Alliance for Justice Says 400 Days of Obstruction Are Enough

Calls for Confirmation of Goodwin Liu to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals

Washington, D.C., May 17, 2011—After initially being nominated by President Obama for a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in February 2010, and re-nominated twice more during a year of unremitting obstruction, Goodwin Liu finally awaits consideration by the full United States Senate this Thursday, May 19. His nomination, which is now over 400 days old, is expected to face vehement Republican opposition and will require a cloture vote to overcome a filibuster and proceed to final consideration.

One of the most brilliant legal minds of his generation, Liu is renowned as a legal scholar, award-winning teacher, dedicated public servant, and savvy lawyer. Liu’s views are well within the legal mainstream, and, as a consequence, he has widespread support from prominent individuals across the ideological spectrum. There is no valid justification for preventing a final vote on his nomination, a principle that should be particularly true for Senators who have expressed opposition to filibusters of judicial nominees in the past. Since the beginning of the Obama administration, the willful obstruction of judicial nominees by Republican Senators has become a national issue and threatens to undermine not only the efficient functioning of the federal court system, but also the traditions of the U. S. Senate.

The caricatures of Liu’s record offered by some Republicans are unfair and distorted, and are rooted not in the belief that he is unqualified or overtly ideological, but in the fear that because of his intellect, personal warmth, relative youth, and persuasive scholarship he may at some point in his career be on a trajectory for advancement. As Alliance for Justice President Nan Aron said, “The problem Republicans have with Goodwin Liu isn’t that he’s not good enough to be a judge, it’s that he’s too good. The circuit courts require judges who are the best of the best, and thoughtful, fair-minded people seeking a strong, open-minded, and constitutionally faithful judiciary should be eager to have Goodwin Liu on the federal bench.”

Liu’s testimony (twice) before the Senate Judiciary Committee and his personal and professional record demonstrate that:

Goodwin Liu is extremely well qualified to be a circuit court judge. 

• He has sterling academic qualification. Liu attended Stanford University, graduating Phi Beta Kappa in 1991.  He was co-president of the student body and the recipient of the Lloyd W. Dinkelspiel Award, the University’s highest honor for outstanding service to undergraduate education.  He went on to receive his M.A. at Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar in 1993.  He later graduated from Yale Law School in 1998, where he was an editor of the Yale Law Journal.
•  He received the highest possible rating from the ABA: “unanimously well-qualified.”
• Liu has broad experience in the academic, public and private sectors, providing the varied experience and perspectives that make a great judge. He served in the public sector at the Corporation for National Service and the U.S. Department of Education, and practiced law in the private sector at O’Melveny & Myers. He currently is Associate Dean and Professor of Law at University of California Berkeley School of Law (Boalt Hall). 

Goodwin Liu is a mainstream nominee with strong support from across the ideological spectrum, including Republican lawyers and academics.

