Over the weekend, reports revealed that dozens of people who could corroborate Deborah Ramirez’s credible allegations of sexual assault were prevented from participating in the FBI investigation into Brett Kavanaugh. AFJ President Nan Aron said in our statement, the reports “confirm what we already knew: the investigation into the accusations against Kavanaugh was a complete sham…The latest reports only emphasize the need for the House to continue to conduct a vigorous investigation of Brett Kavanaugh and the FBI.” In addition to a lack of transparency surrounding this investigation, we also witnessed Kavanaugh’s obfuscation of his background during his confirmation hearing. Silencing survivors of sexual assault and their allies’ voice is egregious. Yet attacking the rights of survivors and hiding critical information about a nominee reflects a broader trend of dismantling the judicial nominations process under Trump and his allies in the Senate. From the Supreme Court to our District and Circuit Court nominees, fast-tracking the judicial nominations process and blowing up hundred-year-old norms and processes to do it has become the norm – as has nominating judges with demonstrated hostility to our rights and protections. | |
We can’t let this become the new normal. Help us spread the word by forwarding this email to your friends and family to let them know how crucial it is to have thorough judicial nominee vetting. Without it, it’s more likely that we’ll continue to see judges with problematic backgrounds that we may not learn about until long after they’ve been confirmed to the bench for life. | |
Take Steven Menashi, who’s up for a seat on the Second Circuit. He has scores of racist, sexist and homophobic writings. At the Department of Education, he worked on Betsy DeVos's roll backs to Title IX protections for survivors and her attacks on public education. While in the Trump White House, he has worked with Stephen Miller to advance Trump’s draconian immigration policies. Yet, in his confirmation hearing, he evaded answering questions about his work; even Republican senators were disgusted at his contempt for the Senate’s advice and consent process. Join us in our fight to preserve a comprehensive process for judicial nominations so that nominees like Menashi don’t slide into lifetime seats without a full accounting of their records, positions, and temperament. Forward this email to five people now, and encourage them to sign up for our justice updates for the latest on our courts. | |
