Thread by @civilrightsorg

THREAD. It's not just #SCOTUS: With the help of @SenateMajLdr and @ChuckGrassley, Trump is trying to take over the entire federal bench. While we fight to #StopKavanaugh, here's what you should know this week about the lower courts and Trump's judicial takeover. #courtsmatter

This week, the Senate is set to vote on 5th Circuit nominee Andrew Oldham and 9th Circuit nominee Ryan Bounds – two more Trump judicial picks who are young, white, male, and extreme. It’s a disturbing pattern and a huge setback for judicial diversity in America. #courtsmatter

If these two conservative ideologues are approved by the GOP-led Senate, Trump will already have TWENTY-FOUR circuit court judges on the bench (just a year and a half after his inauguration). Trump is, disturbingly, 16+ months ahead of Obama’s pace on circuit court confirmations.

And: If the @SenateGOP confirms Bounds this week, it will be the first time in history a circuit court nominee is confirmed over the objections of BOTH home-state senators. That would be a dangerous erosion of a senator’s role in the judicial nominations process. #courtsmatter

There’s more: The Senate Judiciary Committee is scheduled to vote on David Porter’s 3rd Circuit nomination over the objections of his home-state senator, @SenBobCasey. That’s alarming enough, but we have substantive concerns too: bit.ly/2JvjcVa #courtsmatter

Obama nominated Rebecca Haywood, who would've been the first Black woman on the 3rd Circuit. But guess what: @SenToomey blocked her nomination. Now, @ChuckGrassley is moving forward on Porter – the second white man from Pennsylvania Trump has tapped for this court. #courtsmatter

Also up for consideration in committee is 11th Circuit nominee Britt Grant, who is a member of Trump’s #SCOTUS shortlist. In her previous job as Solicitor General of Georgia, Grant’s work sought to diminish civil & human rights. We strongly oppose her confirmation. #courtsmatter

We must all continue to be outraged over Trump's Supreme Court nomination – and fight to #StopKavanaugh's confirmation and to #SaveSCOTUS. But we can't lose sight of the lower courts, where judges have the final say in over 99 percent of federal cases. These #courtsmatter, too.