Statement of Wade Henderson on Pryor Nomination

Washington – In response to Judge William Pryor getting voted out of the Judiciary Committee on a party line vote, Wade Henderson, Executive Director of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, the nation’s oldest, largest, and most diverse civil and human rights coalition issued the following statement:

“To say that Judge William Pryor is far out of the mainstream is an understatement. The Republican Party’s effort to pack the courts with judges who seek to impose their extreme ideology through their legal decisions is outrageous and must be opposed on the floor of the U.S. Senate.

Judge Pryor has devoted himself to curtailing the rights and freedoms of ordinary Americans. From employment discrimination to regulations enabling Americans to breathe clean air and drink clean water, Judge Pryor has aligned himself with employers and polluters against ordinary Americans.

Clearly, Senator Frist is moving forward on President Bush’s out-of-the-mainstream judges in anticipation of triggering “the nuclear option,” – a tactic to break the Senate’s 200-year old rules. The Republican leadership’s effort to eliminate the checks and balances enshrined by America’s founding fathers is another political step in grabbing complete control the U.S. government.”