DiFi explains her vote for Southwick

Over a month ago, I sent Dianne Feinstein an email letting her know how disappointed I was that she chose to  join all Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee to send Leslie Southwick’s nomination to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to the Senate floor.

Just a reminder, 2 decisions that drew outrage from everyone who isn't a right-wing Republican:

In one, the court voted to reinstate a white state employee who had been fired for calling a black co-worker a "good ol' n-." In the other case, the court upheld a decision to remove an 8-year-old child from her bisexual mother, in a ruling that referred to the woman's "homosexual lifestyle." Southwick also signed another judge's separate opinion that described homosexuality as a choice that carries consequences.

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Additionally, Dick Durbin, who sits on the Judiciary Committee, had this to say afterwards:

At yesterday’s confirmation hearing, Sen. Richard Durbin (D-Ill.) noted that in his earler  testimony, Southwick couldn’t recall one time when he had ruled in favor of a worker or consumer. And that, said Durbin, “was a softball question.”

So I wrote her (over a month ago) and finally received the following response:

Thank you for writing to me regarding the nomination of Judge Leslie H. Southwick to be a United States Circuit Judge for the Fifth Circuit. I appreciate your taking the time to share your views, and I welcome the opportunity to respond.

          The Constitution requires the President to nominate Federal judges by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. As a member of the Senate who also serves on the Judiciary Committee, I take my position with regard to reviewing judicial nominations very seriously.

          When I review a nominee, I look to find candidates who have the necessary intellect, analytical skills, and legal experience. In addition, the candidate should be able to demonstrate a commitment to applying the law fairly and impartially. You can be assured that I perform my due diligence with regard to any nominee that comes before the Judiciary Committee.

As you may already know, on August 2, Judge Southwick was voted out of the Judiciary Committee favorably by a vote of 10-9.  I voted in favor of sending his nomination to the full Senate. Please know that I carefully considered the concerns you raised.  However, after thorough review of Judge Southwick's record and after a lengthy meeting with him, I decided that he has the qualifications that I mentioned above to be a judge. While he is not the nominee that I would have chosen for this seat, I concluded that his views were not outside the judicial mainstream. He also has an exemplary record of service to our nation, including a one-year tour of combat duty in Iraq, which he volunteered for even though he was already over 50 years of age.

Once again, thank you for your letter. I hope you will continue to keep me informed on matters of importance to you. Best regards.

Sincerely yours,
Dianne Feinstein
       United States Senator

I'm still appalled.  The only acknoweldgement that Leslie Southwick is a racist, homophobic pig is couched in the phrase, "Please know that I carefully considered the concerns you raised."  No she didn't, because if she did she wouldn't have voted to send him on to the Senate for confirmation.

I'll let her know that I believe the reasons she voted for him are explained very well by Christy Hardin Smith at Firedoglake.