Perdue Votes for Another Dangerous, Out of Touch Judicial Nominee for Lifetime Appointment

November 14, 2019

Perdue just voted to confirm a federal judge who has faced fierce and bipartisan opposition for “his wildly offensive past writings, his lack of experience and his refusal to answer senators’ questions

Atlanta — Today, Senator David Perdue once again voted to support another dangerous nominee for a lifetime appointment to the federal bench pushed through by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. Perdue’s unwavering support for Steven Menashi’s nomination to the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals even put him at odds with members of his own party, who criticized Menashi’s hostility towards LGBTQ equality and diversity along with his refusal to clearly answer questions before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Menashi’s radical record doesn’t just include offensive statements about LGBTQ rights organizations or the basic merits of diversity. He infamously worked to roll back protections for victims of scammer for-profit colleges at Betsy DeVos’ Education Department, where he also worked to undermine programs meant to combat college sexual assault — work Menashi is still “proud” of. Menashi even wrote an op-ed attacking need-based financial aid for lower income families.

And when asked about his background by the Senate Judiciary Committee during his confirmation hearing, Menashi dodged questions and refused to give straight answers during this critical vetting process. Menashi’s evasive answers even frustrated Republican members of the Committee, but Perdue saw no problem with a lack of clarity and information on Menashi’s long and problematic record.

Menashi may be the latest reckless nominee that Perdue has voted to approve, but he is not the first — and likely won’t be the last. Perdue hasn’t voted against a single judicial nominee under McConnell’s and Trump’s leadership, including five who were rated ‘not qualified’ by the American Bar Association. Again and again, Perdue has failed to be an independent voice for Georgia on confirming nominees, instead letting unqualified and unvetted partisans gain lifetime appointments in our federal courts.

“These federal judges will play a critical role in determining the future of affordable health care, access to higher education, civil rights and so much more, which is why Senator Perdue’s failure to take his responsibility to vet these judges seriously is a clear indication of how little he actually cares about doing what’s right for Georgia,” said Alex Floyd, spokesman for the Democratic Party of Georgia. “Georgians deserve a senator who will thoroughly and carefully examine every nominee to our federal bench, not a rubber stamp for party leaders in Washington and a reckless process to jam through problematic nominees to lifetime appointments.”

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