• Liu’s views are well within the legal mainstream and are not ideological. For example, his academic writings include support for charter schools and school vouchers.
•  He has won strong praise from individuals representing a wide variety of ideologies, interests, and viewpoints: 
•  Kenneth Starr, former Whitewater prosecutor and appeals court judge called Liu “a person of great intellect, accomplishment, and integrity,” and “an extraordinarily qualified nominee.” 
• Former Rep. Bob Barr (R-Ga.) said Liu’s writing “reveals his commitment to the Constitution.”
• Former Congressman Tom Campbell (R- Calif.) said that “Liu will bring scholarly distinction and a strong reputation for integrity, fair-mindedness, and collegiality to the Ninth Circuit.”
• Richard Painter, who worked on the confirmations of John Roberts and Samuel Alito as President George W. Bush’s chief ethics counsel, wrote that Liu is an “exceptionally qualified, measured, and mainstream nominee” who the Senate should “vote to confirm.”
•  Christopher Edley, Dean of the University of California, Berkley, Law School, said that Liu “has wonderful values, but at the end of the day, he’s not ideological.”
• Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) noted, “[h]e’s as sharp as they come, with a kind demeanor and a good temperament . . . [a]nd he’s someone who has earned the broad respect of his colleagues on the left and the right.” Senator Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) echoed these sentiments, stating, “He is a proven authority on constitutional law with a keen intellect.”
• A bipartisan group of education policy experts, wrote that, “… his record demonstrates the habits of rigorous inquiry, open-mindedness, independence, and intellectual honesty that we want and expect our judges to have. His writings are meticulously researched and carefully argued, and they reflect a willingness to consider ideas on their substantive merits no matter where they lie on the political spectrum. Moreover, we are confident in Professor Liu’s ability to decide cases based on the facts and the law, regardless of his policy views. His scholarship amply demonstrates that kind of intellectual discipline, and our high regard for his work is widely shared.”
• The California Correctional Peace Officers Association, endorsed his nomination, writing that “We are confident he will further the cause of justice and follow the law and Constitution for all parties that come before his Court, again including crime victims and peace officers.”
• Twenty-seven former federal judges and prosecutors wrote to protest attacks on Liu’s record, saying that “rhetoric surrounding the criticism of his nomination has reached an unacceptable level, beyond what is appropriate in a civil, spirited debate,” and concluding that, “We applaud Professor Liu’s commitment to ensuring the constitutional rights of defendants facing the death penalty. Contrary to his critics’ claims, his commitment to the Constitution is commendable and vital for anyone seeking a position in what is often the court of last resort for individuals seeking to protect their constitutional rights.” 

Goodwin Liu’s story exemplifies the American Dream.

• His parents are immigrants from Taiwan, and although born in Georgia, he learned English only when he began attending public school in kindergarten. After moving to California, he overcame struggles with language to rise to co-valedictorian of his high school class, and then went on to academic distinction at Stanford, Oxford, and Yale.
• He would be only the second Asian American serving on a federal court of appeals, and the only Asian-American judge in active service on the Ninth Circuit, which includes Western states with large Asian-American populations.

Goodwin Liu’s record has been grossly and unfairly distorted for partisan political purposes.

In attempts to discredit his nomination, critics have peddled misinformation, saying Liu opposes the death penalty and gun rights, and supports mandated welfare and racial quotas. These charges are absolutely false, as his testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee clearly shows. Among his statements under oath are:

• “I would have no difficulty or objection of any sort, personal or legal, to enforcing the law as written with respect to the death penalty.”
• “I absolutely do not support racial quotas.”
• “Judges have no role in inventing welfare rights.” 
• “The Supreme Court has clearly said that [the Second Amendment] is a clear command that protects an individual’s right to bear arms.”
• “The role of the judge is to faithfully follow the law as it is written and as it is given by the Supreme Court. And there is no room for invention or creation of new theories. That’s simply not the role of the judge.”

Goodwin Liu is one of the most intellectually, professionally, and temperamentally well-qualified nominees to the federal courts in recent history. After over a year waiting for consideration of his nomination, he deserves to receive a final yes-or-no vote on May 19. Alliance for Justice urges fair-minded Senators to protect the integrity of the judicial system and the traditions of the Senate by voting against a filibuster of Goodwin Liu’s nomination, and then to confirm him to a seat on the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, where, without question, he will serve the interests of justice with distinction. 

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A report (PDF) describing the personal, professional, and legal record of Goodwin Liu is available at: http://www.afj.org/ztest/check-the-facts/nominees/goodwin-liu-report-final.pdf.

General information about judicial nominations, including a continually updated snapshot of the nomination process in the current Congress, can be found at: http://www.afj.org/judicial-selection/. 

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Alliance for Justice is a national association of over 100 organizations, representing a broad array of groups committed to progressive values and the creation of an equitable, just, and free society. AFJ works to ensure that the federal judiciary advances core constitutional values, preserves human rights and unfettered access to the courts, and adheres to the even-handed administration of justice for all Americans. It is the leading expert on the legal framework for nonprofit advocacy efforts, providing definitive information, resources, and technical assistance that encourages organizations and their funding partners to fully exercise their right to be active participants in the democratic process. AFJ is based in Washington, D.C. Additional information can be found at www.afj.org.