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Home > Press Room > 2006 > Press Release
Press Release
HISPANIC
CIVIL RIGHTS GROUPS URGE NO VOTE ON CLOTURE
January 27, 2006
Contact: Estuardo V. Rodriguez, Jr. 202-463-4806
Stacey A. Schacht 202-295-5056
Following
developments yesterday in the debate over the
nomination of Samuel Alito the Supreme Court,
the Labor Council for Latin American Advancement
(LCLAA), the Hispanic Federation, Hispanics for
a Fair Judiciary (HFJ), the Mexican-American
Legal Defense and Education Fund (MALDEF) and
the League of United Latin American Citizens
(LULAC) issued this joint statement:
“The Republican Senate leadership has scheduled
a cloture vote, which is a
motion or procedure aimed at bringing debate to
a quick end, for next Monday, January 30, to
force a final vote on the nomination of Judge
Samuel Alito.
This attempt
to shut down the democratic process by limiting
Senate debate on Judge Alito comes at a time
when crucial civil rights liberties are
threatened and the protection of our rights is
vulnerable in the name of national security.
Samuel A. Alito has
proven to be one of the most controversial
nominations for the Supreme Court in recent
history. Yet Senate leadership appears to
believe that there has been adequate debate on
the matter.
The Senate Judiciary Committee hearings last
week proved what we had suspected -- if
confirmed to the Supreme Court, Alito will not
protect core civil rights and his deference to
the Executive Branch will upset the vital role
of our government’s checks and balances.
Further, in response to Senators’ questions
about birthright citizenship, Judge Alito failed
to provide a response about his views on whether
the 14th Amendment grants U.S.
citizenship to all persons born in the United
States.
Judge Alito’s opinions and writings reveal a man
who poses a serious threat to basic principles
of social justice and to the needs of
hard-working families, women, the disabled, the
elderly, immigrants, and to Latinos and other
minorities.
Please contact your
United States Senators to voice your concerns
about this nomination and the forthcoming
cloture vote. A nomination to the United States
Supreme Court deserves a full and vigorous
debate on the Senate floor. Urge your Senators
to fulfill their Constitutional duty to conduct
a thorough debate and vote NO on cloture.
If
Judge Alito is confirmed, ordinary Americans
will pay the price.”
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