On the first Tuesday of the new year, 15 of us — mostly Democrats — dropped by the Denver office of Sen. Michael Bennet to communicate our expectations that he would oppose the nomination of Jeff Sessions as Attorney General. Moreover, we explained that we expect him to oppose all nominees that Trump might put forward who are ideologically opposed to the missions of the agencies they wish to lead.
Even though our visit was unannounced, the two staff members who met with us were very gracious in making space for our group and listening to our concerns.
However, during the discussion it became clear that Sen. Bennet sees his style of leadership as “working behind the scenes,” and the Democratic constituents in the room were dissatisfied with that approach. The consensus was that these are not normal times, and the Trump nominees represent a very real threat to our democracy and the safety of its people. We explained that the senator needs to take a strong public stance in opposing these threats, and that he should work to recruit other senators to join him.
We believe we will receive a response from the senator in the next couple of days. I hope he does not disappoint us, as most of us worked our asses off to get him reelected.
We plan to continue these visits frequently, with a special near-term focus on the various confirmation hearings. We are also working on growing our numbers.
Below are copies of the press release we sent out in conjunction with our visit and the letter we left with the staffers. Maybe the documents will be useful to others here when they communicate with their own members of congress.
The press release:
Hold release until Jan. 3, 2017
Coloradans Tell Sen. Bennet: Oppose Trump's Attorney General Nominee
Local voters paid a visit to the Denver office of U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet today to encourage opposition to Jeff Sessions, the first and possibly the worst of Donald Trump's nominees for cabinet positions. The group asked Bennet to take the lead in building a coalition of senators to vote against confirmation of Sessions as Attorney General, citing the nominee's long history of opposition to the core mission of the department he wishes to lead. In conjunction with the Working Family Party's #ResistTrumpTuesdays effort, the group vowed to continue their discussions with Colorado's senators about opposing Sessions and other nominees.
Denver, Colorado, Tuesday January 3, 2017
This afternoon, a group of metro-area residents dropped in on the Denver office of U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet to explain their deep reservations about Sen. Jeff Sessions, Donald Trump's nominee to be the nation's Attorney General. Inspired by the Working Family Party's #ResistTrumpTuesdays movement, the group asked Bennet to build a coalition in the senate opposing confirmation of Sessions to the post. They cited numerous concerns about the nominee's record of obstructing the normal mission of the Justice Department, including his reluctance to crack down on hate crimes, his tolerance of voter suppression, and his resistance to enforcement of equal protections under the law.
The Attorney General is responsible for enforcing the nation's laws without prejudice, but Sessions's racial insensitivity extends as far back as his confirmation hearings for a judicial post in 1986. In that year, the Senate Judiciary Committee rejected his nomination, in part because of his hostility to civil rights enforcement and his affinity for the Ku Klux Klan.
More recently, Sessions has been affiliated with white nationalists and hate groups in opposing bipartisan immigration reform, and he has received awards for his outspoken views from known anti-Muslim hate groups such as the David Horowitz Freedom Center and Frank Gaffney’s Center for Security Policy.
The nominee's long history of opposing measures to prevent hate crimes raises doubts about his commitment to enforce existing federal laws and abide by court rulings. At a time when incidents of hate-motivated violence are on the rise, it sends the wrong message to nominate someone who was such a vocal opponent of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act and who has been so dismissive of efforts to extend equal rights to LGBT citizens in marriage and in military service.
One of the most important functions of the Justice Department is protecting voting rights – a mission that Sessions appears to be against. He has been a loud proponent of restrictive voter ID laws that would prevent many eligible citizens from casting their votes. He has even said he considers the federal Voting Rights Act to be "intrusive" in its purpose of protecting eligible minority voters.
Beyond the examples mentioned above, Sessions has shown disregard for laws advancing women's rights to equal pay and access to reproductive health services, as well as measures addressing violence against women. He has even been a vocal critic of including children with disabilities in mainstream education and ensuring that people with disabilities have access to community services.
Jeff Sessions is one of several poor choices that Donald Trump has nominated for cabinet positions. Like many of them, Sessions appears to be opposed to the core mission of the department he hopes to lead. In coming weeks, we will be visiting our U.S. senators frequently and asking them to oppose the confirmation of any nominees who are ideological extremists – which currently appears to include nearly all of them.
The Senate Judiciary Committee is scheduled to hold hearings regarding the confirmation of Sen. Sessions on Jan. 10 and 11.
The #ResistTrumpTuesdays hashtag represents a nationwide movement of citizens who are committed to visiting and phoning their members of congress every Tuesday to express concerns about Donald Trump's dangerous policies and his many conflicts of interest.
Contact: [our person's name, phone and email]
End
The letter:
January, 3, 2017 3:30 pm
Denver Metro Office
Senator Michael Bennet 1127 Sherman St., Suite 150 Denver, CO 80203
Dear Senator Bennet,
As a collation of activist groups and concerned citizens, organized through The Working Families Party we call on you to reject Donald Trump’s nomination of Attorney General designate Jefferson B. Sessions. We ask you to publicly renounce Donald Trump’s nominee and to actively encourage all the members of the Senate to do likewise.
These are not normal times. Jeff Sessions is not a normal nominee and his confirmation hearing should not be approached in the normal manner.
There is a very real sense of urgency motivating our meeting with you, because Senator Chuck Grassley, GOP chairman of the Judiciary Committee, is attempting to rush through the Sessions confirmation hearing beginning as soon as the second week of January.
The Attorney General of the United States is the chief law enforcement officer of the government of “We the People,” which includes people of color, the LGBTQ community, immigrants, religious minorities, the poor as well as the least, the last, the lost of our country. These are people for whom Jeff Sessions has a well documented disdain. If any segment, group, or person in our society is left unprotected then we are all at risk of losing our expectation of living in a safe and democratic country.
The Attorney General of the United States is the “Guardian of the public interest” through the rule of law. Jefferson B. Sessions is uniquely unqualified for this position.
The following examples of the positions, beliefs and character of Jeff Session should be disqualifying for a nominee for Attorney General of the United States:
- Jeff Sessions grudgingly voted for an extension of the 1965 Voting Rights Act in 2006 and has since expressed regret for that vote. He has cheered voter ID laws due to his enthusiasm for voter fraud rumors.
- He supports religious freedom laws, an erroneous application of the 1st Amendment that is are constitutionally unsupportable.
- He believes only bad people smoke marijuana. This position stands in opposition of the majority of state laws. It also shows a lack of interest in the effect of antiquated drug laws on our criminal justice system.
- He voted against the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA).
- He has stated that a gay Supreme Court nominee would be of great concern.
- The conservative National Review named Jeff Sessions “Amnesty’s Worst Enemy.”
- He doesn’t believe in the effect of human activity on climate change.
- He is in favor of increasing NSA spying, supports torture and the continued use and expansion of Guantanamo Bay.
- And finally and most telling, Jefferson B. Sessions has previously been denied a judicial appointment by a Republican controlled Senate because of his racist views and comments.
We urge you to resist all efforts to institutionalize hate in our government and specifically to reject Donald Trump’s nominee for Attorney General, Jefferson B. Sessions.
Thank you for taking the time to hear our concerns,
