Call to Action: July 5, 2018
NO CONFIRMATION HEARINGS WHILE TRUMP UNDER INVESTIGATION
Trump plans to name his Supreme Court nominee Monday, and McConnell is pushing for a speedy confirmation. Whoever Trump announces will be an out-of-the-mainstream extremist who’ll threaten settled rights most Americans cherish—privacy (including abortion rights and surveillance of citizens), health care, religious liberty, voting rights, immigrant rights, and marriage equality.
While many Dems find confirming before Midterm elections inappropriate, Trump’s shaky legitimacy is a more compelling reason to wait:
- Lost popular vote by almost 3 million ballots in an election affected by Russian meddling
- Power derives from the Senate’s anti-democratic nature, where the 49 Dems represent almost 40,000,000 more Americans than the 51 GOPs
- Subject of ongoing Mueller investigation
- Lawsuits claiming violations of the emoluments clause
- History of demanding loyalty from appointees
- Conflict of interest created: issues raised by Mueller probe and other anti-Trump actions likely to come before Supreme Court: Is the investigation unconstitutional? Can the president be subpoenaed/forced to testify/self-pardon/be criminally indicted/end or interfere with DOJ investigation?
If the Senate doesn’t wait and Mueller implicates Trump, undoing the results of an illegitimate choice becomes impossible.
The Supreme Court is the last check on Trump’s excesses. The Senate must postpone all confirmation hearings until the Mueller investigation complete. Citizens can accept nothing less.
**ACTION ONE: CALL OUR SENATORS**
SAMPLE SCRIPT: “My name is [–] and I’m a constituent and voter from [city], Oregon [zip code]. I am calling because the Republican Senate will be trying to rush through Trump’s nominee for the Supreme Court before the Midterms. This nominee will be an out-of-the-mainstream extremist. If the Mueller investigation finds that Trump colluded with Russia or worse, his Supreme Court choice would be tainted, and the entire Court would lose legitimacy. Please commit to rejecting any Trump nominee until Robert Mueller completes his investigation and releases his report and to using all means available—including SHUTTING DOWN the Senate—to ensure that, until then, no nominee receives a hearing before the Judiciary Committee or is brought to the floor. Thank you.”
**ACTION TWO: REMEMBER FOR THE MIDTERMS**
The Republican Senate will be trying to rush through Trump’s nominee for the Supreme Court before the Midterms, ignoring the fact that Trump is presently being investigated for collusion with the Russians and obstruction of justice. His nominee will be an out-of-the-mainstream extremist whose appointment would threaten settled rights most Americans cherish—like privacy (including abortion rights and surveillance of citizens), health care, religious liberty, voting rights, immigrant rights, and marriage equality. If these things trouble you . . .
Resist!
**ACTION THREE: TAKE ACTION**
Make sure that you and everyone you know is registered to vote. The 2018 elections will be the most important in our lifetimes. To save democracy and protect our commitment to a just society, no one can afford to sit on the sidelines. Now is the time to:
- Learn about the candidates running for office at every level
- Learn about the issues that will be on the November ballot
- Do what you can to build the Blue Wave
GET UP! STAND INDIVISIBLE!
KEEP THE PRESSURE ON!
SOURCES:
- https://thinkprogress.org/the-horrifying-consequences-of-justice-kennedys-retirement-90c450d9d106/
- https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/29/opinion/a-better-reason-to-delay-kennedys-replacement.html
- https://www.thedailybeast.com/robert-mueller-must-finish-investigating-before-trump-gets-his-supreme-court-pick
- https://www.marketwatch.com/story/trumps-attacks-on-independent-judges-cloud-supreme-court-pick-2018-07-02
- https://www.npr.org/2018/06/30/624701329/the-russia-investigations-big-implications-for-the-new-supreme-court-justice
- https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/trump-supreme-court-russia-investigation_us_5b351d00e4b0b745f17c3ffc