Oppose Judicial Activism Against People With Disabilities

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Nov. 5, 2003—The Bazelon Center urgently needs your help to stop the confirmation of Janice Rogers Brown to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia – a lifetime appointment that would pose a serious, ongoing threat to vital protections for people with disabilities.

• Update: Filibuster Blocks Controversial Nominee (11/20/03)

Justice Brown’s fundamental opposition to New Deal-era protections is well documented. She has stated that such policies are “a license to steal, a warrant for oppression."

Justice Brown has consistently made clear that she will use the bench to bypass law and precedent to impose her own radical ideological beliefs. In fact, in its editorial opposing her nomination, the Washington Post called Janice Rogers Brown “one of the most unapologetically ideological nominees of either party in many years” and noted that she had been rebuked by her fellow justices for seeking to impose her "personal theory of political economy on the people of a democratic state."

Given her history of judicial activism, Brown’s appointment to the federal court that is viewed by many as the principal federal regulatory overseer would pose a grave threat to protections like Medicaid and Social Security benefits, which are crucial to many people with disabilities.

Help us defeat Janice Rogers Brown by taking action now. Americans want—and deserve—a fair and impartial judiciary that will uphold the rights and protections people with disabilities and others have fought so hard to achieve.

Take Action Now

Contact your Senators today and tell them to reject Janice Rogers Browns’ appointment to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. Tomorrow, the Senate Judiciary Committee is expected to consider the nomination. If approved by the committee, a vote by the full Senate could come as early as next week.

Contacting Your Senators

• By Phone: Senators can be reached through the capitol switchboard at 202-224-3121.
• By E-mail: Send a message to your Senators using the form below or visit http://www.congress.org. Remember to identify yourself as a constituent.
  

Reaching members of the Senate Judiciary is especially important. If your Senator is listed below, please make sure to contact them before tomorrow’s committee vote:

Orrin G. Hatch (Chairman, Republican-Utah)

Patrick J. Leahy (Ranking Democratic Member-Vermont)

Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa)

Edward M. Kennedy (D-Massachusetts)

Arlen Specter (R-Pennsylvania)

Joseph R. Biden, Jr. (D-Delaware)

Jon Kyl (R-Arizona)

Herbert Kohl (D-Wisconsin)

Mike DeWine (R-Ohio)

Dianne Feinstein (D-California)

Jeff Sessions (R- Alabama)

Russell D. Feingold (D-Wisconsin)

Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina)

Charles E. Schumer (D-New York)

Larry Craig (R-Idaho)

Richard J. Durbin (D-Illinois)

Saxby Chambliss (R-Georgia)

John Edwards (D-North Carolina)

John Cornyn (R-Texas)