Please
sign the petition below urging Senator Kennedy to clear his name
in what appears to be a gross abuse of power to "obstruct justice"...
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Did
Senator Kennedy 'Obstruct Justice'?
Sign the Petition Below
Urging
Senator Kennedy to Come Clean on Memogate
On
November 14, 2003, the Wall Street Journal published an internal
U.S. Senate memorandum dated April 17, 2002, written to Senator
Edward Kennedy (D-MA) by one of his staff members. The memo details
a request by Elaine R. Jones, President and Director-Counsel of
the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund, to delay Senate action
on all judicial nominees to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th
Circuit until the then-pending University of Michigan affirmative
action cases were decided by that court. This request was anything
but innocuous, as Ms. Jones was participating as Counsel in the
Universitys undergraduate case.
"The
thinking is," according to the memos author, "that
the current 6th Circuit will sustain the affirmative
action program, but if a new judge
is confirmed before the
case is decided, that new judge will be able
to review the
case and vote on it." Despite questioning the propriety of
delaying action on nominees "based on the resolution of a particular
case," and fully aware "that the 6th Circuit
is in dire need of new judges," two of Senator Kennedys
staffers went on to recommend that a confirmation hearing be postponed
on at least one nominee to that court, Judge Julia Smith Gibbons.
While
it is clear to us that Ms. Jones crossed all ethical and professional
boundaries when she made the request, Senator Kennedy has refused
to discuss what actions he or anyone else took to fulfill Ms. Jones'
request. All we do know is that Judge Gibbons was not confirmed
until after the 6th Circuit ruled in favor of Jones' position.
Please
sign the petition below urging Senator Kennedy to clear his name
in what appears to be a gross abuse of power to "obstruct justice"
in one of the most important civil rights cases in more than 25
years.
Dear
Senator Kennedy:
We,
the undersigned, urge you to come clean with the facts, details
and all relevant memoranda and correspondence regarding your actions
resulting from the unethical request made by Ms. Elaine R. Jones,
President and Director-Counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense and Education
Fund, to delay action on all 6th Circuit judicial nominees
until the then-pending University of Michigan affirmative action
cases were decided by that court.
Ms.
Jones request, detailed in an April 17, 2002, memorandum written
to you by one of your staff members, resulted in a recommendation,
also included in the memo, by two of your staff members to delay
a confirmation hearing on at least one "uncontroversial"
nominee to the 6th Circuit -- Judge Julia Smith Gibbons.
In
the interest of restoring the public trust in your constitutional
role as a United States Senator in the judicial confirmation process,
we submit the following facts:
- Elaine
R. Jones was participating as Counsel in the then-pending case
before the 6th Circuit representing the defendant-intervenors
in support of the Universitys undergraduate affirmative
action admissions policy;
- Elaine
R. Jones, contacted your office requesting that you postpone action
on all 6th Circuit nominees until the then-pending
University of Michigan affirmative action cases had been decided
by that court;
- Based
on Ms. Jones request, two of your staff members made a recommendation
to postpone a confirmation hearing on at least one nominee to
the 6th Circuit;
- The
very two staff members making the recommendation questioned the
propriety "of scheduling hearings based on the outcome of
a particular case;"
- The
very two staff members making the recommendation recognized that
the "6th Circuit is in dire need of additional
judges;"
- The
public trust regarding your Advice and Consent role
in the judicial confirmation process as a member of the United
States Senate appears to have been violated;
- The
public has a right to know the details of any action you took
as a result of the request by Ms. Jones and recommendation by
members of your staff;
- You
have failed to speak publicly or provide any details to the public
regarding this matter, despite ample opportunities;
We
respectfully request that you, Senator Kennedy, fulfill your obligation
to the public to release all details and documents related to Elaine
R. Jones and her request, as well as all details and documents related
to all actions taken or contemplated as a result of the recommendation
of your staff members, so that you may clear your name of any unethical
or potentially illegal conduct you may have taken to stack the judicial
deck in Ms. Jones favor in the most important civil rights
cases in more than a generation.
Sincerely,
To
include your name on this petition, please submit the information
below.
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Center for Individual Freedom respects your privacy. We will not display
your name and/or personal information on this website. We will include
your name and information on the petition that is delivered to Senator
Kennedy.
[Posted
March 18, 2004]
Number of people who have already
signed this petition:
4712
[This count is updated
weekly]
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