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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 14, 2018)
Page 4 February 14, 2018 Court Pick Apologizes for Racist Remarks C ontinued froM f ront the process. On Monday, Merkley and Wyden released the names of four possible nominees chosen by a bipartisan committee, com- prised of attorneys appointed by the two senators and Oregon U.S. Rep. Greg Walden. The list includes Bounds, Medford trial attorney Kelly Anderson, Port- land appellate attorney Thomas Christ, and Renata Gowie, an- other assistant U.S. attorney for Oregon. But Wyden and Merkley made their feelings about Bounds abundantly clear: “After the committee fin- ished its work, we learned that Ryan Bounds failed to disclose inflammatory writings that re- veal archaic and alarming views about sexual assault, the rights of workers, people of color, and Showdogs is a full service salon. We do baths, all over hair cuts, tooth brushing, nail trims, soft claws, flea treatments, mud baths, and ear cleaning. 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Instead, the president ac- cepted the recommendation of Bounds by Walden, Oregon’s lone Republican congressman. Bounds was re-nominated again last month, again without con- sulting the Oregon senators, who have continued with their own bi-partisan committee’s process of considering nominees. Trump, as he promised on the campaign trail, appears to have delegated court nominations to the conservative think tank, the Federalist Society, defined on its website as, “a group of conser- vatives and libertarians dedicat- ed to reforming the current legal order…to say what the law is, not what it should be.” Gil Carrasco, a law professor at Willamette University, an ex- pert in the law as it pertains to civil rights, immigration and the constitution, said the tradition that the administration consults with home state senators when considering a judicial appoint- ment has its underpinnings in Article II of the Constitution and sidestepping that process is a troubling break. “It is disturbing that this White House has affirmatively chosen to ignore a tradition that has existed in Oregon for over two decades,” he said. Carrasco also hinted that Bounds’ appointment reeks of nepotism. “This departure from our longstanding tradition is particularly problematic given that Ryan Bounds’ sister is the chief of staff of Representative Walden.” Tung Yin, law professor at Lewis & Clark Law School, said he doesn’t give a lot of weight to things that Bounds wrote when he was in his late teens or early 20s. “I don’t think it’s irrelevant, and he would certainly be asked about at confirmation hearings,” he said. The problem with Bounds is that it’s difficult to know where his sentiments lie since he’s never been a judge and “doesn’t have a paper trail” of judicial rulings to survey, according to Tung. “If somebody is so far out- side the mainstream, if they’re too extreme, they won’t get con- firmed,” he said. “But it’s hard to tell with Bounds.” But it’s not hard to tell the ef- fect of the administration’s tac- tics for Lena Zwarensteyn, di- rector of strategic engagement of the American Constitution Soci- ety, which follows a progressive agenda. The administration is “trying to achieve through the courts what they can’t achieve legisla- tively,” she said, by making life- time appointments to relatively young, white male conservatives to district courts throughout the country. “The president touted through- out the campaign his Supreme Court list, overturning Roe v. Wade, (his views on) the Second Amendment, and a bit of a hostile role toward consumer interests, clean air, clean water,” she said. At the same time, he is attempt- ing to “de-diversify the federal bench.” “Obama nominated women and people,” she said. “We are a very large, diverse community and that does need to be repre- sented on the bench, for the pub- lic’s trust of the bench, to see people who reflect them on the bench,” she said. “This admin- istration does not see that as a great benefit.” According to a January ar- ticle by the McClatchy news service, there are five vacancies on the 9th Circuit and two more will open up in the coming eight months and could dramatically affect the makeup of the liber- al-leaning court. “That means Trump could significantly influ- ence the West Coast judiciary by nominating the type of young, ideologically conservative judges he has tapped for other courts,” the article states. Of the 24 judges now sitting on the 9th Circuit, according to McClatchy, 18 were appointed by Democrats and six were ap- pointed by Republican George W. Bush. “If Trump is able to get all of his appointees confirmed this year, that split will shrink to 17-12,” the article states. “Re- publican appointees could ex- ceed Democrat appointees by the time Trump leaves office.” Zwarensteyn says these moves by the administration are “scary” because Trump’s appointments to these lifetime positions can outlast anyone currently holding office. “It’s one thing to nominate predominantly white men, but it’s another thing to nominate white men who have made hos- tile comments about marginal- ized and diverse communities who want to feel like they have a fair shake,” she said. “It’s pretty terrifying but also a time to look at who we want in these offices.” Avalon Flowers 520 SW 3rd Ave., Portland, OR 97204 • 503-796-9250 A full service flower experience Cori Stewart-- Owner, Operator • Birthdays • Anniversaries • Funerals • Weddings Open: Mon.-Fri. 7:30am til 5:30pm Saturday 9am til 2pm. 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