Tell the GOP: Stop Attacking Asian-American Judicial Nominees

Republicans in the Senate have banded together to kill the nominations of two highly qualified Asian-American candidates — Goodwin Liu and Eric M. Chen — for the federal bench.

Liu, a professor of law at the University of California, Berkeley, and Chen, a federal magistrate in San Francisco, have both cleared the Senate Judiciary Committee. By nominating both Liu and Chen, the White House had hoped to correct the historical underrepresentation of Asian-Americans on the federal bench. But apparently, the GOP doesn't want that to happen.

As the L.A. Times explains, the Senate must agree to carry over pending nominations when it goes on a 30-day recess. But Republican leaders have objected to carrying over Liu's and Chen's nominations. Or, as Sen. Dianne Feinstein (who recommended both Liu and Chen to President Obama) puts it, "The Republicans are obstructing and, in effect, trying to kill these nominations....It is tragic because these are very worthy nominees who deserve to have their nominations debated and put to a vote."

Send your senator a message right now, urging them to fight back against the GOP's attack on highly qualified Asian-American nominees to the federal bench.

Asian-Americans are shockingly underrepresented in our nation's court system. Prior to the confirmation of Denny Chin to the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals, there were no Asian-Americans among 175 active federal appellate judges. Meanwhile, only five Asian Pacific Americans have ever served as federal appellate court judges. That includes the Ninth Circuit, which covers states with large Asian populations such as California, Hawaii, Oregon and Washington. Out of approximately 875 federal judgeships, only 10 are currently filled by Asian Pacific Americans.

When it comes to Republican objections to these candidates, is it possible that Liu and Chen are too qualified? Chen, after all, is a federal magistrate and served as a lawyer for the American Civil Liberties Union for over 15 years — Erwin Chemerinsky, dean of the law school at UC Irvine, told Pacific Citizen that he could "easily imagine" Goodwin Liu as a Supreme Court nominee.

But by obstructing these nominees, the GOP are doing themselves no favors: next to Jewish Americans, Asian-Americans contribute more money per person to political parties and candidates than any other racial/ethnic or religious group, says Yen Le Espiritu, a professor at UC San Diego.

Mitch McConnell has convinced his Republican colleagues, moderates and conservatives alike, that it's fair game to attack these two highly qualified nominees. He and his pals think the Asian-American community and its allies will just sit back and let the GOP get in the way of history. But they're dead wrong.

To stop the GOP, Senate Democrats will need every vote they can get. They'll also have to convince beleaguered Senate majority leader Harry Reid that Liu's and Chen's nominations are worth the fight. Send your senator a message right now and tell them to stand up for Goodwin Liu and Eric M. Chen — and the Asian-American constituents who support them.

Photo Credit: U.S. Government