“Kirsch’s nomination is especially significant for communities of color who make up 30 percent of the population within the Seventh Circuit but are not represented by any judges of color.”
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, People For the American Way President Ben Jealous issued the following statement after the Senate voted to advance the nomination of Thomas L. Kirsch II to the U.S. Court of Appeals Seventh Circuit, as a replacement for Amy Coney Barrett, who was nominated to the Supreme Court after the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg:
“On the same day that the Electoral College formalized the firing of Donald Trump, Mitch McConnell and the Senate Judiciary Committee are pushing through another of his lame duck judicial nominees. And they are doing this at a time when families and communities struggle amid the pandemic with no relief in sight. Kirsch’s nomination is especially significant for communities of color who make up 30 percent of the population within the Seventh Circuit but are not represented by any judges of color. When Obama was president, Republicans spent a year blocking a highly qualified Black nominee to this court. Now, with Trump’s five nominations to this court, the Seventh Circuit has become the nation’s only all-white circuit. He ends his term as the only president in nearly half a century not to name even one African American to a federal circuit court. The Republican Party has rejected diversity as a core value in our judicial system and shown a lack of concern about the needs of those Americans who rely on fair and just courts. Senators must oppose Thomas Kirsch’s Seventh Circuit confirmation.”
About People For the American Way
People For the American Way is a progressive advocacy organization founded to fight right-wing extremism and build a democratic society that implements the ideals of freedom, equality, opportunity and justice for all. We encourage civic participation, defend fundamental rights, and fight to dismantle systemic barriers to equitable opportunity. Learn more: https://www.pfaw.org.