Post by bot on Nov 20, 2016 17:24:19 GMT -5
Hoyer Statement on the Nominations of Sen. Jeff Sessions and Rep. Mike Pompeo to National Security Positions within the Trump Administration
WASHINGTON, DC – House Democratic Whip Steny H. Hoyer (MD) released the following statement today in response to reports that President-Elect Donald Trump has nominated Sen. Jeff Sessions and Rep. Mike Pompeo to national security positions within the incoming Administration:
“President-Elect Trump’s nomination of Sen. Jeff Sessions to be Attorney General of the United States will demand the same rigorous scrutiny that was brought to bear by the Republican-controlled Senate Judiciary Committee in 1986, when it rejected his nomination for a federal district judgeship. The Committee’s decision was based largely on well-documented accounts that he had engaged in racially charged comments and actions while serving as a U.S. attorney in Alabama in the early 1980s – accounts that thirty years later have still not been refuted. There can be no justification for confirming any nominee, for any position, who has made disparaging remarks about minorities and immigrants. It must never be in doubt that our Attorney General will ensure that all people living in the United States are treated equally under our laws – regardless of race, national origin, religion, disability, gender, or sexual orientation.
“Make no mistake about it: equal treatment under law is not a privilege our government confers at its discretion. It is, quite simply, a foundational principle of our Constitution, one that must always be respected in thought, word, and deed by any elected, confirmed, or appointed officer of the United States. History will be watching the Senate Judiciary Committee in the months ahead. The Attorney General – widely regarded as among the four most important cabinet members – wields an extraordinary array of powers affecting the civil liberties and civil rights of every individual living in our country. The next Attorney General will lead a department that, among other critical duties, represents the United States in virtually all legal matters, renders legal advice and opinions to the President and the executive branch, enforces a wide range of civil rights statutes – including such landmark laws as the Voting Rights Act and Americans with Disabilities Act – and oversees the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
“With regard to the nomination of Rep. Mike Pompeo to serve as Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, the same principles must apply. The Senate Intelligence Committee must ensure that he is questioned about his views, background, and approach with at least as much intensity as Rep. Pompeo brought to the hearings on the terrorist incident in Benghazi, a shamefully partisan endeavor that he supported. We must ensure that only the most impeccably qualified nominees are considered and confirmed for the highest offices in our land.”