Subject: Today from the Constitutional Responsibility Project
From: Natalie Raps <[email-masked]>
To: Natalie Raps <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 17 May 2016 22:06:00 +0000

Today in the fight for a full and functioning Supreme Court: On the 62nd anniversary of the Brown v. Board of Education decision, Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD) and leaders in education call for an end to Senate Republicans’ Supreme Court obstruction, editorial boards continue to weigh in on the implications of a sustained Supreme Court vacancy – calling the Supreme Court “crippled,” former associate justice John Paul Stevens calls Senate inaction on Garland 'unfortunate', and with one less justice, the Court is on track to have the lightest case load in seven decades.

Sen. Cardin, Presidents of American Federation of Teachers, National Education Association, Washington Teachers Union call on Senate GOP to take action on Supreme Court vacancy
Today, on the 62nd anniversary of the Brown v. Board of Education decision, #WeNeedNine held a press conference with Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Randi Weingarten, President of the American Federation of Teachers, Lily Eskelsen García, President of the National Education Association, Elizabeth A. Davis, President Washington Teachers Union, and Jim Leonard, U.S. government teacher at Wilson High School in DC to demand that Senate Republicans move forward with Chief Judge Merrick Garland’s nomination to the Supreme Court. Watch footage from the event HERE<https://www.facebook.com/weneednine/videos/1784552261766298/>.

Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD): “The current Republican strategy of obstruction ignores the Constitution and hundreds of years of American history. This is not how our system is supposed to operate.  Without a full nine-member court, the Senate risks creating a constitutional crisis if the Court continues to reach a 4-4 deadlock on major decisions. ‎ We need nine.”

Lily Eskelsen García, President of the National Education Association: “Few U.S. Supreme Court decisions have impacted our nation’s history as much as the Brown v. Board landmark decision… Today, the stakes remain high at the Supreme Court, evidenced by recent cases that highlight the real and practical implications of the Court’s decisions on issues ranging from voting rights to the rights of American workers to organize. In order for the Court to continue to serve the American people at full strength, educators are demanding the Senate to do its job, put students ahead of partisan politics, and to hold a hearing and a vote on President Obama’s nominee for the United States Supreme Court, Judge Merrick Garland.”
Randi Weingarten, President of the American Federation of Teachers: “We filed an amicus brief in support of Brown. And in 1957, we expelled the locals that refused to integrate, losing 14 percent of our membership in the process. We fight for equal access and racial justice because it’s the right thing, not because it’s the easy thing. It’s time for Senate Republicans to do the right thing for our country, end this partisan blockade, and hold hearings to return the Supreme Court to its full strength.”

The Crippled Supreme Court.
The editorial board of the New York Times<http://mobile.nytimes.com/2016/05/17/opinion/the-crippled-supreme-court.html?action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=opinion-c-col-left-region&region=opinion-c-col-left-region&WT.nav=opinion-c-col-left-region&referer=http://www.nytimes.com/> writes:

“Every day that passes without a ninth justice undermines the Supreme Court’s ability to function, and leaves millions of Americans waiting for justice or clarity as major legal questions are unresolved… Despite what Senate Republicans may say about the lack of harm in the delay in filling the vacancy, the court cannot do its job without a full bench.”

Toomey two-faced on federal judge vacancies.
The editorial board of the Lehigh-Valley Express Times<http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/opinion/index.ssf/2016/05/toomey_two-faced_on_federal_ju.html> writes:

“Toomey wants action on the confirmations of Judge Marilyn J. Horan in Pittsburgh and Judge Susan Paradise Baxter in Erie. The latter is especially critical because there is no federal judge in the entire northwest corner of the state… This a problem for the entire country, not just Pennsylvania. And it's beyond hypocritical of Toomey to expect that any judge deserves special treatment when he and most other GOP senators are blocking hearings — much less an up-or-down vote — on President Obama's choice of Judge Merrick Garland to replace the late Antonin Scalia on the U.S. Supreme Court.”

