Action Alert: Call Your Senators: No SCOTUS Confirmation Before Inauguration
September 22, 2020
We must mobilize immediately to ensure that there is no vote to appoint a new Supreme Court justice until a new administration is in place – not before the election, and not in the lame duck session. Contact your Senators and demand that your voice be heard: No confirmation before inauguration!
We wish to honor Justice Ginsburg, and her work as a feminist champion and icon. Her last request, dictated to her granddaughter just days before she passed away was as follows: ”My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed.”
A SCOTUS appointment now goes against all norms. Republican pressure is on to push through yet another conservative Supreme Court Justice – this would be the third appointee from Donald Trump. It is a matter of principle and former Senate norms that any court nominee not be considered so close to a presidential election.
But we know Senate GOP leadership will not honor that. In 2016 they stole a Supreme Court appointment from President Obama in refusing to vote on his nominee, Merrick Garland, for 293 days. We have seen that the GOP leadership are hypocrites and will do everything possible to install the most conservative nominee they can find. They have already placed 216 judges in federal courts around the country – every single one of them an opponent of abortion rights.
The Stakes Are High. Not only abortion rights, equal pay and paid leave are at stake, but the Affordable Care Act, birth control mandate, pre-existing conditions insurance coverage, voting rights, climate change, a science-based response to the pandemic, consumer protections, and countless progressive issues are at risk.
WE NEED AT LEAST FOUR REPUBLICANS TO OPPOSE HOLDING A VOTE BEFORE THE ELECTION.
Senators Lisa Murkowski (AK) and Susan Collins (ME) have already publicly said that they oppose holding a vote so close to a presidential election – and we must hold them to it.
Prospects are very good for the Democrats to take back control of the Senate. We have an opportunity to derail a Senate vote: Incumbents who are in tight re-election races are vulnerable and may oppose holding a vote at this time. These include Sens. Cory Gardner (CO), Susan Collins (ME), Martha McSally (AZ), Steve Daines (MT), David Perdue (GA), and Dan Sullivan (AK).
TAKE ACTION NOW: CONTACT YOUR SENATORS TODAY!
Sample phone script:
Hello, my name is ___ and I am a voter in [state].
I am asking you to oppose holding a vote on the next Supreme Court justice at this time. It is too close to a presidential election and traditional norms hold that the determination be made by the candidate who wins the election and becomes president. I will be watching your actions on this critically important matter.
Capitol Switchboard, 202-224-3121 for Senate Directory or check: https://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
Sample Twitter post:
[@Senator’s Twitter Handle], as a [state] voter, I’m asking you to oppose holding a vote on the next #SCOTUS justice. It’s too close to the election, the candidate who wins should make the determination. I will be watching your actions on this critically important matter. #JusticeForAllNOW
116th Congress Twitter Handles via School Based Health Alliance: https://www.sbh4all.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/116th-Congress-Twitter-Handles.pdf
Sign NOW’s Petition:
Join the National Organization for Women (NOW) and sign the petition to demand #JusticeForAllNOW: No SCOTUS Confirmation Before Inauguration!