Skip to content

Senate Dem Leaders Write To Urge Bush, Frist, Hastert To Immediately Denounce Inflammatory Remarks By Their Supporters

Conservative Leaders Compare Judges to KKK, Condone Stalins Murderous Tactics, Call for Mass ImpeachmentRepublicans Silence on Heinous Remarks Could Encourage Further Threats and Violence to Independent Judiciary Already Under Attack


U.S. Senators Chuck Schumer, Harry Reid, Dick Durbin, and Debbie Stabenow sent a letter today urging President Bush, Senator Frist, and Speaker Hastert to immediately denounce a number of inflammatory comments made by conservative leaders openly threatening sitting judges. Many of these remarks, some by sitting members of Congress others by conservative leaders, might be misused to provide unstable individuals some justification for using violence against judges who dont rule in their favor.

Sen. Schumer said, The Republican abuse of power has been pushed by extremists who want to punish an independent judiciary and simultaneously obliterate checks and balances effectively making the U.S. Senate a rubber stamp for judicial nominees.

These outrageous statements represent a departure from a line of civility which we have always refused to cross when it comes to dealing with the separate branches of government. It is time to put an end to this. We need to have an independent judiciary in touch with the ordinary lives of American citizens, in touch with the value of our families. But we always should stand and defend the independence of our judiciary and the integrity of the men and women who serve in that branch, said Durbin.

The letter states, &we are asking you to immediately denounce the inflammatory statements made by highprofile conservative leaders that might encourage violence against judges. These rhetorical attacks on judges come during a volatile time where judges and their families have been slain. Among the volatile statements made are:

" This week Dr. James Dobson on his Focus on the Family radio broadcast said, Justice Scalia referred to his colleagues on the court as black robed masters. Isnt that incredible? & I heard a minister talking about the great injustice and evil of the men in white robes, the Ku Klux Klan, that roamed the country and the South and they did great wrong to civil rights and to morality and now we have black robed men, and thats what youre talking about.

" Just last week, a conservative lawyerauthor, Edwin Vieira, at the Judeo Christian Council for Constitutional Restoration, which was also addressed by House Majority Leader Tom Delay, said that Justice Kennedy should be impeached and said, Stalin had a slogan, and it worked very well for him, whenever he ran into difficulty: 'no man, no problem. As you may know, the full Joseph Stalin quote is, "Death solves all problems: no man, no problem."

" Alan Keyes, a former Republican candidate for President and the U.S. Senate also said at the JudeoChristian Council Conference, "I believe that in our country today the judiciary is the focus of evil."

" Michael Schwartz, Sen. Coburns Chief of Staff, said at the JudeoChristian Conference, "I am in favor of impeachment," even, "mass impeachment" might be needed.

" House Majority Leader Tom DeLay said, The time will come for the men responsible for this [the Schiavo court decision] to answer for their behavior.

The Democratic leaders continued, Comparing the United States judicial system and those who serve on it to the Ku Klux Klan, condoning the murderous Joseph Stalin, calling for mass impeachment is unacceptable.

Only in a banana republic would you expect judges to be in fear of retribution from public figures for ruling for or against powerful interests. These threats of mass impeachment and even violence are dangerous and should be denounced immediately, Schumer concluded.

Click here to view letter.