“The
Judiciary Committee’s party-line vote to advance the nominations of
Allen Winsor and Patrick Wyrick to the Senate floor is just the latest
example of Republican complicity in President Trump’s efforts to pack
the courts and undermine the impartiality of our justice system.
“Mr.
Winsor is a young, conservative ideologue with a track record of
attempting to restrict voting rights, LGBT equality, reproductive
freedom, environmental protection, criminal defendants’ rights, and gun
safety.
“Mr. Wyrick is another young ideological extremist who is unfit to serve on the federal bench. He is just 37 years old and has worked closely with Scott Pruitt to diminish civil and human rights in Oklahoma, including challenging environmental protections, undermining women’s access to health care, and defending a flawed death penalty process, an anti-Muslim referendum, and an anti-workers’ compensation law. Today’s vote on Mr. Wyrick before his American Bar Association rating has come in – a rating that could be Not Qualified given the length of time it is taking for the rating to be completed – is stunning. This is yet another Senate norm that Chairman Grassley has discarded in his haste to rubber stamp President Trump’s extreme nominees.
“The
troubling records of both nominees prove that they should not be
confirmed, and we urge the Senate to reject their nominations. Neither
of these nominees possess the neutrality and fair-mindedness necessary
to serve lifetime positions on the federal bench.”
The Leadership Conference has sent letters to the Senate in opposition to Allen Winsor and Patrick Wyrick.