The Leadership Conference Statement on the Nomination of Congressman Gaetz
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: [email protected]
WASHINGTON — Maya Wiley, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, released the following statement after President-elect Donald Trump announced his intention to nominate Rep. Matt Gaetz to serve as attorney general of the United States:
“The Department of Justice is a civil rights agency, and the attorney general is one of the most critical civil rights posts in all of government. It is unsurprising — yet still a horrifying danger to the rights of all people in America that are foundational to our democracy — that the president-elect would choose someone who has been accused of racism by lawmakers in his home state and who has dedicated his political life to denigrating and opposing many of our civil rights enshrined in the laws he would be swearing to uphold. This is in addition to being investigated for crimes that are themselves violative of human rights laws and to being subjected to an ethics probe for sexual misconduct and drug usage, which would have been disqualifying in other administrations of both parties despite the fact that he was not convicted. He would be overseeing U.S. prisons after expressing admiration for human rights-violating prisons in El Salvador. The department also reviews cases for clemency, and Gaetz reportedly sought a pardon for himself related to the insurrection that the DOJ investigated. He has expressed hostility to people of color, and it seems unlikely that he will be concerned with injustices based on race in the criminal-legal system — therefore undermining the clemency process for ordinary people versus those the president-elect may seek to protect.
“Trump’s previous attorneys general deeply tarnished the reputation of the DOJ — an agency that has been called the ‘crown jewel’ of the federal government because of its historic commitment to integrity, independence, and civil rights enforcement. Today the need for the continued robust civil rights enforcement that has occurred during the Biden administration has never been more crucial for this country. For the civil rights community, this is non-negotiable: We need an attorney general who is committed to the job and who will enforce our nation’s civil rights laws. We need an attorney general who will promote racial equality, fight discriminatory barriers for the most vulnerable among us, and vigorously enforce the landmark civil rights laws — including the Voting Rights Act of 1965 — that our coalition fought to pass. And critically, we need an attorney general to stand up to a president who does not respect the role of the Justice Department as an independent guardian of the rule of law. Based on what we know about his record in Congress and his public statements, we have no reason to believe that Congressman Gaetz will be that attorney general.
“As we’ve done for decades, The Leadership Conference will fiercely oppose any nominee to lead the DOJ who we believe does not possess the independence necessary to serve as the nation’s top law enforcement officer. And while we will do a full evaluation of his civil rights record to educate the public and ensure the congressional record accurately reflects his hostility to fundamental rights and freedoms, we won’t delay saying this: Congressman Gaetz should never be confirmed as attorney general of the United States.”
The Leadership Conference documented the Trump administration’s across-the-board assault on civil and human rights from 2017-2021. That timeline, sorted both chronologically and by issue, is available here.
The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights is a coalition charged by its diverse membership of more than 240 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 member organizations, visit www.civilrights.org.
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