Civil Rights Coalition: Senate Deal on Judicial Nominees Rewards Obstructionism, Devalues Our Justice System
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Wade
Henderson, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human
Rights, issued the following statement regarding the Senate deal to confirm
only 19 of President Obama’s 38 pending judicial nominees before adjourning the
110th Congress:
“This deal
provides little to cheer about. While we’re pleased that our federal courts
will have 19 new highly qualified judges to help address the growing judicial
vacancy crisis, the fact is that each and every one of the 38 nominees approved
by the Senate Judiciary Committee deserved an up-or-down confirmation vote by
the full Senate.
For two
years, the Senate Republican minority has shamefully abused Senate rules to
delay and deny confirmation votes to scores of well-qualified individuals
seeking to serve their country in the judicial and executive branches of
government. The naked partisanship of these maneuvers is demonstrated by the
many lopsided votes in favor of those nominees who managed to outlast this
gauntlet of obstruction.
The
disrespect shown to our federal courts has been beyond disturbing. Some
nominees have been forced to put their lives and careers on hold for more than
a year. But the greatest cost has been to justice itself and the people of our
nation who depend on the federal courts to enforce their rights and settle
their disputes. Courtrooms without judges are simply incapable of dispensing
justice.
The civil
and human rights coalition is especially troubled by the number of highly
qualified women and minority nominees who have been denied confirmation votes
during the 110th Congress. To his credit, President Obama’s
nominations recognize that our federal courts are a long way from reflecting
the growing diversity of our nation. Closing that gap should be a priority for
the Senate as well.
Despite the
record of the last two years, The Leadership Conference is confident that most
– if not all – of the nominees denied a confirmation vote in this Congress can
be confirmed in the 112th Congress. Highly qualified nominees such
as Goodwin Liu, Edward Chen and Louis Butler deserve to have an up-or-down
confirmation vote on the Senate floor. We urge the White House to renominate
them and for senators of both political parties to put partisanship aside and
give advice and consent to the president’s nominees. It’s their responsibility
to a functioning justice system and to our Constitution.”
###
Wade
Henderson is the president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and
Human Rights, a coalition charged by its diverse membership of more than 200
national organizations to promote and protect the rights of all persons in the
United States. The Leadership Conference works toward an America as good as its
ideals. For more information on The Leadership Conference and its 200-plus
member organizations, visit www.civilrights.org.