First off, Brint, good job. It takes some guts to stand up there and say what you did. It's easy to spout off on an internet forum, as many of us do, orders of magnitude more difficult to testify in such a public setting. You did a good job and it was particularly effective, and appropriate, to burnish your credentials as a Democrat.
This nomination is not a lock as others have stated----if it was, you wouldn't see the massive effort being made on PW's behalf. I think every staffer who ever worked for the man has been contacted to write a letter to the editor or appear at the hearing.
I am pretty close to the scene here in Helena and I can tell you that the real forum where this confirmation will be settled is on the floor of the Senate. I wouldn't be surprised to see the committee simply move the resolution on to the floor, and when it comes up on Second Reading, there will be a motion concerning PW.
I think the Demo's are pretty much locked down in favor of the confirmation---- you saw that in Windy Boy's comments--- just being a little more candid than most of the D's. But D's are in the minority (29-21) in the Senate, they would have to pick up some Repub votes to defeat the motion.
That's where things will get tight. Most R's will vote against PW, but will enough of them cross over to the other side on this vote??? Suspect it will be very close.
Contact your Senator, particularly if they happen to be a Republican. This thing is far from over, and don't be put off by the committee action (the press will likely report that the Williams nomination came out of committee in good shape)----- because the real action will happen on the floor with all Senators voting.