Play hardball confirm qualified judicial nominees over racist Republican obstruction
Republicans bend the rules to stack the courts with unqualified judges. It’s time for Democrats to play hardball and confirm highly qualified nominees.
Mitch McConnell denied U.S. Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland a hearing eight months before the 2016 presidential election and then allowed the hearing for nominee Amy Coney Barrett to happen after many Americans had already cast early votes for president in 2020.
“President Biden nominated District Attorney Scott Colom for the Northern District of Mississippi in October 2022. Colom has the bipartisan support of senior Mississippi Republican Sen. Roger Wicker and senior Democratic Rep. Democrat Bennie Thompson. Mississippi Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith waited several months to announce she wouldn’t support his nomination.
Republican senators are using the blue slip to prevent Biden from appointing judges in states with the most need for civil rights protections.” – Derrick Johnson / NAACP
See how Republicans use a racist double standard to pack the courts and block other qualified nominees with this StoryMap.
Unqualified judges
“President Donald “Trump has nominated more unqualified judicial appointees than any other president so quickly into his first term, a whopping four out of 58, according to the nation’s preeminent legal group. The American Bar Association’s Standing Committee of the Federal Judiciary, which has been evaluating judicial appointments since the 1950s, has assessed 53 of Trump’s 58 nominees and found four “not qualified.”
The Republican-led Senate Judiciary Committee has already approved three of the four unqualified judges, who are awaiting a simple majority confirmation vote in the Senate. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has indicated he will push through the Trump nominees.”- Newsweek
Scott Colom
“On October 14, 2022, President Joe Biden nominated Scott Colom to serve as a United States District Judge for the Northern District of Mississippi to the seat vacated by Judge Michael Mills. A native of Mississippi, Mr. Colom has dedicated his life to justice in his home state with roles at the Mississippi Center for Justice, as a justice court judge in Lowndes County and the City of Aberdeen, as a private plaintiff’s-side attorney, and now as the District Attorney of Mississippi’s 16th District. He is also a historic figure, serving as both the first Black justice court judge of Lowndes County and the first Black city prosecutor of his hometown of Columbus.” – Alliance For Justice
Alliance For Justice
Alliance for Justice (AFJ) is a national association of 140 organizations representing a broad array of civil rights, environmental, immigration, disability, consumer, workers, women’s, LGBTQ, and other groups committed to democratic values and the creation of an equitable, just, and free society.
Play hardball
“Democrats must not conflate what they wish for — a world in which both parties play by the same set of rules — with reality. Republican hardball on judges is preventing qualified nominees of color from receiving a fair hearing and a vote, just as Eastland intended. Durbin can’t let history repeat itself. At a time when Southern legislators are actively making it harder to vote, taking away local control from Blacks elected officials and expelling Black legislators who dared to speak out, the South needs federal judges committed to protecting the civil rights of all citizens. The blue slip can’t be allowed to stop this much-needed protection, especially when there’s no guarantee the next chairman won’t get rid of it the moment he or she sees fit.
Consider that Republicans denied U.S. Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland a hearing eight months before the 2016 presidential election and then allowed the hearing for nominee Amy Coney Barrett to happen after many Americans had already cast early votes for president in 2020.” – Derrick Johnson / NAACP
Keep it simple
Cut through Republican posturing with a simple message. Short. Engaging. Actionable.
This StoryMap was designed in four hours. It explains the Republican approach of using Blue Slips and bending the rules as needed to stack the courts. The story is visual with minimal text. The call to action is to call Senator Schumer to play hardball in order to overcome Republican double standards and confirm qualified judicial nominees. Clicking on the link on a laptop or phone, immediately calls Senator Schumer’s DC office. Give him a call!
TakeAway: No more Mr. Nice Guy. It’s time to play hardball.
Deepak
DemLabs
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