Summary: Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer voted against a federal judge nominee because of the color of his skin.
One of President Donald Trump nominations for federal judgeship was Marvin Quattlebaum. Quattlebaum is a partner at Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough in Greenville, South Carolina. When Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer learned of the nomination, he was quick to vote against the candidate because of his skin color. Quattlebaum is white.
Schumer claims the nomination “speaks to the overall lack of diversity in President Trump’s selections for the federal judiciary.” Schumer has a problem with the fact that a lot of Trump’s nominees are white males. When Obama was president, the Republicans vetoed two of his nominations, who happened to be black judges.
Schumer said, “It is long past time that the judiciary starts looking a lot more like the America it represents. Having a diversity of views and experience on the federal bench is necessary for the equal administration of justice.” He sees the nomination as a “giant step backwards.”
Republicans were not impressed with his comments. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C. called Schumer’s vote against Quattlebaum a “massive step backward.” Graham continued in his tweet, “I’ve known Chuck Schumer for years. He is not a racist, but this was an absolutely shameful reason to vote against a very qualified nominee like Marvin Quattlebaum. Voting against a highly qualified nominee because of the color of his skin does nothing to bring our country and nation together.”
Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, who happens to be the GOP’s sole black senator, tweeted, “Perhaps Senate Democrats should be more worried about the lack of diversity on their own staffs than attacking an extremely well-qualified judicial nominee from the great state of South Carolina.”
Quattlebaum was confirmed to the district judgeship despite Schumer’s opposition with a 69-29 majority.
Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., pointed out on Twitter that the 2013 nominees, Alison Lee and Don Beatty, were turned down for other reasons. Lee withdrew “because of a significant bond issue.” Beatty was later appointed as the Chief Justice of South Carolina’s Supreme Court.
Graham and Scott had an issue with a controversial ruling Lee made involving burglary suspect Lorenzo Young. She consolidated bonds and reduced the amount from $225,000 to $175,000 for Young. He was released from jail and soon after charged with killing a 33-year-old woman.
Schumer contends that the Quattlebaum was only nominated because the position was still vacant because Republican senators failed to turn in their “blue slips,” the form senators use to give approval or disapproval for a home state nominee. Democrats claim that Republicans have done this multiple times to block Obama’s nominees.
Do you think Schumer, a white male, should give up his position for the sake of diversity? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below.
To learn more about President Donald Trump’s other nominees, read these articles:
- President Donald Trump Nominates 16 Judges
- Trump Judicial Nominee Withdraws after Being Unable to Answer Basic Questions
- Donald Trump’s Potential SCOTUS Nominees
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