers to voluntarily disclose
information if they see an imminent threat of death or serious
physical injury. That has been used in cases ranging from
defusing a bomb threat to rescuing a kidnapping victim and
rescuing young girls who were kidnapped and taken across State
lines by pedophiles. So it really has been effective across the
board.
Senator Brownback. Ms. Fisher, you mentioned a couple of
areas that I am curious on how you think we are doing today or
how we might improve both in corporate fraud and on the issue
of pornography. We had the huge difficulty in the late 1990s on
the corporate fraud. How do you feel we are doing today on that
score?
Ms. Fisher. Well, I think the Government has been very
effective in combating corporate fraud. When I was at the
Department, Sarbanes-Oxley was passed and the corporate fraud
task force was set up to specifically focus on corporate fraud.
And I saw the results while I was in the Government, and now
being on the outside in private practice I have seen what
effect those laws actually had on the board rooms across
America.
I think such things as the certification provisions that
were put into Sarbanes-Oxley had a real effect on
decisionmaking in boards of directors for our public
corporations. I think the Government is doing a good job in
increasing the awareness and being able to increase investor
confidence in our public corporations because of the efforts of
the Government in this regard.
Senator Brownback. On pornography, there have been a number
of charges that we have not taken this battle on. In spite of
Supreme Court rulings that allow the prosecution of this on a
local community standard basis, a number of groups are charging
that there has just not been anything done on this.
Ms. Fisher. Well, child exploitation and obscenity was not
one of the areas that I supervised while I was at the
Department before, but I know that recently the Department of
Justice has set up an obscenity task force out of the Criminal
Division to focus the Government's resources from not only
within the Department of Justice, but also with other
agencies--Homeland Security, postal inspectors, et cetera--to
really focus on this problem. So I think that there will be a
commitment to this going forward.
What has happened with child pornography and obscenity
because of the Internet is a really horrible thing and we have
to take efforts now to combat it or it will continue to spread.
Senator Brownback. I think the Justice Department is going
to be key on this, and I met with the Attorney General about it
and he mentioned it in his confirmation hearing. But the reason
I say that is that you have the legal capacity to prosecute
these cases that a number of people at State or local levels
don't have.
Even though the standard is on a community basis standard,
you are the ones that have probably the expertise to be able to
move, and much of it goes all across the country, if not
internationally. I do hope you can step up and either provide
assistance in prosecuting some of these cases on a State and
local basis or take on some high-profile cases yourself in this
process, because I do think a few prosecutions of selected
items would have a significant impact on this. I think it is
like a $10 billion industry now.
Ms. Fisher. Well, I certainly plan on doing that, Senator,
and looking at that and focusing on that if I am lucky enough
to be confirmed.
Senator Brownback. Ms. Schofield, you mentioned DNA issues.
That has been certainly a big one on some capital punishment
cases. Are we getting that information and technology
widespread across the country now? Is it available to most
jurisdictions to use on an as-needed basis?
Ms. Schofield. I believe that the billion-dollar initiative
that the President has proposed is to start relieving some of
the backlog and provide our State and local laboratories and
agencies with enough wherewithal to get going and get rid of
some of those backlogs.
Senator Brownback. I don't know, and maybe this isn't fair
to ask, but do you know where that is in the allocation
process? There has been that appropriation. Has it been
allocated? Is it being allocated? Do you know where we are on
that?
Ms. Schofield. I think that the $1 billion is in the
pipeline. I may be mistaken about that, but I would be happy to
look into it.
Senator Brownback. I was just curious.
Ms. Schofield. There are two parts to it. There is $50
million to help exonerate the innocent and educate defense
lawyers and prosecutors, but there is also the $1 billion
initiative to help with the backlog.
Senator Brownback. The TV shows certainly have an impact on
some of these, as well, that my family watches.
Ms. Schofield. Yes.
Senator Brownback. I don't get to watch them as often as I
would like, but I get reports from the rest of my family
members about a number of them.
Thank you all for being here. I don't have further
questions. You are outstanding nominees. I will certainly be
supporting you. I don't know of any opposition. I hope we can
move this through rapidly on the floor. We will keep the record
open the requisite number of days.
I do have a statement that we will put into the record for
Senator Leahy, who unfortunately could not be here, but had a
series of comments and some questions, I believe, that he is
submitting to the various nominees. If you could respond to
those in as rapid order as possible, that would certainly help
out.
I congratulate you. I congratulate your family members. I
thank you for your public service. It is a tough life, it is a
great life. It is a great one of contribution where you are
giving of yourself to the country and really around the world
by the standards that we put forward here. So I consider it a
very high calling, and one in the Justice Department even more
so. When you are helping to dispense justice, it is hard to
have a higher calling than that. Thanks for doing it. God bless
you all and we will move this on forward.
The hearing is adjourned.
[Whereupon, at 4:45 p.m., the Committee was adjourned.]
[Questions and answers and a submission for the record
follow.]
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