John Paul Stevens Calls Senate Inaction on Garland 'Unfortunate'
The National Law Journal<http://www.nationallawjournal.com/id=1202757857060/John-Paul-Stevens-Calls-Senate-Inaction-on-Garland-Unfortunate?cmp=share_twitter&slreturn=20160417152741> reports:

“An eight-justice U.S. Supreme Court is an “unhappy situation,” retired Justice John Paul Stevens said on Tuesday in urging the Senate to act on the nomination of Judge Merrick Garland. Although the justices adjust in “due course,” Stevens called for Senate action to fill the current vacancy—“the sooner the better,” he said—because the court does not function efficiently with only eight members… The Senate delay in acting on Garland’s nomination is “unfortunate,” Stevens said. “On the merits, he is entitled to sit on the court as soon as possible,” the retired justice said.”

Republicans Hurt Themselves With Obstruction on Judge Garland.
Inside Sources<http://www.insidesources.com/republicans-hurt-themselves-with-obstruction-on-judge-garland/> publishes an op-ed looking at the broad and growing unpopularity of the Senate GOP’s blockade of Chief Judge Garland’s nomination.

Angela Maria Kelley, executive director of the Center for American Progress Action Fund: “Across five states and nationally, voters view senators who obstruct the process more unfavorably at a much higher clip than those who have a more favorable view… The months of Senate GOP work-stoppage on the nomination isn’t just failing to win over support, they are simply losing the argument over whether to move forward in the confirmation process. And the result of their inaction is already taking a toll that will worsen.”

The Supreme Court is on track to have the lightest caseload in 70 years next term.
FiveThirtyEight<http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-supreme-courts-caseload-is-on-track-to-be-the-lightest-in-70-years/> reports that the justices’ reluctance to hear too many cases without a ninth member might explain the unusually sparse caseload.

“It was a day as quiet as Clarence Thomas during oral argument<http://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/clarence-thomass-disgraceful-silence>. The court agreed to hear exactly zero new cases, continuing to set a sparse stage for its next term, which may see the lightest caseload in its already-light recent history…. The reasons for the most recent slowdown “boiled down to a reluctance of the ideologically divided eight-member court to take on an issue in which it might not be able to provide a clear answer,” Robert Barnes wrote<https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/courts_law/scalias-death-affecting-next-term-too-pace-of-accepted-cases-at-supreme-court-slows/2016/05/01/1d304d1c-0ecb-11e6-bfa1-4efa856caf2a_story.html> early this month about an expert panel convened by the Constitutional Accountability Center.”

A look ahead at a sampling of activity by our grassroots allies and Democratic Senators:

WEDNESDAY 5/18/2016

Event: Public meeting with Judiciary Committee Democrats and friends of Chief Judge Garland
Location: Dirksen Senate Office Building Room 562, First St. NE. Washington, D.C.
Time: 11:30AM local time
Key briefers/speakers: Donna Bucella, former prosecutor in the Oklahoma City bombing case and current President of Compliance for Guidepost Solutions; Justin Driver, former law clerk to Chief Judge Garland and current University of Chicago Law School Professor of Law; Rodney Slater, former Secretary of Transportation and current Partner at Squire Patton Boggs; Judge Timothy K. Lewis, former Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit and current Partner at Schnader, Harrison, Segal & Lewis in Pittsburgh.
Other information: Participants will discuss the importance of a fully functioning Supreme Court, and to hear from some of those who know Chief Judge Garland personally and can speak to his lengthy public service career.

THURSDAY 5/19/2016

Event: Young leaders and members of Congress call for fair consideration of Supreme Court nominee
Location: Supreme Court steps, 1 First St NE, Washington, DC 20543
Time: 12:30PM local time
Host: People for the American Way Foundation and Generation Progress
Key briefers/speakers: Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ); Sen. Al Franken (D-MN); Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA); Rep. Ruben Gallega (D-AZ)
RSVP: Media is asked to please email [email-masked]<mailto:[email-masked]> to RSVP

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