U.S. Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) is under fire from progressive group Demand Justice for voting in favor of President Donald Trump's judicial nominees. (Photo: U.S. Military)
Oct 02, 2019
A number of Senate Democrats are angry at judicial advocacy group Demand Justice for going after the chamber's members for voting in favor of President Donald Trump's unprecedented slew of federal judges, but the organization's leader isn't backing down.
"We think that the idea of doing horse trading with this administration is not worth it," Demand Justice executive director Brian Fallon told Politico Wednesday.
\u201cDemocratic senators are starting to get fed up with Demand Justice. Durbin called the latest ad against Coons "way out of line" and senators say they wish the group wouldn't go after their colleagues https://t.co/ZEo9Ogukck via @politico\u201d— Marianne LeVine (@Marianne LeVine) 1570018688
Fallon is under fire from Democratic senators who feel that Demand Justice's September ad buy in Delaware targeting Sen. Chris Coons, a Democrat, is over the line. Coons has supported a number of Trump nominees, including, Demand Justice said, some whose support of Brown v. Board of Education is in doubt.
"That was way out of line," complained Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.).
But it's in keeping with the group's mission, as Politico explained:
Demand Justice's message on judges is simple: Democrats should reject all Trump's judges. Fallon argues that Republicans blocked President Barack Obama's judicial nominees and that Democrats should take a page from their playbook. Like the conservative Judicial Crisis Network, Demand Justice uses ads to pressure Democratic senators on their voting records.
When the ad buy was announced, Coons spokesman Sean Coits rejected Demand Justice's accusations.
"Senator Coons has opposed unqualified Trump nominees--both for judgeships and administration positions," said Coits, "and has supported some whom he believes are qualified for their positions."
The criticism isn't deterring Fallon and Demand Justice, however.
"We plan to invest in Delaware a lot more heavily in the coming months, assuming Chris Coons continues voting for Trump judges," Fallon said. "If that's a record he's proud of and feels like he can defend then he has nothing to worry about from our ads."
Fallon was silent on social media Wednesday after the Politico report's release. But he did retweet Demand Justice:
\u201cChris Coons believes that even Trump\u2019s judges who don\u2019t stand by the landmark civil rights case Brown v Board of Education belong on the federal bench. \nTell Coons to do better: \nhttps://t.co/d4KaPZVrWh\u201d— Demand Justice (@Demand Justice) 1570042800
Join Us: News for people demanding a better world
Common Dreams is powered by optimists who believe in the power of informed and engaged citizens to ignite and enact change to make the world a better place. We're hundreds of thousands strong, but every single supporter makes the difference. Your contribution supports this bold media model—free, independent, and dedicated to reporting the facts every day. Stand with us in the fight for economic equality, social justice, human rights, and a more sustainable future. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover the issues the corporate media never will. Join with us today! |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
A number of Senate Democrats are angry at judicial advocacy group Demand Justice for going after the chamber's members for voting in favor of President Donald Trump's unprecedented slew of federal judges, but the organization's leader isn't backing down.
"We think that the idea of doing horse trading with this administration is not worth it," Demand Justice executive director Brian Fallon told Politico Wednesday.
\u201cDemocratic senators are starting to get fed up with Demand Justice. Durbin called the latest ad against Coons "way out of line" and senators say they wish the group wouldn't go after their colleagues https://t.co/ZEo9Ogukck via @politico\u201d— Marianne LeVine (@Marianne LeVine) 1570018688
Fallon is under fire from Democratic senators who feel that Demand Justice's September ad buy in Delaware targeting Sen. Chris Coons, a Democrat, is over the line. Coons has supported a number of Trump nominees, including, Demand Justice said, some whose support of Brown v. Board of Education is in doubt.
"That was way out of line," complained Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.).
But it's in keeping with the group's mission, as Politico explained:
Demand Justice's message on judges is simple: Democrats should reject all Trump's judges. Fallon argues that Republicans blocked President Barack Obama's judicial nominees and that Democrats should take a page from their playbook. Like the conservative Judicial Crisis Network, Demand Justice uses ads to pressure Democratic senators on their voting records.
When the ad buy was announced, Coons spokesman Sean Coits rejected Demand Justice's accusations.
"Senator Coons has opposed unqualified Trump nominees--both for judgeships and administration positions," said Coits, "and has supported some whom he believes are qualified for their positions."
The criticism isn't deterring Fallon and Demand Justice, however.
"We plan to invest in Delaware a lot more heavily in the coming months, assuming Chris Coons continues voting for Trump judges," Fallon said. "If that's a record he's proud of and feels like he can defend then he has nothing to worry about from our ads."
Fallon was silent on social media Wednesday after the Politico report's release. But he did retweet Demand Justice:
\u201cChris Coons believes that even Trump\u2019s judges who don\u2019t stand by the landmark civil rights case Brown v Board of Education belong on the federal bench. \nTell Coons to do better: \nhttps://t.co/d4KaPZVrWh\u201d— Demand Justice (@Demand Justice) 1570042800
A number of Senate Democrats are angry at judicial advocacy group Demand Justice for going after the chamber's members for voting in favor of President Donald Trump's unprecedented slew of federal judges, but the organization's leader isn't backing down.
"We think that the idea of doing horse trading with this administration is not worth it," Demand Justice executive director Brian Fallon told Politico Wednesday.
\u201cDemocratic senators are starting to get fed up with Demand Justice. Durbin called the latest ad against Coons "way out of line" and senators say they wish the group wouldn't go after their colleagues https://t.co/ZEo9Ogukck via @politico\u201d— Marianne LeVine (@Marianne LeVine) 1570018688
Fallon is under fire from Democratic senators who feel that Demand Justice's September ad buy in Delaware targeting Sen. Chris Coons, a Democrat, is over the line. Coons has supported a number of Trump nominees, including, Demand Justice said, some whose support of Brown v. Board of Education is in doubt.
"That was way out of line," complained Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.).
But it's in keeping with the group's mission, as Politico explained:
Demand Justice's message on judges is simple: Democrats should reject all Trump's judges. Fallon argues that Republicans blocked President Barack Obama's judicial nominees and that Democrats should take a page from their playbook. Like the conservative Judicial Crisis Network, Demand Justice uses ads to pressure Democratic senators on their voting records.
When the ad buy was announced, Coons spokesman Sean Coits rejected Demand Justice's accusations.
"Senator Coons has opposed unqualified Trump nominees--both for judgeships and administration positions," said Coits, "and has supported some whom he believes are qualified for their positions."
The criticism isn't deterring Fallon and Demand Justice, however.
"We plan to invest in Delaware a lot more heavily in the coming months, assuming Chris Coons continues voting for Trump judges," Fallon said. "If that's a record he's proud of and feels like he can defend then he has nothing to worry about from our ads."
Fallon was silent on social media Wednesday after the Politico report's release. But he did retweet Demand Justice:
\u201cChris Coons believes that even Trump\u2019s judges who don\u2019t stand by the landmark civil rights case Brown v Board of Education belong on the federal bench. \nTell Coons to do better: \nhttps://t.co/d4KaPZVrWh\u201d— Demand Justice (@Demand Justice) 1570042800
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.