20,000 signatures reached
To: President Biden and the U.S. Senate
Do Whatever It Takes to Confirm Judges in the Lame Duck!
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With only a few weeks left before the new Congress and incoming Trump administration, it is now more urgent than ever that Democratic senators do whatever it takes to confirm judges in the lame duck.
The Senate must prioritize these confirmations, as it's the last chance to confirm judges we know will protect ordinary people’s rights before Trump and Senate Republicans start stacking our courts with extremists again. The Senate needs to be creative in their efforts. Whether it's working weekends or staying late–judges must be a priority.
The Senate must prioritize these confirmations, as it's the last chance to confirm judges we know will protect ordinary people’s rights before Trump and Senate Republicans start stacking our courts with extremists again. The Senate needs to be creative in their efforts. Whether it's working weekends or staying late–judges must be a priority.
Why is this important?
Over the next four years, roughly 250 circuit and district court judges are, or will become, eligible for senior status. On top of the current and known future vacancies in states with two Republican senators, there is a very real chance that Trump will get to appoint another 200+ lower-court judges. Not to mention the fact that, depending on retirements at the highest level of our judicial system, he will also likely get to appoint at least two more Supreme Court justices.
The effects of this cannot be understated. We’ve already seen the damage the current Trump justices and judges have unleashed on our civil rights. For instance:
- All three Trump Supreme Court justices were part of the majority in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, which overturned Roe v. Wade.
- Judge James Ho (5th Cir.) was part of the Fifth Circuit’s opinion that would have sharply curtailed access to mifepristone, the abortion pill. He also wrote a dissent in the case, where he would have gone even further than the majority opinion in some respects.
- Trump’s circuit court judges have repeatedly authored or joined anti-worker opinions, including cases which made it harder to file discrimination claims.
There is a very real possibility in four years' time that a majority of the justices and roughly half of all active lower-court judges will be Trump appointees. This is our last chance to act to confirm judges who will help protect our fundamental rights and serve as the last line of defense to uphold our nation’s laws and the Constitution.