In response to the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on the nomination of Steven Grasz to a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, People For the American Way Executive Vice President Marge Baker issued the following statement:

“If you want to see how recklessly Republicans are rushing to pack the courts with Donald Trump’s unfit nominees, Steven Grasz is exhibit A. It’s hard to imagine a more damning assessment than the one he received from the American Bar Association which voted unanimously to rate him ‘Unqualified’ for the federal bench. Their review made clear not just that his behavior was ‘gratuitously rude’ but that there’s no evidence he’d be able to put aside his personal views as a federal judge. This is someone who neutral observers agree would be a biased partisan in a black robe—yet Senator Grassley and the Republicans still seem intent on pushing his nomination forward. It’s clear that neither Senator Grassley nor Grasz’s home state senator on the judiciary committee, Ben Sasse, have any interest in being the grownups in this situation. They may talk a good game, but when faced with an actual opportunity to stand up for the integrity of our courts, they instead throw in with Donald Trump’s unqualified picks every time.”

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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