When the 2020 presidential primary began to take shape, PFAW began urging presidential primary candidates to highlight the importance of fair-minded constitutionalists serving on our federal courts. Especially as Trump’s narrow-minded, elitist judicial nominees are being confirmed at breakneck pace—and rolling back the clock on our rights just as quickly—our country needs judges who understand the impact the law has on all of us.
Since then, we’ve lifted those candidates up as they’ve underscored the importance of fair courts on the campaign trail—and we’re pleased to see Elizabeth Warren show support for our #VoteTheCourts2020 campaign while outlining her own plan.
Our country’s justice system is not working. Too many judges use their power to protect the rich instead of hard-working Americans. @peoplefor‘s #VoteTheCourts2020 campaign is about making our courts fair and our democracy strong—and @ewarren is in this fight all the way. pic.twitter.com/Dlqd3HfLIZ
— Iowa for Warren (@IAforWarren) July 26, 2019
In a video Warren’s Iowa campaign team shared on July 26, she said:
“I want to talk about the importance of our courts and who sits on them, and tell you why I support the #VoteTheCourts2020 campaign … [Trump-appointed judges] all have one thing in common—a willingness to put a thumb on the scales for the rich and the powerful at everyone else’s expense … We need to fight back.
“I’ll appoint fair minded constitutionalist judges instead of far-right extremists; judges who will value justice for all, not just for the rich and the powerful; judges who will defend equality for the most vulnerable among us, not roll back constitutional rights for huge swaths of our country.”
Warren’s cogent promise is a prime example of what we hope to see from every candidate—an explicit commitment to nominating fair-minded judges. Especially in advance of the July 30 and July 31 debates, progressives need to do all we can to encourage other candidates to do the same.
Want to help? Tweet us using hashtag #VoteTheCourts2020 when you see candidates emphasize the courts on their websites and in their social media and their speeches.