WASHINGTON—In response to the announcement that the Senate Judiciary Committee will be holding a single hearing on the same day for three controversial Trump nominees, including Amy Coney Barrett and Joan Larsen for lifetime seats on federal appeals courts and Eric Dreiband as head of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, People For the American Way Executive Vice President Marge Baker released the following statement:

“Senator Chuck Grassley’s attempt to ram controversial nominations through the Judiciary Committee makes clear that Republicans are not serious about thoroughly reviewing individuals nominated to critically important seats. Barrett has a long record of opposing reproductive freedom and LGBTQ rights. Larsen has demonstrated a problematic stance on presidential power and her record raises serious concerns about her position on the rights of women and LGBTQ individuals. And Dreiband has spent his entire career attacking the civil rights protections he would be tasked with enforcing.

“The decisions made by judges and the head of DOJ’s Civil Rights Division will profoundly affect the lives of Americans. The Senate Judiciary Committee needs to take seriously its role vetting individuals who will be given that power. This move makes a mockery of the Senate’s responsibility to review nominees to ascertain their fitness to serve. Nothing could be a clearer signal of Republicans’ willingness to ignore their constitutional responsibilities and simply rubberstamp any nominee that President Trump sends them. This is a profoundly troubling move given the enormous impact judges and the DOJ have on our country’s laws. ”

People For the American Way is a progressive advocacy organization founded to fight right-wing extremism and defend constitutional values including free expression, religious liberty, equal justice under the law, and the right to meaningfully participate in our democracy.

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